Product Description

THE SIEGE OF DERRY is one of the key flash points in the troubled history of Ireland and Britain. In 1688 William of Orange had claimed the English throne, forcing the catholic James II to flee to Ireland. From there he hoped to mount his comeback. In December of that year James' troops attempted to take over the protestant city of Derry. To the now-famous cry of 'No Surrender' the apprentice boys closed the city gates to James' army and the 105-day siege begun. The besiegers effectively used cannon and mortar to shell the defenders - with terrifying results - and conditions became desperate as the city began to run out of food. Carlo Gebler's book thrillingly describes both the events leading up to the siege and the heroic struggles within and outside Derry as the five-month battle waged.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #44863 in Books
• Published on: 2006-03-02
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 384 pages

Review
'A vivid and fascinating portrait of 17th-century Irish politics' SUNDAY TELEGRAPH 'A fascinating and detached account of the siege and the months that led up to it' SUNDAY INDEPENDENT 'The smell of gunpowder permeates Gebler's excellent account of the 105 day siege of Derry.' INDEPENDENT 'Gebler marshals his skills as a writer and storyteller to great effect.' IRISH TIMES 'Invaluable for anyone who wishes to understand not only Ireland of the 17th century, but also Ireland as it is today.' DAILY TELEGRAPH

Independent, March 2006
‘The smell of gunpowder permeates Gébler’s excellent account of the 105-day siege of Derry in 1689 .. packed with detail’

Sunday Tribune, March 2006
‘Gébler provides a comprehensive account, dispelling a few myths and focusing in on forgotten leaders .. with exemplary clarity’

Customer Reviews

Nice story, pity about the history
This is a good story and it's well told but it's a pity that the author didn't do a bit more research into the period and the military thinking and tactics of the time. He would also have helped his readers by including a few decent maps that would have helped us to locate accurately some of the places to which he refers. At times I wasn't convinced that he knew the layout of Derry well at all. Overall, I found the book disappointing and could not recommend it wholeheartedy as a reliable account of the siege of Derry. It certainly isn't definitive.

Well written; history it is not.
I read this book with much interest and in the space of day. It is very well written and colourful in its descriptions. But I have to say that it is not good history. The author has done much research but still fails to give us the full story and some of his little personal anecdotes jar, especially when he recalls B Specials 'oppressing' Northern Irish nationalists in the early 1970s. The Specials ceased to exist in March 1970 so they would have been hard put to oppress anybody in the succeeding years.
It's also clear that the author knows nothing about siege warfare or about warfare in the 17th century generally. His bibliography does not include Richard Doherty's 'The Williamite War in Ireland'. Had he read this masterly account he would have had a better idea of what was happening and why. Among his blunders one of the more obvious is the presence at Derry of the 9th and 17th Regiments of Foot - about six decades before the system of numbering regiments was adopted. I could go on but I won't. If you want to read a good story, then this is for you but it want to read real history then you'll have to wait.

Illuminating for the ill-informed
Despite regarding myself a semi-educated Irishman, I realised I knew very little about the seventeeth century events that shaped much of subsequent history and politics on the island.

Other reviewers have criticised elements of the historical accuracy or thoroughness of this account and their comments seem fair. However, I felt the book served its purpose (for me, at least) of being a readable and compact account of the siege, while giving some flavour of the times.

Much of what one needs to know about modern northern Irish mindsets is to be found here. Its incredible to reflect how little has changed in some ways.

Like all natives, the first thing I checked was whether the writer had any trace of bias, but happily his account is objective and neutral.