Atlas of Battles

battle, major, early modern

Battle of the Boyne

Battle of the Boyne was a battle fought on 1 July 1690 at Drogheda, in what is now Ireland. It was part of the Williamite War in Ireland, which ran from 1689 to 1691. The recorded result: Williamite victory. Recorded strength: 36,000 against 23,500.

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De slag aan de Boyne (Ierland) tussen de legers van Jacobus II en Willem III, 12 juli 1690. In het midden vindt een gevecht tussen ruiters plaats. Op de grond liggen gedode soldaten en paarden.
De slag aan de Boyne (Ierland) tussen de legers van Jacobus II en Willem III, 12 juli 1690. In het midden vindt een gevecht tussen ruiters plaats. Op de grond liggen gedode soldaten en paarden.. Jan van Huchtenburgh, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Fought1 July 1690
WhereDrogheda, Ireland53.723N, 6.424W
OutcomeWilliamite victory
BelligerentsWilliamites; Dutch RepublicagainstJacobites; Kingdom of France
Casualties and losses500 killed or woundedand1,500 killed or wounded
Part ofWilliamite War in Ireland1689 to 1691

Where it sits in the Williamite War in Ireland

Siege of Carrickfergus, 1689Battle of Belleek, 1689Battle of Newtownbutler, 1689Siege of Derry, 1689Battle of Cavan, 1690Battle of the Boyne, 1690Siege of Athlone, 1690Siege of Limerick, 1690Siege of Cork, 1690Siege of Limerick, 1691Siege of Athlone, 1691Battle of Aughrim, 169116891691Battle of the Boyne, 1690
12 placed engagements of the Williamite War in Ireland in time order; taller ticks are more widely documented. Each tick is a link.

Record

Date1 July 1690
PlaceDrogheda, Ireland
53.723N, 6.424W
KindBattle, early modern
Strength36,00023,500
Casualties and losses500 killed or wounded1,500 killed or wounded
Commanders
Battle of the BoyneBattle of the BoyneSiege of DroghedaSiege of DroghedaBattle of JulianstownBattle of Tara HillBattle of TaraBattle of Tara HillBattle of TaraBelfastLimerickGalwayDundalkDouglasKilkennySligoLisburn100 km53.723N, 6.424W
The recorded site, with the nearest other engagements in the atlas. Present-day coastlines, rivers and borders; towns from Natural Earth.

The ground today

Relief of the ground around the site of Battle of the Boyne
Relief within about 10.0 km of the site, contours every 25 m. Copernicus DEM GLO-30, ESA.
Satellite view of the site of Battle of the Boyne today
The same ground from Sentinel-2 on 2025-04-09. Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2025.

The recorded site stands at about 14 m; within 10.0 km the ground runs from -26 to 185 m, 211 m of relief, hilly country and today it is 53% grassland, 26% cropland, 17% tree cover.

grassland: 53%cropland: 26%tree cover: 17%built-up: 3%grassland 53%cropland 26%tree cover 17%built-up 3%
west to east, 10.0 km0 to 61 mnorth to south, 10.0 km0 to 130 m
Elevation from the Copernicus DEM GLO-30 (ESA, Airbus); land cover from ESA WorldCover 2021 (CC BY 4.0), within about 5 km of the recorded site. Computed, not recorded.

Nearest engagements

Contested ground: this site was fought over 3 times between 1641 and 1690.

In the same war

Elsewhere in 1690

Combat data (CDB90)

Attacker: ENG ARMYDefender: ENG & IRISH REB ARMY
Strength35,00023,000
Casualties2,000 (5.7%)1,500 (6.5%)
Mission accomplishment, 1 to 1095
Outcomeattacker won
Duration1 day
Front width8 km5 km
Attacker advanced2 km

From the US Army Concepts Analysis Agency Database of Battles (CDB90, battle 43), public domain, in the CC0 tidy edition by Jeffrey B. Arnold. Figures are the database's estimates, compiled in 1990 from published histories, and may differ from the Wikipedia infobox above.

Battle of the Boyne is one of 1,470 engagements of the 17th century in the atlas and one of 114 in present-day Ireland.

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q644960, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Battle of the Boyne, revision 1383176498, read 2026-11-14, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0; the article's text is not reproduced here. Present-day country and state from Natural Earth. Dates before 1582 follow the Julian calendar as recorded.