Siege of Drogheda
53°42′50″N 6°21′1″W / 53.71389°N 6.35028°W
| Siege of Drogheda (1649) | |||||||
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| Part of the Cromwellian Conquest of Ireland | |||||||
A plan of Drogheda in 1649 | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
| Commonwealth of England |
Royalists Irish Confederates | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Oliver Cromwell | Arthur Aston | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| c. 12,000 | 2,547 | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| c. 150 killed or wounded | c. 2,000 killed, wounded or captured | ||||||
| 700–800 civilians killed | |||||||
The siege of Drogheda took place from 3 to 11 September 1649, at the outset of the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland. The coastal town of Drogheda was held by a mixed garrison of Irish Catholics and Royalists under the command of Sir Arthur Aston, when it was besieged by English Commonwealth forces under Oliver Cromwell. After Aston rejected an invitation to surrender, the town was stormed and much of the garrison executed, along with an unknown but "significant number" of civilians. The aftermath of the siege is viewed as an atrocity which still impacts Cromwell's modern reputation.