Limerick, Treaty of, ended the war between the English kings William III and James II. The English had deposed James, a Roman Catholic, in 1688 and made William, a Protestant, king. James’s supporters, called Jacobites, started rebelling in Ireland in 1689. William III repeatedly defeated the Jacobites until in 1691 they held only Limerick. The Jacobite forces chose to surrender, and the two sides signed the Treaty of Limerick on October 3.
The treaty gave the Jacobites three choices: to take an oath of loyalty to William and return to their homes and lands; to enlist in William’s forces; or to go to France. Most of them went to France, where most of the people were also Catholics. The treaty also granted security of property and religious freedom to Catholics in Ireland. William intended to honor the treaty, but the English Parliament considered it too lenient and did not honor it. Much of the land and property of the Jacobites was later confiscated.
See also Boyne, Battle of the.
