Battle of the Ford of the Biscuits 1594
Marker: recorded battle location (no official boundary).
Key facts
| Date (year) | 1594 | Wikidata P585 point in time |
|---|---|---|
| Century | 16th century | derived |
| Period | Tudor & early Stuart | derived |
| Country | Northern Ireland | derived |
| War / conflict | Nine Years' War | Wikidata |
About the battle
The Battle of the Ford of the Biscuits (Irish: Bel-atha-na-mBriosgadh) took place in Fermanagh, Ireland on 7 August 1594, during the Nine Years' War. A column of almost 650 English troops led by Sir Henry Duke was ambushed and defeated by a Gaelic Irish force under Hugh Maguire and Cormac MacBaron O'Neill at the Arney River. The English column had been sent to relieve and resupply Enniskillen Castle, which had been under siege by the Irish since May. The English suffered at least 56 killed and 69 wounded, and were forced to make a hasty retreat.
The battle gained its name because the supplies of the English, largely hard biscuits, were left scattered and floating in the river. The battle was an early engagement of the Nine Years' War, and exposed the vulnerability of the English to ambushes in the wilder parts of Ulster with its thick woods and bogs.
Visiting the battlefield
Location
- Recorded location (Wikidata; may be approximate): 54.2770, -7.6390
Battlefields are often on private farmland: please keep to public rights of way and respect landowners.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Battle of the Ford of the Biscuits (revision 1370599580), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section; condensed by selecting paragraphs; citations removed. No text added.
Battle location from Wikidata (CC0).
Nearby battlefields
- Battle of Magh Slecht 1256 · 17 km
- Battle of Newtownbutler 1689 · 21 km
- Battle of Clones 1643 · 28 km
- Battle of Belleek 1593 · 37 km
- Battle of Áth an Chip 1270 · 42 km
- Battle of Ballinamuck 1798 · 46 km
Other battles of the Nine Years' War
- Battle of Belleek 1593
- Battle of Carrickfergus 1597
- Battle of the Yellow Ford 1598
- Battle of Curlew Pass 1599
- Battle of Moyry Pass 1600
All battles of the Nine Years' War →
Browse more: battles in Northern Ireland · Tudor & early Stuart · 16th century battles