1690 - Billy and Jimmy (not forgetting Lou)

1690 saw historic battles
One remembered and one now forgotten
Opposite corners of the British Isles
The South Coast and the River Boyne, Ireland
The struggle for the British succession
With input from Louis the Fourteenth who
Supported King James over William
Of Orange (and Mary). The French withdrew
Their troops from Ireland. James, cowardly, flew
Never to return. Meanwhile, a naval
Battle was fought off Beachy Head. France won
But failed to follow up, and Britain grew
Thereafter into a formidable
Naval power, France pre-eminent on land