Battle of Antrim

Molten rock from the Paleogene era still lies beneath the soil where United Irishmen charged British guns on 7 June 1798. Henry Joy McCracken led fewer than 4,000 fighters into Antrim town after delaying the attack, but cavalry charging what they believed was a rout rode straight into a trap behind a churchyard wall. The battle ended in British victory, yet the county governor died from his wounds and the rebellion collapsed across County Antrim.