Sack of Wexford

Oliver Cromwell's army stormed Wexford in October 1649 after negotiations collapsed, killing thousands of soldiers and civilians before many others drowned fleeing across the River Slaney. The port had served Confederate privateers and linked Ireland to the exiled Royalist court, making it a strategic threat rather than a random target. That distinction does not soften the horror, but it explains why the assault came so quickly and why the tragedy still echoes through the town's memory.