Ever since 1689, when its Protestant citizens cried "No surrender!" and withstood a 105-day siege by the Catholic armies of James II, the city of Londonderry has been the symbol of Protestant triumph and Catholic humiliation. For nearly three centuries after the siege, Catholic residents of the city were forbidden by custom to live within Derry's six-foot-thick, lichen-green stone walls; the "Catholic area" was a nearby swamp appropriately called Bogside. Nor were Catholics—even when they became a majority in Derry—ever allowed to play any major role in the city's administration. When, in 1968,...
To continue reading:
or
Log-In
