The Siege of Drogheda commenced on September 3, 1649, during the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland. English Parliamentarian forces, led by Oliver Cromwell, besieged the town, which was defended by a mixed garrison of Irish Catholics and Royalists under Sir Arthur Aston. After Aston refused to surrender, Cromwell's troops stormed the town on September 11. The subsequent massacre of much of the garrison and a significant number of civilians is considered a brutal atrocity, deeply impacting Cromwell's historical reputation and marking a dark chapter in Irish history.
