James II, King of England, after being exiled in France, landed in Catholic Ireland, from where he hoped to reach London leading his supporters, who took the name Jacobites. Despite having gathered around him a large army, largely financed by his French cousin Louis XIV, James II was defeated at the Battle of the Boyne near Dublin and forced to return to France. In his later years, James II lived with his wife Maria Beatrice d’Este thanks to an allowance granted by the King of France and established his court in Saint-Germain-en-Laye until his death in 1701.
