the rights of the established church. While personally loyal to James, Tyrconnell viewed his restoration as secondary to preservation of Catholic rights, although there is little evidence to support suggestions he held talks with Louis XIV on a French-backed satellite state. He represented the minority of Catholics who benefited from the 1662 Land Settlement and had no desire to change it; led by the Earl of Limerick, this faction urged a compromise settlement with William in January. This placed them in opposition to the 'Old Irish', whose main demand was a reversal of land confiscations following the Cromwellian conquest, when many of them had lost estates. Significant factions within the Irish Parliament preferred to negotiate, which meant avoiding combat to preserve the army and retain as much territory as possible. Since England was his main objective, James saw Ireland as a distraction; a cross-Channel invasion was the only viable option and the French suggestion of doing so via the Irish Sea ignored reality. First, history showed involving Ireland was the best way to strengthen English opposition; this meant victory might actually weaken his chances, although as James pointed out, the French provided only enough to keep the war going, not win it. Second, the French navy could neither save Ulster or even supply their own forces, making it unlikely they could control the Irish Sea long enough to land troops in the face of a hostile population. Peripheral rebellions in Ireland and Scotland were a cost-effective way for France to divert British resources from Europe. This meant prolonging the war was more useful than winning it, although potentially devastating for the local populace, a dilemma that resurfaced in the 1745 Scottish Rising. In 1689, the French envoy d'Avaux urged the Jacobites to withdraw beyond the Shannon, first destroying everything in between, including Dublin. Unsurprisingly, this suggestion was rejected, while the Irish were united in their dislike of the French in general and d'Avaux in particular. The feeling was mutual; when replaced in April 1690, d'Avaux told his successor Lauzun the Irish were 'a poor-spirited and cowardly people, whose soldiers never fight and whose officers will never obey orders.' 1690: the Boyne and Limerick In April 1690, an additional 6,000 French regulars arrived, in exchange for Mountcashel and 5,387 of the Irish army's best troops, who were sent to France. To retain as much territory as possible, the Jacobites held a