credit with the garrison. At the close of the siege, which lasted 150 days, the town was at the last extremity; but at length, on the 30th of July, Walker preached the last of the sermons by which he had helped to inspire its defence. An hour afterwards the ships were seen approaching, and the town was relieved.
As regards the general course of the war the importance of the successful resistance at Londonderry can hardly be exaggerated. It was the first open act of hostility in Ireland against James, and the disaster to his arms not only embarrassed his campaign in Ireland but prevented the expeditions to Scotland and England, and Walker's share in it was abundantly recognized. He sailed for Scotland and England on the 9th of August, and was everywhere welcomed with immense public enthusiasm. On the 29th of August he was graciously received at Hampton Court by William and Mary, before whom he had with good sense refused to appear in his military costume, and delivered to them the petition from Londonderry. William presented him with £5000, part of which he appears to have given to the widow of Baker, his fellow-governor, who died during the siege. Shortly afterwards he was nominated bishop of Londonderry, but as Bishop Hopkins, whom it was determined to remove, only died three weeks before Walker, the latter was never consecrated. Walker succeeded in obtaining a grant of £1200 for Londonderry from the city companies, and on the 18th of November his petition to the House of Commons for relief for the widows, orphans, clergy and dissenting ministers was read, and the king was asked to distribute £10,000 among them (House of Commons Journals, vol. x. p. 288). On the following day Walker was called in, received the thanks of the House, and made a short and dignified reply. On the 8th of October he had been granted the degree of D.D. at Cambridge in his absence, and on his return journey to Ireland he received the same diploma at Oxford (Feb. 1690). Walker met William on his arrival in Ireland on the 14th of June 1690 at Belfast, and followed his army. He was present at the battle of the Boyne on the 1st of July, but in what capacity, whether as spectator, as combatant or as minister to tend the wounded, is uncertain.[1] He was shot through the body at the passage of the river, according to one account, while he was going to the aid of the wounded Schomberg (G. Story, A True … History of the Affairs in Ireland, p. 82), and died almost immediately. His remains, or what were supposed to be such, were afterwards transferred from the battlefield and buried in his own church at Donaghmore, where a monument and inscription were placed to his memory. A more conspicuous memorial was erected in Londonderry itself.
Walker married Isabella Maxwell of Finnebrogue, and left several sons, four of whom during his lifetime were in the king's service, and from one of whom at least there are descendants at the present day.
While in London Walker had published A True Account of the Siege of Londonderry (1689), dedicated to the king, which went through several editions and was translated for perusal abroad. This pamphlet, and the ovations received by Walker in London, excited fierce jealousies, which had been subdued in the hour of peril, but which were now formulated in the Narrative (1698) of John Mackenzie, a dissenting minister who had been present during the siege. Walker was charged with having taken too much credit to himself, and of having passed over the services and names of the nonconformists. Base insinuations were added and it was declared that Walker had never even held the post of governor. These accusations fall by the weight of their own exaggeration. On the other hand, Walker's Account, though doubtless incomplete, is written with candour and simplicity and is free from any touch of egotistical self-consciousness; and both this tract and his subsequent Vindication (1689) are greatly superior, in their dignity and restraint, to the pamphlets of his opponents. His character was proof against the perils which attend a sudden rise to fame and popularity, and his “modesty” is especially observed by several of his contemporaries. There exists also too much positive and independent evidence to permit any doubt whatever as to the greatness of Walker's services. Burnet, in a passage which was not included in his published history perhaps because of the controversy, says: “There was a minister in the place, Dr Walker, who acted a very noble part in the government and defence of the town; he was but a man of ordinary parts, but they were suited to his work, for he did wonders in this siege” (Harleian MSS., 6584 j, 292 b, printed by H. C. Foxcroft. Supplement to Burnet's Hist. of His Own Times, 1902, p. 321).
In the Siege of Derry (1893) the Rev. Philip Dwyer has collected the most essential facts and materials relating to Walker and the siege, and has reprinted in his volume Walker's True Account and Vindication, together with Walker's sermons, various other documents and valuable notes.
WALKER, HENRY OLIVER (1843-), American artist, was born at Boston, Massachusetts, on the 14th of May 1843. He was a pupil of Léon Bonnat, Paris, and painted the figure and occasional portraits, but later devoted himself almost exclusively to mural decoration. His paintings symbolizing lyric poetry, for the Congressional Library, Washington; and his decorations for the Appellate Court House, New York; Bowdoin College, Maine; the enlarged State House, Boston; the Court House, Newark, New Jersey, and the Capitol at Saint Paul, Minnesota, are among his most important works. He became a member of the National Academy of Design, New York, in 1902.
WALKER, HORATIO (1858-), American artist, was born at Listowel, Ontario, Canada, on the 12th of May 1858. When he was a child his family settled at Rochester, New York. Although entirely self-taught, he became a distinguished painter of animals, the figure and landscape. His pictures, principally of Canadian peasant life and scenes, show the influence of Troyon and Millet, mainly in their feeling for largeness of composition, in solidity of painting and in the choice of theme. He became a member of the National Academy of Design, New York, in 1891; of the American Water Color Society and of the Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours, London. He received a medal and a diploma at Chicago, 1893; and medals at Buffalo, 1901; Charleston, 1902; and St Louis, 1904. In 1888 he won the Evans prize of the American Water Color Society, New York.
WALKER, JOHN (1732-1807), English actor, philologist and lexicographer, was born at Colney Hatch, Middlesex, on the 18th of March 1732. Early in life he became an actor, his theatrical engagements including one with Garrick at Drury Lane, and a long season in Dublin. In 1768 he left the stage. After some experience in conducting a school at Kensington he commenced to teach elocution, and in this found his principal employment for the rest of his life. In 1775 he published his Rhyming Dictionary, which achieved a great success and has been repeatedly reprinted, and in 1791 his Critical Pronouncing Dictionary, which achieved an even greater reputation, and has run into some forty editions. He was the friend of the leading literary men of his time, including Johnson and Burke. He died in London on the 1st of August 1807.
WALKER, OBADIAH (1616-1699), master of University College, Oxford, was born at Darfield near Barnsley, Yorkshire, and was educated at University College, Oxford, becoming a fellow and tutor of this society and a prominent figure in university circles. In July 1648 the action of parliament deprived him of his academic appointments, and he passed some years in teaching, studying and travelling, returning to Oxford at the restoration of 1660, and beginning a few years later to take a leading part in the work of University College. In June 1676 he was elected to the headship of this foundation, and in this capacity he collected money for some rebuilding, and forwarded the preparation, of a Latin edition of Sir John Spelman's Life of Alfred the Great, published by the college. This was the time of Titus Oates and the popish plots, and some of Walker's writings made him suspect; however, no serious steps were taken against him, although Oxford booksellers were forbidden to sell his book, The benefits of our Saviour Jesus Christ to mankind, and he remained a Protestant, in name at least, until the accession of James II. Soon after this event he came forward as
- ↑ Luttrell writes in his diary, vol. 2, p. 17 (Feb. 20, 1689-1690), “Mr Walker of Londonderry has taken his leave of the king to go to Ireland on some special command,” and again, vol. 2, p. 44 (May 19, 1690), “Letters from Ireland say that Dr Walker, late governor of Londonderry, had a regiment of foot given him,” but there appears to be no official record of his having received a commission at this time.
