Derry walls are famous for the Siege of Derry in 1689, initiated by King James 2nd it lasted for 105 days. This saw the city gates locked by young men who became known as the Apprentice Boys, eventually the city was relieved by ships breaking a boom across the River Foyle.  The Siege of Derry was a pivotal point in the course of Irish, English and European history, the significance of it to the latter is still widely misunderstood in a local context. A bronze sculpture recently installed in the Fountain area by the Artist Ross Wilson depicts a modern figure with a coat of keys, it includes a replica of the actual key that was used to lock the city gate at Ferryquay. The sculpture symbolically conveys the concept of keys to unlock the heart, the spirit, the vision and freedom to the people. The location is an area of the city within the walls which was and still is in some circumstance enclaved.

The walls of Derry are one of the finest examples of fortifications in Europe, nine metres wide and stretching for 1.5 kilometres around the city. There were originally four gates, two of which had drawbridges. On the Bogside, a dry ditch was created outside the wall for added protection. Fourteen sycamores line the grand parade on the walls, one for each of the thirteen Apprentice boys who locked the gates and one for James Morrison, their lookout on Ferryquay Gate. A large collection of cannons can be seen around the walls, some by Thomas Johnston the gun founder of Queen Elizabeth.  The cannons are placed along the walls and have been restored to their original condition, some go back to the first fortification of Derry by Henry Docwra in 1601, who used them to defend the town and garrison.