| Down - Heritage / Historical | ||
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Here's a selection of Down heritage / historical, if you want the full list, Click on the "Go to ALL" link on the right. |
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| Down - Heritage / Historical | ||
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Here's a selection of Down heritage / historical, if you want the full list, Click on the "Go to ALL" link on the right. |
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| 1.Abbeys | Go to ALL Abbeys in Down |
| Inch cistercian Abbey Co. Down Please quote reference number 13996 when making a Reservation. |
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| 2.Archaeological | Go to ALL Archaeology in Down |
| Ballynahatty The Giant's Ring Co. Down Please quote reference number 12989 when making a Reservation. |
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| A most impressive earthwork, 600 feet in diameter, surrounded by a bank of gravel and boulders which has five entrances, none of which can be proven to be original. Near - but not exactly in - the centre is a megalithic chamber with a single capstone, suggesting a Stone Age date of around 3000 B.C. If we accept the earth work and megalith to be roughly contemporary the site could be interpreted as an important cult centre or meeting place of the Neolithic population, all the more important for being sited close to an ancient crossing of the River Lagan, and it could be compared to some of the henges of southern England, though they do not have the megalithic monument as a centre-piece. | |
| 3.Bridges | Go to ALL Bridges in Down |
| Gamble's Bridge Co. Down Please quote reference number 13998 when making a Reservation. |
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| 4.Cairn | Go to ALL Cairn's in Down |
| Millin Bay Cairn Co. Down Please quote reference number 12997 when making a Reservation. |
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| A dozen larger stones and a low, oval mound is all that is now visible of a complex Neolithic monument. Excavations in 1953 revealed that within the mound was a long, stone-lined cist containing the disarticulated remains of at least 15 individuals, whose de-fleshed bones were brought here for re-burial , the skulls and long bones being grouped together according to type. The cist was surrounded by two rows of upright stones with sand and shingle filling the area between the two, and outside these were placed the large stones which are now visible above the cairn. Unexpected were a number of stones decorated with patterns echoing some of those on the Boyne Valley Tombs. | |
| 5.Castles (Historical) | Go to ALL Castles (Historical) in Down |
| Jordan's Castle Co. Down Please quote reference number 14245 when making a Reservation. |
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| Well-preserved four-storey tower house which withstood a siege around 1600. Largest of cluster of castles built in Ardglass in Middle Ages to protect the port. Other tower houses at Kilclief and Strangford. | |
| 6.Cathedrals (Historical) | Go to ALL Cathedrals (Historical) in Down |
| Downpatrick Cathedral Co. Down Please quote reference number 12517 when making a Reservation. |
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| The place-name Downpatrick comprises two elements - dun, an early Irish fortified site (on which the present Cathedral was erected), and the name of Ireland's National Apostle. Some say St. Patrick was buried here, but there is no early tradition to substantiate the claim, and the inscribed stone allegedly marking the Saint's burial place just south of the Cathedral dates from as recently as 1900. Indeed, very little is known of the early history of the site until the 12th century, when a church dedicated to the Holy Trinity is recorded. In 1177, John de Courcy replaced its canons by Benedictines from St. Werburg's in Chester. The cathedral, though heavily restored in 1789 - 1812, still retains its characteristic three-aisled form from the 13th century, its interesting decorated capitals suggesting a date in the second half of the century. But the Cathedral does preserve earlier crosses; there are fragments of two 9th/10th century crosses in the modern tower vestibule; two 12th century examples bearing reliquary - or book - holding figures are inserted into a west-facing 19th century wall in the south aisle; the baptismal font may be the base of an early cross, and outside the east end of the church two further fragments of a cross were mounted together in 1897. A Round Tower which stood close to the Cathedral was demolished for safety reasons almost two centuries ago. To the north of English Street leading up to the Cathedral is the old Down County gaol (1789-96) which now serves as a Museum, offering fine displays and exhibits of local history. it includes the St. Patrick Heritage Centre, which provides a visual rendering of the story of St. Patrick and also houses some attractive Early Christian slabs borrowed from Saul, two miles to the north-east, where the Saint is said to have died in the later 5th century. In the low-lying quoile marshes, a few hundred yards north of the Cathedral, stands the Mound, which may have been a secular site located close to Cathedral Hill (the ancient Dundalethglas). Th e extensive bank and external ditch was, perhaps, a pre-Norman enclosure of the regal mac Dunlevy family, and it is likely that the high mound inside was a motte built by John de Courcy. | |
| 7.Churches (Historical) | Go to ALL Churches (Historical) in Down |
| Bangor Abbey Parish Church Co. Down Please quote reference number 14051 when making a Reservation. |
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| This church, which was altered in 1960, has kept its fifteenth century tower and octagonal spire dated 1693. Memorials inside include a marble statue and cameo busts of John Hamilton (died 1693) and his wife, Sophia Mordaunt, made in 1760 by Scheemaker. | |
| 8.Crosses (Historical) | Go to ALL Crosses (Historical) in Down |
| Dromore High Cross Co. Down Please quote reference number 14042 when making a Reservation. |
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| 9.Dolmens | Go to ALL Dolmens in Down |
| Legananny Dolmen Co. Down Please quote reference number 14060 when making a Reservation. |
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| This dramatic granite dolmen consists of three comparatively thin and widely spaced uprights. They carry a large and seemingly almost weightless capstone which - appropriately enough for a Stone Age burial place - looks rather like a coffin on stilts. It is one of Ireland's most frequently illustrated dolmens. | |
| 10.Forts (Historical) | Go to ALL Forts (Historical) in Down |
| Hillsborough Fort Co. Down Please quote reference number 14081 when making a Reservation. |
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| 11.Gallery Graves | Go to ALL Gallery Graves in Down |
| St Patrick's Grave Co. Down Please quote reference number 14086 when making a Reservation. |
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| 12.Heritage Centres | Go to ALL Heritage Centres in Down |
| Over The Threshold Down County Museum, Co. Down Please quote reference number 14087 when making a Reservation. |
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| "Over The Threshold": The story of marriage customs and patterns in County Down, plus a display of wedding costumes, dresses and accessories for the 1860s to the 1990s. | |
| 13.Homes (Historical) | Go to ALL Homes (Historical) in Down |
| Market (Court) House Co. Down Please quote reference number 14090 when making a Reservation. |
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| The Market House forms the large centerpiece of the town square in from of Hillsborough Castle. It was first built around 1760 as a two-storey structure with an archway running through the centre from east to west. In 1810 the present north and south side wings were added, one to provide a courtroom and the other a market hall, and at the same time a new granite plinth, various decorations as well as a new clock and bell, were provided. | |
| 14.Interpretative Centre | Go to ALL Interpretative Centre's in Down |
| Bronte Interpretative Centre Mrs Carol Bronte , Co. Down Please quote reference number 14286 when making a Reservation. |
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| 15.Mills (Historical) | Go to ALL Mills (Historical) in Down |
| Annalong Cornmill Annalong, Co. Down Please quote reference number 14292 when making a Reservation. |
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| 16.Monastery | Go to ALL Monastery's in Down |
| Mourne Countryside Centre Co. Down Please quote reference number 14335 when making a Reservation. |
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| Co Down's Mountains of Mourne have become part of folk history, not just of Northern Ireland, but of the world. Happily much of the area's scenery and unspoiled rural charm still exists, and its countryside retains an importance for wildlife, agriculture and recreation. Our aim is to protect and conserve the natural and man-made environment and to promote its' appreciation for the benefits of present and future generations. | |
| 17.Monuments | Go to ALL Monuments in Down |
| Captain Crozier Monument Co. Down Please quote reference number 14101 when making a Reservation. |
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| 18.Motte (Historical) | Go to ALL Motte (Historical) in Down |
Mound Motte , Co. Down Please quote reference number 14104 when making a Reservation. |
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| This is the finest Anglo-Norman motte and bailey in Ulster, was built around 1200 on a hill-top site at the eastern end of the down of Dromore. it was placed on a site well fortified by nature and in a bend of the River Lagan. its central mound rises about 40 feet above the ditch, and a fine roughly square bailey is placed to the south of it and separated from it by a deep ditch. The main mound was defended by a great bank and ditch. Excavations showed that the low bank around the top of the mound replaced an earlier timber palisade, but they failed to reveal any structure, though one might well have expected a tower or hall of wood to have stood there. | |
| 19.Museums | Go to ALL Museums in Down |
| Glassdrumman Farm Museum Co. Down Please quote reference number 14300 when making a Reservation. |
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| The museum is located approximately 1 mile from Annalong (A2 Kilkeel-Newcastle Road) and houses a wonderful collection of old farm implements and memorabilia. | |
| 20.Priory | Go to ALL Priory's in Down |
| Newtownards Priory Co. Down Please quote reference number 14120 when making a Reservation. |
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| Newtownards priory is the only reasonably well-preserved medieval Dominican priory to survive in Northern Ireland. It was probably founded by the Savage family around 1244. The lower parts of the nave, as well as two blocked doors in the south wall leading to a vanished cloister, survive from the period of foundation. The upper parts of the nave, its westward extension and the north aisle arcade date from a 14th century rebuilding, probably undertaken by the de Burgh family. After the priory was dissolved in 1541, it was involved in warfare and burned; later, it was granted to Hugh, the first Viscount Montgomery. He it was who rebuilt the north aisle, and added the tall tower at the entrance, with its Renaissance doorway bearing his initials. The soft local Scrabo sandstone from which it was carved has incurred much weathering of the details, but a modern copy was built into the north wall further to the east in 1988. Close by is the unusual octagonal market cross of 1636. Another fine building in the town is the Town Hall designed by the Bristol architect Stratford in 1765. | |
| 21.Railway Museums | Go to ALL Railway Museums in Down |
| Downpatrick Steam Railway Railway Station, Market St, Co. Down Please quote reference number 14121 when making a Reservation. |
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| Climb on board for a short train ride - or travel further afield on a special mainline steam excursion. Many engines and coaches are on display in transport museums and railway centres, with memorabilia from the golden age of steam. The first railway in Ireland opened in 1834, and the network quickly reached into all corners of the island. By 1920 almost 3,500 miles of track threaded the countryside and no Irish town was more than 10 miles from a railway station. Ireland's national railway gauge is 5ft 3 inches. This, together with the widespread use of the 3 ft narrow gauge, makes Irish railways quite distinctive. | |
| 22.Rath | Go to ALL Rath's in Down |
| Lisnavaragh Rath Co. Down Please quote reference number 12996 when making a Reservation. |
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| On the same ridge, and in the same townland, as Lisnagade, this is also a multi-vallate rath or lios, but oval in shape. It has three deep ditches. Excavations in 1951 produced a massive gatepost at the entrance on the south-eastern side. | |
| 23.Stone Circles | Go to ALL Stone Circles in Down |
| Ballynahatty The Giant's Ring Co. Down Please quote reference number 12990 when making a Reservation. |
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| A most impressive earthwork, 600 feet in diameter, surrounded by a bank of gravel and boulders which has five entrances, none of which can be proven to be original. Near - but not exactly in - the centre is a megalithic chamber with a single capstone, suggesting a Stone Age date of around 3000 B.C. If we accept the earth work and megalith to be roughly contemporary the site could be interpreted as an important cult centre or meeting place of the Neolithic population, all the more important for being sited close to an ancient crossing of the River Lagan, and it could be compared to some of the henges of southern England, though they do not have the megalithic monument as a centre-piece. | |
| 24.Stones (Historical) | Go to ALL Stones (Historical) in Down |
| Coagh Co. Down Please quote reference number 14310 when making a Reservation. |
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| 25.Tombs | Go to ALL Tombs in Down |
| Legananny Co. Down Please quote reference number 14143 when making a Reservation. |
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| One of the most aesthetically satisfying megalithic structures of the Irish countryside, a 4,000 year-old Neolithic tomb that might equally be a work of modern sculpture. If proof were needed that Stone Age man built his monuments to impress as well as to last, then here it is. Its rugged geometry has long been admired, and illustrations of it have appeared in innumerable publications as well as in television commercials promoting tourism and butter. It was Fergusson who coined the term 'tripod-dolmen' to describe this and similar portal tombs, believing that it never had a covering cairn but was always intended to be seen as it stands now, 'a studied exhibition of a tour de force'. This is an opinion shared by some archaelogists today. As with all tripod-dolmens, Legananny consists of just three uprights and a capstone. The dominant portal stones are some 6 feet high and the tapered back-stone 41/2 feet. The smooth-topped granite capstone is 101/2 feet long and characteristically uptilted at the front, decreasing in width towards the back of the tomb. Though it is somewhat off the beaten track, the megalith is well signposted and can be reached by car. Not in the least among the rewards of seeking it out in the stony acres of Cratlieve under Slieve Croob, are the splendid views of the Mourne Mountains far to the south. | |
| 26.Towers (Historical) | Go to ALL Towers (Historical) in Down |
| Three Storey Helen's Tower Co. Down Please quote reference number 14188 when making a Reservation. |
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| Three storey Helen's Tower built in about 1858, prominent on a hilltop at the far end, was erected in honour of Helen, Lady Dufferin, grand daughter of Sheridan and composer of the popular ballad The Irish Emigrant. In 1915 and 1916, the 36th Division was camped at Clandeboye and drilled in sight of this romantic tower. A das replica, called the Ulster Memorial Tower, was later erected on the Somme battlefield at Thiepval where nearly 6, 000 Ulstermen were killed or injured in July 1916. Helen's Tower, a biography of the first marquis by his nephew, Harold Nicolson, is one of the tower's numerous literary connections. Nicolson (1886-1968) belonged to the Bloomsbury Group. | |
| 27.Towers (Round) | Go to ALL Towers (Round) in Down |
| Maghera Church and Round Tower. Co. Down Please quote reference number 14249 when making a Reservation. |
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| The rectangular church, possibly of c. 1200, and the now-featureless Round Tower (reduced to a stump in a storm around 1710) both probably belonged to a monastery founded by St. Domangart of Donard in the 6th century on a site probably now occupied by Maghera Church of Ireland church. Excavations in 1965 provided evidence of occupation near the tower during the Early Christian period. | |
| 28.Town Information | Go to ALL Town Information's in Down |
| Hillsborough Town Lisburn Borough Council, Co. Down Please quote reference number 14083 when making a Reservation. |
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| 29.Wells (Historical) | Go to ALL Wells (Historical) in Down |
| Struell Wells Co. Down Please quote reference number 14332 when making a Reservation. |
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| Struell wells are hauntingly located in a rocky valley between Downpatrick and Saul, and since medieval times and probably before, they have been the resort of pilgrims who came here in search of cures which they believed the waters from the wells could provide. The buildings are grouped in and around a roughly triangular grassed area, in the centre of which is a small structure known as the Eye Well. At the north-eastern end is a rectangular church building of c. 1750, but probably never completed. Beside it is the Drinking Well, from which the water flowed underground through the Eye Well to the two bath houses located at the south-eastern end of the complex. The smaller of the two was reserved for women, while the larger - barrel-vaulted and roofed with large stone slates - was the men's preserve. | |
| 30.Windmills | Go to ALL Windmills in Down |
| Ballycopeland Windmill Co. Down Please quote reference number 14205 when making a Reservation. |
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Copyright Touchtel 1995 - 1998 |
Cistercians were brought from Furness in Lancashire to construct the monastic buildings, which were laid out according to the accustomed Cistercian ground-plan, with a church on the northern side of an open cloister garth and with community and domestic buildings enclosing the other three sides. Of these, only the choir with its graceful triple lancet windows in the east gable survives to anything like its original height, though the transepts with their rib-vaulted open twin chapels, and the buildings on the eastern side of the cloister garth, are sufficiently well preserved to give a good idea of their original appearance. The monastery was a centre of English influence to such an extent that the Irish were debarred in 1380. Twenty-four years later, the abbey was burned and that, perhaps together with the collapse of a central tower and a dwindling community, gave the impetus to cut down considerably the extent of the nave by building a new west wall to the church near the crossing, which incorporated an earlier doorway. The monastery had been suppressed by 1541. Lying apart, to the south-east, are two separate buildings, an oven in one of them indicating its former use as a bake-house for the monastery.
In Dromore is the ancient Celtic Cross and old town stocks where those who misbehaved were locked in full public view.
A fine artillery fort, 270 feet square and with spear-shaped bastions at the corners, was built here by Colonel Arthur Hill around 1650 to command the road from Dublin to Belfast and Carrickfergus. It stands on the site of an Early Christian period rath, the circular ditch of which has been left open in the central grassed area of the fort. In the min 18th century, the Hill family transformed the north-western gatehouse entrance into a two-storey 'gothick' fort or castle for the entertainment of their friends, and the entrance was transferred to the centre of the north-east wall which was also refurbished as a 'gothick' gazebo. Nearby is the fine 17th century parish church of the Hills, heavily gothicised in the 1760s.
The Patron Saint of Ireland was buried on Cathedral Hill in 461 AD. His grave is a place of pilgrimage on St. Patrick's Day (17 March).
You can easily follow the story of Patrick Bronte and his family through the buildings that survive within the Homeland.
Bannbridge town's most famous son was probably Captain Crozier of North West Passage fame who was born in 1796 at a large house in the town's Church Square. Today the house looks out onto the Crozier Monument which has a unique feature at its base - four polar bears who look up at a statue of Captain Crozier whose gaze is to the North West.
Though ignored by some guide books, this is a very fine megalith which unfortunately loses much of its impressiveness on account of the roadside hedge which threatens to envelop it. It has long been neglected and abused; a photograph taken in 1914 shows it defaced with auctioneers; posters; latterly it has become a target for religious graffiti.
The bulky granite capstone is 8 feet long and up to 5 feet thick and rests, somewhat precariously it would appear, on four of the six basalt uprights forming the chamber. The total height of the tomb is nearly 12 feet. Its local name, Tamlaght, means 'plague stone'; it is also know by the more common appellation Cloghogle, 'raised stone'. An account cited by Borlase states that several other dolmens formerly stood in close proximity here, possibly as an integral group of which the present monument is the sole survivor.
The Georgian village of Hillsborough is rich in history. Hillsborough Fort with its eight foot high earth ramparts, dates back to around 1650 and was used as a Royal Fortress by King Charles II. Other buildings of note include the market house, the parish church of St Malachy, built in 1636 and the Castle, seat of the former Governors of Northern Ireland.
Now around two centuries old, it was worked as a mill by the McGilton family until 1915. After that, it lay disused for many years, but after much painstaking repair and reconstruction by what is now the Department of the Environment in Northern Ireland, the mill ground its corn again in 1978. It can, therefore, work, but is not normally operational during the visiting hours, which are indicated on a notice-board outside. The mill is only one of around 100 windmills known to have been worked in the grain-rich county of Down. It is a tall, tapering tower of stone, plastered and whitewashed, and with its four sails being turnable by a fan-tail on the revolving cap, so that the sails could always face into the wind. As the machinery is now in working order again, the milling process can be best followed by climbing to the top floor and working downwards to the ground floor. Between the road and the mill is the miller's house and the kiln-house, where the grain was dried before being ground.