Carrickfergus Castle
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Carrickfergus Castle (from the Irish Carraig Ḟergus or "cairn of Fergus", the name "Fergus" meaning "strong man") is a Norman castle in Northern Ireland, situated in the town of Carrickfergus in County Antrim, on the northern shore of Belfast Lough. Besieged in turn by the Scottish, native Irish, English, and French, the castle played an important military role until 1928 and remains one of the best preserved medieval structures in Northern Ireland. It was strategically useful, with 3/4 of the castle perimeter surrounded by water (although in modern times only 1/3 is surrounded by water due to land reclamation). Today it is maintained by the Department for Communities as a state care historic monument, at grid ref: J4143 8725.[1]
Origins
Carrickfergus was built by
English control
Lord Edmund Savage of the Ards was Seneschal of Ulster and Constable of Carrickfergus Castle in the late 14th century under Richard II.
A
After the collapse of the
During the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries improvements were made to accommodate artillery, including externally splayed gunports and embrasures for cannon, though these improvements did not prevent the castle from being attacked and captured on many occasions during this time. Marshal Schomberg besieged and took the castle in the week-long Siege of Carrickfergus in 1689. This is also the place where Schomberg's leader, King William III first set foot in Ireland on 14 June 1690.
In 1760, after
Later use
In 1778, a small but significant event in the
For a century it remained a magazine and
It was garrisoned continuously for about 750 years until 1928, when its ownership was transferred from the
On the day of his wedding, 29 April 2011,
. The latter title of peerage, along with the geographical barony itself, had been extinct since Victorian times. The title is now only ceremonial with no official connection to the castle.Governors of Carrickfergus
Governors of the garrison at Carrickfergus included:
- 1568: William Piers
- 1597: Sir John Chichester (killed near Ballycarry in 1597)
- 1599: Baron Chichesterin 1613; died in 1625)
- 1606–: Sir Faithful Fortescueand Roger Langford
- 1625–1648: The 1st Viscount Chichester
- 1648: The 1st Earl of Donegall (replaced)
- 1648: General George Monck(for Parliament)
- 1649–1650: Thomas Dalzell of Binns
- 1660–1675: The 1st Earl of Donegall (restored)
- 1675–1687: The 2nd Earl of Donegall
- 1689: Charles Macarty Moore
- 1716: Lord Mark Kerr
- 1728–1732: The 1st Baron Conway
- 1763: Nehemiah Donnellan
- 8 September 1787: Francis Dundas[3]
- 30 January 1817 – 13 November 1828: Sir Baldwin Leighton[4]
- 1 December 1828 – 22 January 1830: General George Moncrieff.[5][6]
- 12 February 1830[7] – 10 June 1841: Lieutenant-General Sir William Hutchinson, K.C.H. (1765–1845)
The post of Governor was abolished in 1841.[8]
Railway access
The castle is short walk from
See also
References
- ^ "Carrickfergus Castle" (PDF). Environment and Heritage Service NI – State Care Historic Monuments. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 July 2012. Retrieved 3 December 2007.
- ^ The Savage Family in Ulster, edited by G.F.S.A, 1906, p. 49, referring to the Patent Rolls, England for April 1388.
- ^ "No. 12928". The London Gazette. 9 October 1787. p. 476.
- ^ "No. 17217". The London Gazette. 11 February 1817. p. 300.
- ^ Edinburgh Gazette, #3706, 9 December 1828, p.297
- ^ Morning Chronicle 2 February 1830, p.4
- ^ London Gazette, #18659, 26 February 1830, p.414.
- ^ Dublin Evening Packet and Correspondent, 10 June 1841, p.3 – based on a report in United Services Gazette
External links
54°42′48″N 5°48′23″W / 54.713314°N 5.806446°W