Ballycastle, County Antrim

Ballycastle Scots: Ballykessel,[1] Bellykessel[2] or Bellycaissle[3] Irish: Baile an Chaistil Baleicastle
Ballycastle harbour
Ballycastle Ballycastle shown within Northern Ireland
Population	5,089 (2001 Census)
Irish grid reference	D115407
• Belfast	55 miles (89 km)
District	Causeway Coast and Glens
County	County Antrim
Country	Northern Ireland
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	BALLYCASTLE
Postcode district	BT54
Dialling code	028207
Police	Northern Ireland
Fire	Northern Ireland
Ambulance	Northern Ireland
EU Parliament	Northern Ireland
UK Parliament	North Antrim
NI Assembly	North Antrim
Website	www.northantrim.com

View from the Rathlin boat

Ballycastle (from Irish: Baile an Chaistil, meaning "town of the castle")^[4] is a small town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland.

The town is located on the north-easternmost coastal tip of the island of Ireland at the northern mainland limit of the Antrim Coast and Glens Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Rathlin Island and the Mull of Kintyre in Scotland can be viewed from the coastline. The Ould Lammas Fair is held each year on the last Monday and Tuesday of August. Ballycastle is the home of the Corrymeela Community.

It was the seat and main settlement of the old Moyle District Council and forms part of the North Antrim constituency. Ballycastle was named the best place to live in Northern Ireland in a list compiled by The Sunday Times in 2016.

Demography

Ballycastle is classified as a small town by the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency.^[5] On 29 April 2001 2001 Census the population of Ballycastle was 5,089, of these:

• 25.3% were aged under 16 years and 18.7% were aged 60 and over
• 46.8% of the population were male and 53.2% were female
• 77.7% were from a Catholic background and 20.5% were from a Protestant background
• 6.5% of people aged 16–74 were unemployed

2011 Census

On Census day in 2011:

• 77.1% were from a Catholic background and 19.0% were from a Protestant background

Places of interest

Breakers on Antrim Coast near Ballycastle, Ireland, with cliffs of Fair Head. Scotland appears in the distance on clear days.

• Fair Head, Ballycastle's headland rises 196 metres (643 ft) out of the bay. Goats roam the rocks beneath the cliff tops, where a walkway called 'The Gray Man's Path' winds around the coastline. From the road, a man-made Iron Age island or crannog can be seen in the middle of a large lake.^[6]
• Knocklayde, a heather-covered mountain with a height of 1,695 feet, is crowned by Carn na Truagh (the cairn of sorrow), and has views over Ballycastle, Rathlin Island, Fair Head, and Scotland.^[7]
• Glentaisie, the most northerly of the Nine Glens of Antrim, lies at the foot of Knocklayde mountain. It is named after the Princess Taisie, the daughter of King Dorm of Rathlin Island. According to legend, Taisie, renowned for her great beauty, was betrothed to Congal, heir to the Kingdom of Ireland. The king of Norway also sought her hand in marriage, and when he arrived to claim his bride, her wedding celebrations to Congal had begun. The king and his army tried to capture Taisie, but in the subsequent battle he was killed, and his army fled leaderless and empty-handed.
• The Carey, Glenshesk and Tow Rivers flow down from the glens into the Margy River. It then flows into the Moyle Sea at the start of the Strand.^[8]
• The Strand's Ballycastle Beach is designated a Blue Flag beach.
• Pans Rocks, which are the remains of an iron salt pan lying at the far end of Ballycastle Beach, jut out into the sea and are used as a location for fishing.

The Marconi memorial

• The Devils Churn, lying just beyond Pans Rocks, has steps carved into the stone leading to an underwater tunnel.
• Clare Park on Clare Road, was an estate owned by the then-local landed gentry, the McGildownys. The 17th-century house has been pulled down but it was set in a site high up on the Antrim coast.
• A cycling route runs from Ballycastle to Cushendun, by way of Torr Head, from which Moyle (the North Channel) can be seen. Also used for inshore sea fishing, Torr Head has a coastguard station, which was built on and out of the remains of Dunvarragh, the fort of Barach.
• The Corrymeela Community (a Christian organisation promoting peace and reconciliation, founded in 1965) is based at Corrymeela, just outside Ballycastle.
• Overlooking the harbour, there is a monument to Guglielmo Marconi whose employees made the world's first commercial wireless telegraph transmission between Ballycastle and the East Lighthouse on Rathlin Island.

Buildings of note

Rathlin Island Ferry, Ballycastle Harbour

• Holy Trinity, Church of Ireland, is situated in the Diamond, i.e., the main square. Like the rest of the Diamond, the church is grade 'A' listed. Built by Colonel Hugh Boyd, who bore the total cost, the church was completed in 1756. It was built in Graeco-Italian style with an apse-shaped chancel, and an octagonal spire about 100 feet high. It was effectively a chapel for the Boyd family and its estate for many years. The remains of many Boyd descendants are in the vaults below - although it was always subject to Episcopal jurisdiction. It was given to the Church of Ireland in about 1950. The church is open every day from 9am-5pm.
• Bonamargy Friary is off the Cushendall Road on the approach to Ballycastle and is a late Franciscan foundation established in 1485 by Rory MacQuillan. Locked vaults hold the remains of the celebrated chieftain, Sorley Boy MacDonnell, and several of the earls of Antrim. The Friary's most famous resident is the 17th century prophet and recluse Julia MacQuillan. Known as "The Black Nun", she wished to be buried at the entrance of the chapel so that she might be trodden under the feet of those who entered. A round holed cross marks her grave.
• Kinbane Castle is situated on a headland projecting into the sea, about 3 miles (5 km) from Ballycastle on the road to Ballintoy. Originally a two-storey building, it was built in 1547 by Colla MacDonnell, who died within its walls in 1558.
• There are several churches in Ballycastle. Ballycastle's Presbyterian Church (in Castle Street) has a distinctive round tower.^[9]

Notable people

Sir Roger Casement

• Sorley Boy MacDonnell (c.1505-1590) - Scottish-Irish prince, born at Dunanynie Castle near Ballycastle
• Gillaspick MacDonnell (c.1550-1571) - nephew of Sorley Boy MacDonnell, killed accidentally in 1571 at Ballycastle.
• Christopher Fleming, 17th Baron Slane (1669-1726) - politician, buried in the MacDonnell family vault in Bonamargy Friary, Ballycastle, the burial place of the Earls of Antrim.
• Hugh Boyd (1746-1794) - writer
• John Surman Carden (1771-1858) - officer of the British Royal Navy, died in Ballycastle
• Hugh M‘Neile (1795-1879) - controversial anti-Roman Catholic preacher
• John Samuel Bewley Monsell (1811-1875) - clergyman and hymnwriter
• Thomas Witherow (1824–1890) - Presbyterian minister and historian.
• Sir Roger Casement (1864-1916) - writer and Republican Revolutionary
• Louise McIlroy (1874-1968) - medical doctor, born near Ballymena, father was a general practitioner in Ballycastle
• Robert Quigg 1885-1955) - soldier and recipient of the Victoria Cross
• Helen Megaw (1907-2002) - crystallographer
• Donal Lamont (1911 - 2003) - Bishop of Mutare, Zimbabwe), nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1978
• Michael Dallat (1925 – 2000) - Titular Bishop of Thala, Tunisia and Auxiliary Bishop of Diocese of Down and Connor
• Keith Michael Patrick O'Brien (1938-2018) - Cardinal and Primate of Scotland^[10]
• David McWilliams (1945-2002) - folksinger and musician
• Conleth Hill (b. 1964) - actor

Transport

Bus services in Ballycastle are operated by Translink.

A ferry, currently operated by the Rathlin Island Ferry Company, runs between the town and Rathlin Island as part of a lifeline service. The ferry service to the island was formerly operated by Caledonian MacBrayne. Ferries formerly sailed between Ballycastle and Campbeltown in Scotland, but the service was suspended in June 2002. A passenger ferry service to Campbeltown, operated by Kintyre Express, now runs Friday to Monday during summer months and on Mondays and Fridays during winter months.^[11]

Ballycastle railway station opened on 18 October 1880, but was closed on 3 July 1950. It was on the Ballycastle Railway, a narrow gauge railway which ran 17 miles connecting Ballycastle to Ballymoney station, on the Belfast and Northern Counties Railway (BNCR), later Northern Counties Committee (NCC) and now part of Northern Ireland Railways.

The Troubles in Ballycastle

There have been a number of incidents of what has come to be known as the Troubles in Northern Ireland below are four incidents.

Loyalist paramilitaries left a car bomb outside the Roman Catholic church (St. Patrick's & St. Brigid's) in the town on 26 August 1973. It was timed to explode as massgoers left the church. But the service ran late, and the bomb detonated when the congregation were still inside the church, avoiding large-scale loss of life. 50 people were injured, 3 of them seriously.^[12]

On 19 June 1979 the Irish Republican Army bombed five hotels in different seaside towns in Northern Ireland, including Ballycastle's Marine Hotel. William Whitten, a 65-year-old Protestant hotel guest, was seriously injured in the blast; he died three weeks later.^[13][14]

Spence McGarry (46), an off duty member of the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC), was killed when a Provisional Irish Republican Army booby trap bomb attached to his car exploded in Castle Street car park, Ballycastle on 6 April 1991.^[15] Gerard Butler was convicted in 1993 for the attack, and sentenced to 22 years in prison.^[16]

In 2001, there was an attempt at mass murder by the Ulster Volunteer Force when a car bomb was left in Castle Street during the annual Lammas Fair.^[17]

Parade disputes

In the past, there has been unrest during Orange Order parades in the town. In 2001, there was serious public disorder at the 12 July parade. As a result of this, the Silver Plains flute band from nearby Moyarget, was banned from marching in the town due to allegations of sectarian conduct and paramilitary trappings.^[18] The North Antrim Orange Order held their annual parade in the town in 2006. Following discussions between residents, the Orange Order, business owners, and Sinn Féin the parade passed off without incident.

Climate

As with the rest of the British Isles, Ballycastle experiences a maritime climate with cool summers and mild winters. The nearest official Met Office weather station for which online records are available is at Ballypatrick Forest,^[19] about 4 miles East-southeast of Ballypatrick.

Sport

Sports of local interest include tennis, bowling (Mary Street), hurling,camogie, gaelic football (Whitehall/Leyland Road), and skateboarding.

See also

• Market Houses in Northern Ireland

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ballycastle, County Antrim.

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Ballycastle.

Wikisource has the text of the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica article Ballycastle.