Carrickfergus is home to the 12th

century Carrickfergus castle one of the

best-preserved Norman castles in Ire-

land. It was built around 1180 by John

de Courcy The church of St. Nicholas

also dates from the late 12th century.

Belfast Lough itself was called

'Carrickfergus Bay' well into the 17th

century. Carrickfergus and the sur-

rounding area were, for a time, treated

as a separate county, although it is to-

day part of County Antrim.

The song “I wish I was in Carrickfer-gus ........"

Is one of Ireland's most beautiful and haunting folk songs, a lament from one of its many sons who emigrated abroad. And when one considers the manifold attractions. The lyrics are dedicated to, Carrickfergus andits natural beauty, it's little wonder why our balladeer yearned for home.

In Carrickfergus there is a wide range of accommodation available. These can range from B&B’s to ho-tels. The most common hotel for tourists to stay would be the Clarion hotel. The Clarion hotel is popular because it is close to the town cen-tre.

If you are looking for accommodation Carrickfergus has many hotels and bed in breakfasts plus UK cottages and self catering accommodation as well as directories for camping and caravan parks.

A review on one on the Windrose in Carrickfergus. “Probably the best res-taurant in Carrick. Great location overlooking the marina, with outside seating for those summer evenings.

Food isn’t cheap, but is priced fairly. The menu is broad, and I’ve enjoyed everything I’ve eaten here. I found the service a bit hit or miss a couple of times (slow, wrong orders etc), butthat may just have been bad luck withnewer staff - on other occasions it wasgreat.”

Carrickfergus Castle is one of North-

ern Ireland’s most striking monu-

ments whether you approach it from

land, sea, or air. With over 800 years

of history behind it. Today it IS under

the care of the NIEA and is open to

the public for days out, or to those

wishing to learn more about its his-

tory. Apart from its initial construc-

tion, there have been a number of

alterations to the castle over the

course of its history.

After use as a prison in the 18th cen-

tury it was further strengthened and

served as a magazine and armoury

until 1928. Cannons from the 17th to

19th centuries are on show in the

castle, while the keep houses histori-

cal are other popular displays.

Whatever you want to find around Carrick-

fergus; shops, businesses, hotels, bars,

restaurants, clubs, cinemas, theatres. Car-

rickfergus directory, classified system and

events guide will help you to find out

what's on and where to find things in and

around Carrickfergus.

Entertainment and Leisure

You can use our Carrickfergus cinemas, UK

theaters and what’s on guide to plan your

day or evening out. Downstairs at the

Windrose has good entertainment - “I es-

pecially recommend the nights when

'Fusion’ are on - they’re really good! Be-

ware eating downstairs towards 9pm as

one night our meal was ruined by quite a

loud and intrusive singer who kept de-

manding applause and then a pub quiz!

Great for an earlier meal though.” Carrick-

fergus also caters events at the castle, for

example Status Quo and Jools Holland

have recently preformed there.

Carrickfergus throughout the course of

The Troubles had a reasonably large para-

military presence in the town, Mostly

through the presence of the Ulster Defence

Association (UDA).

The Battle of Carrickfergus, part of the

Nine Year War, that took place in and

around the town in November 1597. It was

fought between the crown forces of Queen

Elizabeth I and the Scots clan of McDon-

nell.

Nevertheless, the decaying castle with-

stood several days of siege by the forces of

William of Orange in 1689, before surren-

dering on 28th August: William himself

subsequently landed at Carrickfergus on

14th June 1690. During the Seven Year

War, in February 1760, the whole town was

briefly captured and held to ransom by

French troops landed from Francois

Thurot’s naval squadron, after the defend-

ers ran out of ammunition.

.

The first wall was built round the city in-

side a month. It was built of sods and the

inhabitants all joined with alacrity to de-

fend the place from their

enemies. This wall was

afterwards replaced

by stone, part of

which is still to be

seen. It was eighteen feet

high, six feet thick and had seven bas-

tions. There were four gates-The Gle-

narm-now the North Gate, the Woodburn

or West Gate, the Water Gate and the

Finey Gate which had battlements on the

top.

The North Gate is still a picturesque me-

morial of the old days, but we hope the

ancient structure may not

fulfil the tradition which

says: “The North Gate

will stand until a wise

man becomes a mem-

ber of the Corporation.” A recent resolu-

tion was passed which proves that wise

men have now a majority on the Corpora-

tion, for they have decided to restore the

North Gate. Long may it remain as a most

interesting object.

By Hannah, Chelsea, Elaine, Lois and Lana

Carrickfergus Tourist

Information

St. Nicolas’s Church

North Gate

Some confusion exists as to

the exact date and founda-

tion of the Church. It was

almost certainly built by

John De Courcy who

founded Carrickfergus in

1182. De Courcy was a

well known builder of

Churches and Abbeys.

The confusion arises

because of the existence

of two Abbeys in the

area. Saint Mary's Ab-

bey, Goodburn (or Wood-

burn), was founded by

John De Courcy for the

Premonstratensian Order

of monks, the White Can-

ons. The building was

dedicated to the Holy Cross.

(Carrickfergus Industrial Centre at present

occupies this site). The other monastery

was for the Franciscans or Grey Friars,

founded probably by De Lacy, Earl of Ul-

ster in 1232. It stood in the Joymount area

of the town to the east.

Carrickfergus

Castle is one of

Northern Ireland’s

most striking

monuments

whether you approach

it from land, sea, or

air. With over 800

years of history

behind it, today

it is under the

care of the NIEA

and is open to

the public for fun days

out, or to those wish-

ing to learn more

about its history.

Apart from its initial

construction, there

have been a number

of altera-

tions to the cas-

tle over the

course of its

History. After use

as a prison in the

18th century it

was further

strengthened and

served as a

magazine and

armoury until

1928. Cannons

from the 17th

to 19th centu-

ries are on

show in the

castle, while the

keep houses

historical and

other displays.

The Andrew

Jackson Cot-

tage is housed

in a tradi-

tional thatched

Ulster –Scots

farmhouse built

in 1750’s. It has

been restored to

its original state

including an

open fireplace

with a daub

and wattle can-

opy and hanging crane. The inte-

rior has been decorated as a tradi-

tional cottage with a dresser, sponge

wear crockery and iron pots and grid-

dles. The centre has an impressive

display on the life and career of An-

drew Jackson (1767- 1845) 7th Presi-

dent of the United States of America

whose parents emigrated from here in

1765 and a collection of Ulster patch-

work quilts and farm machinery

Carrickfergus Castle

Andrew Jackson Centre