Hi my name is Gary. I am new to Ciao.I have been writing on doo yoo for a couple of months so you ma...
Hi my name is Gary. I am new to Ciao.I have been writing on doo yoo for a couple of months so you may see some of my reviews there also.Thanks to everyone for taking the time to read and rate my review and for all the helpful comments.
Member since:10.09.2009
Reviews:3
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Carrickfergus Castle
I grew up in the shadows of this impressive monument and it amazes me that it is not more widely known outside of the UK. The castle is the best preserved monument in the whole of Ireland and is stunning to look at from all angles.
Location
The castle is located in the town of Carrickfergus which is situated on the shores of Belfast Lough about 10 miles from Belfast. The castle can easily be reached from Belfast by car (pretty much a straight road), regular buses and trains. The castle is open all year round. Off season it is open 10-4 Monday to Sat and 2 - 4 on a Sunday and during the summer or peak months the opening hours are extended until 6pm daily. It costs £3 per adult and £1.50 for children/senior citizens. A family ticket costs £8.
A brief history
The history of the castle is fascinating and whole books could easily be wrote about it. The castle was founded in 1177 by the Norman knight John De Courcy. De Courcy was later ousted by Hugh de Lacy also a Norman knight who completed the initial building of the castle. Over the 800 hundred years it has been besieged by the Scots, English and the French. Throughout the 800 years the castle has remained an important military structure and was last commissioned by the British Army who used it as an armoury during the
Second World War.
During its impressive history it was only once occupied by a reigning monarch. King John of England (Robin Hood's enemy) who captured the castle in 1210 and I believe he stayed in the Castle for a week or so before moving on. There is a live size statue of King John in the castle using the toilet. Presumably that's were the phrase going to the John may have come from.
Other important historical dates for the castle include the landing of Price William of Orange on his way to fight at the battle of the Boyne in 1690. The landing is reinacted every year by the Orange order.
The castle was surrendered to French forces in 1760 following fierce fighting. There is a famous story of a young boy running out in front of the opposing sides before battle commenced. A French soldier broke ranks and rescued the young boy before the battle commenced no doubt saving his life in the process.
The sea in front of the castle played a small but important role in the American War of Independence when in 1778 John Paul Jones enticed a royal navy ship to engage it. The battle was fought for an hour with the American being the victors.
The castle was also used as a prison and it was here that a young William Orr was found guilty of being a traitor and hung in front of the castle as an example to others. It had the opposite effect and the battle cry Remember Orr was used by the rebels in the United Irishmen Rebellion of 1798.
The castle is built upon a rock. The rock has a well in it which still to this day supplies some of the freshest drinking water available although for health and safety reasons visitors are not allowed to drink it. Legend has it that the rock is where a King Fergus washed ashore after his boat sank. He drank the water from the well during his recovery and thus the town of Carrickfergus was born. (Carric (might be spelt wrong) in Irish means rock) thus Carrickfergus is the Rock of Fergus.
My opinion
As a school boy living in the town I was mesmerised by the interesting and often bloody history that our town had gone through and in a way I was very lucky that the stories of my ancestors is so well documented. The castle which was garrisoned for almost 800 years is now a national trust property and open to tourists. Over the past number of year extensive work has been carried out to the castle and the banqueting hall has been reinstated to its former glory. The castle offers a very interesting day to tourists and locals alike. Tours are available and are well worthwhile even if it's only the audio tour.
Overall it's a fantastic place to visit. Kids and adults alike will thoroughly enjoy taking a step back in time and learning and touching the interesting history of the castle. Although increasing in popularity I can't help think more needs to be done to market such a fantastic castle and hopefully this review will go a small way towards increasing people's interest of it.
The Ghost Story - Button Cap
I always loved the story of the ghost of the castle and it would be a shame to leave it out of this review. Despite always looking for him I have yet to witness a sighting. The ghost is called button cap due to the large button he has at the centre of his cap. Button cap is actually a solider named Timothy Lavery who was stationed at the castle in 1760. He was friends with another soldier called Robert Rainey. They were not brothers or even related but they bore an uncanny resemblance to each other.
Robert fell in love with a local girl called Betsy Baird who unknown to Robert was also involved with the Commanding Officers brother a Captain Jennings. One dark evening leaving his lovers house he encountered Captain Jennings and on realising his lover's infidelity and in a fit of rage ran the captain through with his sword mortally wounding him. He then returned to bed as if nothing had happened.
In an unfortunate case of mistaken identity Timothy Lavery was arrested for the crime. He was presumed to be Rainey and as such was found guilty of the murder despite protesting his innocence. The only person that could of saved him was his friend Robert Rainey who instead choose to stay silent. As the noose was tightened around Lavery's neck he vowed to haunt Carrickfergus castle ever more. There have been numerous sightings of Button cap over the year and his spectre is said to remain near the well where he shouts and proclaims his innocence to anyone who can hear him.
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Advantages: A good day out for families and fractious mothers. Disadvantages: If they keep losing them at the current rate, there'll be no animals left.
tallulahbang 04.04.2009 (05.04.2009)
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Sep 30th, 2009
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