Historic Places in Mid and East Antrim District

Situated in the town of Carrickfergus the castle has wonderful views over Belfast Lough and is only 11 miles north of Belfast itself. The well preserved Norman castle is considered one the finest examples of its kind in Ireland. It has the remains of its original curtain wall along with a postern gate on the seaward side and an eastern tower. The eastern tower; believed to have housed the chapel, has a chamber on the first floor with a Romanesque double window and cross bow loops at basement level. Facilities The castle is open to the public daily all year round between Easter and September 10am to 6pm and from October to Easter between 10am and 4pm. There is a display of cannons from the 17th to the 19th centuries along with historical exhibits and information on castle's history inside the keep. The castle is licensed for civil wedding ceremonies to a maximum of 50 guests and it also possible to hire the castle for private events such as children's parties in the dungeons. Built in 1177 by John de Courcy, Carrickfergus Castle was used as his headquarters until 1204. The original castle site consisted of a bailey, inner wall and great hall as well as other buildings which were all surrounded by a high polygonal curtain wall to protect it from the sea. In 1204 de Courcy lost the castle to Hugh de Lacy. In 1210 the castle came under attack from the soldiers of King John and in 1217 a new larger curtain wall was built to protect the castle during low tide on the eastern side. Hugh de Lacy also added a huge portcullis at the gatehouse and a vault which were all completed in 1250. The castle remained in the hands of the crown throughout the 16th and 17th centuries with many more improvements and additions being made including embrasures for the cannon's and splayed gun ports. The castle's defences were still not sufficient to prevent it from being taken many times, most notably in 1690 by General Schomberg for King William III and in 1760 by Francois Thurot for the French. This was also the time when the middle curtain wall was taken down apart from a section on the seaward side. The Napoleonic Wars in 1797 saw the castle being used as a prison as well as an armory, in the First World War and Second World Wars the castle was used as a garrison and an air raid shelter. In 1928 ownership was granted to the state who declared it a National Monument and opened to the public.

Ballygally Castle is located 26 miles from Belfast in the village of Ballygally on the sandy beaches of the Antrim coast. The original stone castle is built in the style of a French Chateau with corner turrets and a steep roof. The castle adjoins the more recent addition of a modern white rendered building of three floors. Facilities Ballygally Castle is now a 4 star hotel. The hotel offers 44 bedrooms; some in the original part of the castle, with traditional furnishings, beamed ceilings and beautiful views. The hotel's garden restaurant overlooks the grounds and serves local produce in traditional and modern cuisine. The grand affair of Sunday lunch is served in the River Room with views over the beach and bay out towards Scotland. Visitors can also eat in the hotel's lounge bar, the dungeon or the '1625 Room' which is also used as a wedding venue. As a wedding venue the experienced management team is responsible for overseeing every detail of the special day. Receptions can be held in the River Room or the '1625 Room' which is smaller more intimate room with its fireplace and antique furniture. The wedding couple also gets one of the best rooms in the house, a luxury suite overlooking the bay or gardens for their first night. Ballygally Castle was built in 1625 by James Shaw a Scot who came to Ireland in 1606 in search of his fortune. He was granted a plot of land on which he built the original castle. The castle was used during the civil war as a place of refuge for the protestants and on a number of occasions a local garrison of soldiers tried to take it but without success. In the middle of the 18th century the castle was extended as four new residents came to live there; the squire Henry Shaw, his new wife and her two sisters. The castle remained in the Shaw family with the last squire of Ballygally being William Shaw in the early 1800's when the castle and lands were lost along with all the family's wealth. After this time the castle was first used as a coastguard station and then as a home to at least three other families until it was eventually sold in the 1950's to Cyril Lord a textile millionaire who refurbished the castle and opened it as a hotel. 1n 1966 the Hastings Hotel Group became the owners of the hotel since when it has undergone refurbishment a number of times. Legends Legend has it that on the birth of his first son and heir Lord Shaw took the child and locked him in a room at the top of the tower. Whilst looking for her child Lady Isobella accidentally fell (or was pushed) through the tower window to her death. Her spirit is reported to haunt the castle.

Glenarm Castle in Glenarm village on the Glens of Antrim coast in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, has been the ancestral seat of the McDonnell family, Earls of Antrim, since the seventeenth century. The castle incorporates earlier fabric within a building substantially rebuilt in the nineteenth century in the Gothic Revival style. The walled garden at Glenarm Castle is one of the finest walled gardens in Northern Ireland, with extensive herbaceous borders, kitchen garden, woodland and formal areas accessible to visitors during the season. The town of Glenarm is the oldest planted town in Ulster. The Glens of Antrim coastline, with its series of beautiful glaciated glens running down to the sea, provides one of the most scenically dramatic landscapes in Northern Ireland.