churches historical antrim

At upper Ballinderry is a barn church with bull's eye glass in the windows, built in 1666 for Jeremy Taylor, the famous Bishop of Down and Connor, a descendant of Dr Rowland Taylor and one of the great prose writers of the seventeenth century.

Theological tussles with local Presbyterians apparently made his bishopric 'a place of torment'. He died, aged fifty four, the year before the Ballinderry church was consecrated and is buried in Dromore cathedral....

The first bleach green in Ulster was established before 1626 at Lambeg a mile downstream, a hamlet with a pretty suspension bridge and church. The hamlet have its name to the big drums which came to Ireland from Holland with the army of William the 3rd. 'Lambegs' are seen and heard in Orange Lodge parades....

The historic church enjoys the reputation of being one of the most interesting and ecclesiastically important churches in Ulster. St Nicholas' Church dates from the Anglo-Norman invasion of Ulster by John De Courcy, when he established the Norman stronghold of Carrickfergus circa 1180 A.D.

The Church lies at the centre of the town and its long history reflects the triumphs and deprivation suffered by the town population for over 800 years. It is dedicated to St. Nicholas, Bishop of...

The name Ballycastle derives from two Gaelic Words. 'baile' which means town or village, and 'Caisleain', which means a castle. The Castle from which the town got its name stood alongside the church in the Diamond....

Inside there are two wooden crosses, one a copy of a medieval termon cross which stood some distance north of the church. Close by is a holy well, still frequented by pious pilgrims who attach rags to the surrounding trees....

The small Anglican parish church which was rebuilt in 1815, has a lovely position close to the water, backed by whin covered slopes. Inside is a memorial to the Rev John Martin, who was rector here in 1723-40, and monuments to members of the Gage family, the resident landlords of Rathlin from the eighteenth century.

Mrs Catherine Gage, who died in 1862 is commemorated by two shapely maidens in diaphanous gowns of gleaming white marbke. The Gages have gone now but they built the long low...

Templecorran Cemetery which sits on part of the site of the ecclesiastical settlement, has a historical trail around it outlining important graves which relate to general Ulster history. The most imposing memorial in the cemetery is the large monumeny to James Orr, the Bard of Ballycarry, who is the Ulster equivalent of Scotland's Robert Burns....

Layd served as the parish church for the Cushendall area from the medieval period until the later 18th century. The medieval church, traditionally dedicated to St. Kieran, and formerly roofed with thatch, is a simple, long rectangle in shape, to which a tower - still retaining the imprint of its original wicker shuttering on the ground-floor vault - was added sometime around the 16th century.

The church and adjoining cemetery was traditionally one of the burial places of the MacDonnel...

At Derrykeighan Old Church about 1.5 miles from the village, a stone was recently discovered built into the corner of the church. The stone which is not part of the original fabric of the building, is thought to date from the 1st century AD and is an Irish form of the Early Iron Age Celtic Art which has its beginning in Greek and Etruscan art of the 4th and 5th Centuries BC.

The Stone which is thought to have been carved locally is one of the most important Early Iron Age objects yet f...

Although dating from 1857, the interior of this Venetian style harbourside church was refurbished on a maritime theme and is continued as a gleaming tribute to the city's seafaring traditions by a friendly congregation.

Don't miss the stained glass, the bell from HMS Hood and the lifeboat shape collection boxes. Next door is the Belfast Harbour Commissioners Office, an imposing Victorian block open to the public for functions and by arrangement only....