April 2007 - Derry Northern Ireland
We took a day trip to Derry while we were staying in Belfast. We joined a walking tour.
Derry, officially Londonderry, is the second-largest city in Northern Ireland and the fourth-largest city on the island of Ireland.The name Derry is an anglicisation of the Irish name Daire or Doire meaning "oak grove" In 1613, the city was granted a Royal Charter by King James I and gained the "London" prefix to reflect the funding of its construction by the London guilds. While the city is more usually known colloquially as Derry, Londonderry is also commonly used and remains the legal name.
Derry War Memorial
The old walled city lies on the west bank of the River Foyle, which is spanned by two road bridges and one footbridge. The city now covers both banks (Cityside on the west and Waterside on the east).
Derry has the most complete circuit of historic walls in Ireland and they offer the visitor one of the finest examples of the Walled Cities of Europe.
The Walls were built during the period 1613-1618 by the honourable, the Irish Society as defences for early seventeenth century settlers from England and Scotland.
The Walls, which are approximately 1.5km in circumference, form a walkway around the inner city and provide a unique promenade to view the layout of the original town which still preserves its Renaissance Style street plan to this day.
The four original gates to the Walled City are Bishop’s Gate, Ferryquay Gate, Butcher Gate and Shipquay Gate. Three further gates were added - Magazine Gate, Castle Gate and New Gate.
Derry has the most complete circuit of historic walls in Ireland and they offer the visitor one of the finest examples of the Walled Cities of Europe.
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The Walls were built during the period 1613-1618 by the honourable, the Irish Society as defences for early seventeenth century settlers from England and Scotland.
The Walls, which are approximately 1.5km in circumference, form a walkway around the inner city and provide a unique promenade to view the layout of the original town which still preserves its Renaissance Style street plan to this day.
The four original gates to the Walled City are Bishop’s Gate, Ferryquay Gate, Butcher Gate and Shipquay Gate. Three further gates were added - Magazine Gate, Castle Gate and New Gate.
Castle Gate
Bishop's Gate
Overlooking Bogside.
The city claims Europe’s largest collection of cannon whose origins are known precisely. Many of them thundered in anger over the two seventeenth century sieges. In 2005 the surviving 24 cannon were restored, and under expert supervision and often by hand, craftsmen, cleared the barrels of centuries of rubbish, stripped off layers of paint and corrosion and bathed, sponged and waxed the cannon back to their former glory. The cannon are displayed throughout the City Walls with the impressive Roaring Meg located on the double bastion.
Random around the city.
The Bogside (Irish: Taobh an Bhogaigh) is a neighbourhood outside the city walls of Derry The large gable-wall murals by the Bogside Artists, Free Derry Corner and the Gasyard Féile (an annual music and arts festival held in a former gasyard) are popular tourist attractions. The Bogside is a majority-Catholic area, and shares a border with the majority-Protestant Fountain neighborhood.
Click here to read about the murals.
Cute!
We visited the museum but weren't supposed to take photos.
Click here for the history of Bloody Sunday.
There is also a movie based on the events of that day called Bloody Sunday.
A movie, Sunday, Bloody Sunday has a slight part by 13 year old Daniel Day-Lewis.
U2 immortalized the events in this song, Sunday, Bloody Sunday.
Derry is close to the border with County Donegal, with which it has had a close link for many centuries. That will be our next stop.
I first traveled to England with my Mom in 1960
My parents took us back as a family in 1970.
John and I first went together in 1986 to London.
Continuing 1986 with Oxford and Stratford.
Ireland 1991 Part 1 Dublin
Ireland 1991 Part 2 Around Ireland
Ireland 1991 Part 3 Around Ireland
London 2005 with family
Ireland Part 1 2005 Ballyvaughan Aran Islands
Ireland Part 2 2005 Ballyvaughan Dunguaire Castle, Galway
Ireland Part 3 2005 Burren Bunratty Castle Aillwee Caves Lahinch
Ireland Part 4 2005 Dingle Kinsale Inch
Ireland Part 5 2005 Killarney Limerick Ashford
Ireland Part 6 2005 Dublin
Ireland 2001 Ballybunion
1987 London
2001 Scotland
2007 Belfast
Bishop's Gate
Overlooking Bogside.
The city claims Europe’s largest collection of cannon whose origins are known precisely. Many of them thundered in anger over the two seventeenth century sieges. In 2005 the surviving 24 cannon were restored, and under expert supervision and often by hand, craftsmen, cleared the barrels of centuries of rubbish, stripped off layers of paint and corrosion and bathed, sponged and waxed the cannon back to their former glory. The cannon are displayed throughout the City Walls with the impressive Roaring Meg located on the double bastion.
Court House
Random around the city.
The Bogside (Irish: Taobh an Bhogaigh) is a neighbourhood outside the city walls of Derry The large gable-wall murals by the Bogside Artists, Free Derry Corner and the Gasyard Féile (an annual music and arts festival held in a former gasyard) are popular tourist attractions. The Bogside is a majority-Catholic area, and shares a border with the majority-Protestant Fountain neighborhood.
.
Click here to read about the murals.
Cute!
Click here for the history of Bloody Sunday.
There is also a movie based on the events of that day called Bloody Sunday.
A movie, Sunday, Bloody Sunday has a slight part by 13 year old Daniel Day-Lewis.
U2 immortalized the events in this song, Sunday, Bloody Sunday.
Derry is close to the border with County Donegal, with which it has had a close link for many centuries. That will be our next stop.
I first traveled to England with my Mom in 1960
My parents took us back as a family in 1970.
John and I first went together in 1986 to London.
Continuing 1986 with Oxford and Stratford.
Ireland 1991 Part 1 Dublin
Ireland 1991 Part 2 Around Ireland
Ireland 1991 Part 3 Around Ireland
London 2005 with family
Ireland Part 1 2005 Ballyvaughan Aran Islands
Ireland Part 2 2005 Ballyvaughan Dunguaire Castle, Galway
Ireland Part 3 2005 Burren Bunratty Castle Aillwee Caves Lahinch
Ireland Part 4 2005 Dingle Kinsale Inch
Ireland Part 5 2005 Killarney Limerick Ashford
Ireland Part 6 2005 Dublin
Ireland 2001 Ballybunion
1987 London
2001 Scotland
2007 Belfast
A lot of dark history there. The war memorial and the cannons particularly catch my eye.
ReplyDeleteGreat writeup after all the time. Fun to read.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you posted the link for the murals, that's very interesting and sad. I love Badgers And want to stop in there. Great photos.
ReplyDeleteI'm fascinated by walled cities. I had no idea that Londonderry has so much of its wall intact!
ReplyDelete