|
Bangor (in Irish Beannchor) is a town of approximately 80,000 population in County Down, Northern Ireland. The seaside resort, situated on the southern side of Belfast Lough, grew alongside an abbey founded in 586 by Saint Comgall, where the Antiphonarium Benchorense was written. A copy of the manuscript can be seen in the town's heritage centre. A street in Ynysybwl, Wales, relatively stereotypical of a small town A town is usually an urban area which is not considered to rank as a city. ...
County Down, (An Dún in Irish) is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, covering an area of 2,448 km² (945 square miles). ...
Those who are confused by the meaning of terms in this article such as Ulster, (Republic of) Ireland, (Great) Britain and United Kingdom should refer to British Isles - Clarification of Terms. ...
The seafront of Torquay, a seaside resort in Devon, England. ...
Belfast Lough (Loch Lao in Irish) is an inlet in the northeastern region of Ireland. ...
An abbey (from the Latin abbatia, which is derived from the Syriac abba, father), is a Christian monastery or convent, under the government of an Abbot or an Abbess, who serve as the spiritual father or mother of the community. ...
Events Reccared succeeds his father Leovigild as king of the Visigoths. ...
A manuscript (Latin manu scriptus, written by hand), strictly speaking, is any written document that is put down by hand, in contrast to being printed or reproduced some other way. ...
A heritage center is a museum facility primarily dedicated to the presentation of historical and cultural information about a place and its people, including, to some degree, natural features. ...
The town (the third largest in Northern Ireland) is the site of a large marina (one of the biggest in Ireland). It is primarily residential and can be viewed as a dormitary suburb of the Greater Belfast area, from which it is linked by the A2 road and a railway line. Light industry also exists. A notable building in the town is Bangor Old Custom House. For other uses of this word, see Marina (disambiguation). ...
Public figures originally from Bangor include David Trimble, the former Ulster Unionist Party leader and former First Minister of Northern Ireland, the Formula One racing driver Eddie Irvine, and Blue Peter presenter, Zöe Salmon. The Right Honourable David Trimble MLA (born October 15, 1944) is a Northern Ireland politician, former leader of the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP), former First Minister of Northern Ireland, He shared the 1998 Nobel Peace Prize with John Hume of the Social Democratic and Labour Party. ...
The Ulster Unionist Party (UUP, sometimes referred to as the Official Unionist Party or OUP) is a political party in Northern Ireland representing the unionist community, and was the party of government in Northern Ireland between 1921 and 1972. ...
The First Minister of Northern Ireland and the Deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland are the leaders of the Northern Ireland Executive, Northern Irelands home rule government set up in the 1990s as a result of the Good Friday Agreement. ...
Main Article: History of Formula One See List of Formula One Grands Prix for results from past seasons and individual races. ...
Eddie Irvine, US Grand Prix, 2002 Influenced by his parents who are also involved in racing, Eddie Irvine (born 10 November 1965 in Bangor, Northern Ireland) began his racing career in 1983. ...
Blue Peter is a popular, long-running BBC television programme for children. ...
Zöe Salmon (born 1981, in Bangor, County Down, Northern Ireland) is a British television presenter, currently presenting on the childrens television show, Blue Peter. ...
Bangor is part of the Borough of North Down and is twinned with the Austrian city of Bregenz. It is also the headquarters of the Royal Ulster Yacht Club. Tourism is important, particularly in the summer months, and plans are being made for the redevelopment of the seafront. North Down Borough Council is a Local Council in County Down in Northern Ireland. ...
Bregenz is the capital of Vorarlberg, the westernmost federal state of Austria. ...
Short History The Annals of Ulster tell us that the monastery of Bangor was founded by St Comgall in 555 or 559. It was situated roughly where Bangor Abbey Church of Ireland currently stands at the head of the town. The monastery became a centre of great learning among the most eminent of Ireland’s missionary institutions, although it also suffered greatly at the hands of Viking raiders in the eighth and ninth centuries.
The name ’Bangor’ is derived from the Irish "Beannchar". The meaning of this word is uncertain but may be related to beann, which means a horn, rocks, or a peaked hill, and could refer to Bangor’s rocky coastline.
The modern town has its roots in the early seventeenth century when the Scot, Sir James Hamilton, arrived in Bangor, having been granted lands in north Down by King James VI and I in 1605. Tower House, which is now home to the Tourist Information Centre, dates from this time and is a visible reminder of the new order introduced by Hamilton and his Scots settlers.
The town was also an important source of customs revenue for the crown. In the 1780s Colonel Robert Ward improved the harbour and promoted the cotton industries, which led to increased prosperity in the town. The coming of the railways in 1865 brought further growth and Bangor soon became a fashionable resort for Victorian holidaymakers, as well as a desirable home to the wealthy. Many of the beautiful houses (now sadly being slowly demolished to make way for flats) overlooking Bangor Bay date from this period.
Sea bathing and marine sports became popular and visitors from other parts of the United Kingdom increased throughout the Edwardian period. The inter-war period of the early twentieth century saw the development of the fondly remembered Tonic Cinema, Pickie Pool and Caproni’s – all three probably the foremost of their type in Ireland.
With the advent of foreign holidays and cheap travel from the 1960s, Bangor declined as a tourist resort and was forced to rethink its future. The second half of the twentieth century saw its role as a dormitory town for Belfast become more important. Its population increased dramatically: from around 14,000 in 1930 it had reached 40,000 by 1971 and 58,000 by the end of the century, making it one of the ten largest settlements in all of Ireland. The town expanded most rapidly in the 1980s to accommodate its new residents, absorbing much surrounding countryside. This period also saw the construction of the Ring Road, the Marina and major light industrial and retail developments.
Places of interest
- Bangor_Castle
- McKee Clock
- Bangor Marina
- Somme Museum
- Bangor Abbey
- Ward Park
- Bangor Old Custom House
- Royal Ulster Yacht Club
Established by Saint Comghall - Bangor was featured in the Mappa Mundi, the first map of the world. ...
See also This is a list page for towns in Northern Ireland. ...
External links - Bangor Local
- North Down Borough Council
|
Feeds |
Contact