Bessbrook is a village in County Armagh, Northern Ireland, with approximately 3000 inhabitants. It lies about three miles west of the regional centre of Newry, County Down, and close to the main Dublin-Belfast road and rail line. A village is a human residential settlement commonly found in rural areas. ... County Armagh (Contae Ard Mhacha in Irish) is a county in Ulster, Ireland. ... Dieu et mon droit (Royal motto) (French for God and my right)2 Northern Irelands location within the UK Main language English Other recognised languages Irish, Ulster Scots Capital and largest city Belfast First Minister Office suspended Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Peter Hain MP Area  - Total Ranked... A mile is a unit of distance (or, in physics terminology, length) currently defined as 5,280 feet, 1,760 yards, or 63,360 inches. ... A region can be any area that has some unifying feature. ... WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: 54. ... 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). ... Dublin (Irish: Baile Átha Cliath) is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Ireland (and the island of Ireland), located near the midpoint of Irelands east coast, at the mouth of the River Liffey and at the centre of the Dublin Region. ... Belfast (Béal Feirste in Irish) is a city in the United Kingdom. ...

During the late 20th century some of the worst violence of the Troubles took place near the town and it became a military zone with a large garrison and military flights. The small village became the busiest heliport in Europe. (19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s As a means of recording the passage of time, the 20th century was that century which lasted from 1901–2000 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar (1900–1999 in the... The Troubles is a term used to describe two periods of violence in Ireland during the twentieth century. ... Garrison House, built 1675, Dover, NH, USA In the military, garrison is the collective term for the body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it, but now often simply using it as a home base. ... Flight is the process of flying: either movement through the air by aerodynamically generating lift or aerostatically using buoyancy, or movement beyond earths atmosphere by spacecraft. ... Europe is conventionally considered one of the seven continents of Earth which, in this case, is more a cultural and political distinction than a physiographic one. ...

History

The village is probably named after Elizabeth (Bess) Pollock, the daughter of a Newry linen draper born in 1779, but the name may also refer to Elizabeth Nicholson, the wife of a local mill owner in the early 1800s. The 'brook' is a stream which runs through the outskirts of the village. WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: 54. ... 1779 was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ...

Bessbrook was founded in 1845 as a 'model village', with spacious streets and squares surrounding a large linen mill owned by the Quaker Richardson family. As a social experiment it is similar to the model of the better-known Bournville company town founded by the Cadbury family near Birmingham, England, however it predates this development by more than 30 years. It is likely that the precedent on which it was based was the industrial village at Portlaw, Co. Waterford, Ireland, founded in 1825 by the Quaker Malcolmson family. 1845 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... Model villages were a classification of social/industrial developments created in the UK during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. ... The Religious Society of Friends, commonly known as Quakers, or Friends, is a religious community founded in England in the 17th century. ... Bournville is an area on the south side of Birmingham, best known for its connections with the Cadbury family and chocolate - including a dark chocolate bar branded Bournville. It is also home to a campus of the Birmingham Institute of Art and Design. ... Cadbury is the name of my cat ... The city from above Centenary Square. ... Royal motto (French): Dieu et mon droit (Translated: God and my [birth]right) Englands location (dark green) within the British Isles Languages English (de facto) Capital London de facto Largest city London Area – Total Ranked 1st UK 130,395 km² Population – Total (mid-2004) – Total (2001 Census) – Density Ranked... WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: 52. ... 1825 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... The Religious Society of Friends, commonly known as Quakers, or Friends, is a religious community founded in England in the 17th century. ...

Among the principles on which the village was based was a philosophy of "Three P's": there should be no public houses, no pawn shops, and consequently no need for police. To this day there are no public houses in the village, unlike almost every other village in Ireland. Nor are there any pawn shops, although nowadays there is a police station. A thatched pub (The Williams Arms) at Wrafton, near Braunton, North Devon, England A pub in the Haymarket area of Edinburgh, Scotland A public house, usually known as a pub, is a drinking establishment found mainly in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and other countries influenced by...

At one time, Bessbrook linen was among the finest in the world, and the linen mill provided most of the employment in the village. Tenement houses were constructed for the mill workers, many of which were of such good quality that they are still inhabited today. Each house also had an allotment garden for the growing of vegetables, and the area of the village where the were situated is still known as 'The Gardens', although the allotments themselves have been replaced by further housing. Torn linen cloth, recovered from the Dead Sea Linen is a material made from the fibers of the flax (and historically, cannabis) plant. ... Categories: Stub | House types ... A typical allotment plot, Essex, United Kingdom, an allotment is a small area of land, let out at a nominal yearly rent by local government or independent allotment associations, for individuals to grow their own food. ...

Most of the buildings in the village are constructed of granite, which is abundant locally.

In the frequently segregated communities of Northern Ireland, Bessbrook is an unusually mixed village, with representation of Anglican, Methodist, Presbyterian and Roman Catholic denominations. The term Anglican describes those people and churches following the religious traditions of the Church of England, especially following the Reformation. ... The Methodist movement is a group of denominations of Protestant Christianity. ... Presbyterianism is part of the Reformed churches family of denominations of Christian Protestantism based on the teachings of John Calvin which traces its institutional roots to the Scottish Reformation, especially as led by John Knox. ... The Roman Catholic Church, most often spoken of simply as the Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with over one billion members. ...

The Troubles

Bessbrook saw some of the worst violence in the 'Troubles', the period of unrest in Northern Ireland from 1972 to 1998. The linen mill was converted by the British army into a major military base. A helicopter landing area was established to supply other military outposts in the area since road-borne movements of troops and supplies were vulnerable to landmine attack. At one stage the little village was reportedly the busiest helicopter airport in Europe, more so than the major heliports supplying the North Sea oil rigs. For many years British army helicopters would take off and land every few minutes. To avoid the risk of missile attack they would fly at rooftop level over the village. The Troubles is a term used to describe two periods of violence in Ireland during the twentieth century. ... 1972 (MCMLXXII) was a leap year starting on Saturday (the link is to a full 1972 calendar). ... 1998 (MCMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Ocean. ... The Bell 206 of Canadian Helicopters Robinson Helicopter Company (USA) R44, a four seat development of the R22 A helicopter is an aircraft which is lifted and propelled by one or more horizontal rotors (propellers). ... The North Sea is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean, located between the coasts of Norway and Denmark in the east, the coast of the British Isles in the west, and the German, Dutch, Belgian and French coasts in the south. ... A missile (CE pronunciation: ; AmE: ) is, in general, a projectile—that is, something thrown or otherwise propelled. ...

19 May 1981 - Andrew Gavin (19), Paul Bulman (19), Michael Bagshaw (25), John King (20) and Grenville Winstone (27), members of the British Army, were killed by a Provisional Irish Republican Army land mine attack on their Armoured Personnel Carrier near Bessbrook. May 19 is the 139th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (140th in leap years). ... 1981 (MCMLXXXI) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. ... The Provisional Irish Republican Army (PIRA; more commonly referred to as the IRA, the Provos, or by some of its supporters as the army or the RA) is an Irish Republican paramilitary organisation dedicated to the end of British rule in Northern Ireland and to a United Ireland. ...

On 26 November 1992 an accident took place on the helicopter landing pad. Four RAF airmen were killed when their Puma aircraft collided with a Lynx of the Army Air Corps. The accident was attributed to mechanical failure in the Puma. November 26 is the 330th day (331st on leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday. ... The Royal Air Force (often abbreviated to RAF) is the air force branch of the British Armed Forces. ...

For a time, direct access to much of the village was sealed off by security barriers to minimise the risk of vehicle-borne bomb attacks on the security forces. Some have claimed that this contributed to the commercial decline of local businesses.

The worst incident of terrorism in Bessbrook's history occurred on 5 January 1976 when ten workmen were shot dead at nearby Kingsmills, purely on the basis of their religion. The men were regularly transported by minibus to the textiles factory in Glenanne where they worked. Their minibus was stopped by IRA gunmen and the occupants were ordered to state their religious denomination. The driver, a Roman Catholic, was released, whilst the passengers, all Protestant, were shot with automatic weapons. Ten died at the scene whilst one man survived despite being struck eighteen times. January 5 is the 5th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1976 (MCMLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1976 calendar). ... The Provisional Irish Republican Army (PIRA; more commonly referred to as the IRA, the Provos, or by some of its supporters as the army or the RA) is an Irish Republican paramilitary organisation dedicated to the end of British rule in Northern Ireland and to a United Ireland. ... Protestantism is a general grouping of denominations within Christianity. ...

Unionist-owned businesses in Bessbrook were the target of bombing attacks by republicans, as were the army barracks and the Royal Ulster Constabulary station. The police station was struck by a "barrack buster" mortar on 1 March 1993. There were no fatalities although four people were injured and extensive damage was caused to some fifty homes and the neighbouring Anglican church. In the context of Irish politics, Unionists are people in Northern Ireland, who wish to see the continuation of the Act of Union 1800, as amended by the Government of Ireland Act 1920, under which Northern Ireland, created in that latter Act, remains part of the United Kingdom of Great... Irish Republicanism is an ideology based on the Irish nationalist belief that all of Ireland should be a united independent republic. ... The Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) was the police force in Northern Ireland from 1922 to 2001. ... US soldier firing an M224 60-mm mortar. ... March 1 is the 60th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (61st in leap years). ... 1993 (MCMXCIII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003). ...

The last British soldier to have been killed whilst on active duty in Northern Ireland was shot dead in Bessbrook. Lance Bombardier Stephen Restorick was killed by an IRA sniper's bullet whilst manning a vehicle checkpoint on Green Road on 12 February 1997. The term sniper is attested from 1824 in the sense of sharpshooter. The verb to snipe originated in the 1770s among soldiers in British India in the sense of to shoot from a hidden place, in allusion to snipe hunting, a game bird known for being difficult to sneak up... February 12 is the 43rd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1997 (MCMXCVII in Roman) is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

The end of the 'Troubles' following the signing of the Good Friday Agreement in 1998 has led to some recovery for the village. Traffic restrictions have been relaxed and the visible security presence has been reduced. However, the local economy still lags behind the rapid growth across the border in the Republic of Ireland, the "Celtic Tiger". The Belfast Agreement (also known as the Good Friday Agreement and, more rarely, as the Stormont Agreement) was signed in Belfast on April 10, 1998 by the British and Irish Governments and endorsed by most Northern Ireland political parties. ... 1998 (MCMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Ocean. ... Cartoon of the Celtic Tiger - the press media in Ireland use pictures of green striped tigers to symbolise or sometimes mock the Celtic Tiger The Celtic Tiger is a nickname for the Republic of Ireland during its period of rapid economic growth between the 1990s and 2001 or 2002. ...

References

• NI Conflict Archive on the Internet

External links

• Short history and photographs

See also

• List of villages in Northern Ireland
• List of towns in Northern Ireland