County Armagh
Although the smallest of the counties in Northern Ireland, Armagh is one with a never-ending scenic beauty, a lengthly history and a natural and easy way of life. With the north of the county being home to a large apple growing countryside, Armagh is quite often known as the ‘Orchard County’ of Ireland. Armagh is proud of its apple growing status and marks each annual apple growing season with the Apple Blossom Festival, a fun-filled fete for locals and visitors alike. Armagh is a county which has everything to offer its visitors, from historic castles, large roaming countryside, a famous planetarium, an unbeatable ancient history and it is certainly one of the most popular counties with both visitors and natives.
Armagh city is probably one of the most ancient cities in Ireland and was Birthplace to the once King of Ireland Brian Boru. Also known as the City of St Patrick it was considered to be the religious capital of Ireland. It is known, as far back as the 8th century, that Armagh was one of ‘Europe’s most known centres for religion, learning and craftwork’ and so it was no surprise that Vikings plundered the city about 10 times between the years AD 831 and 1013. From this it is easy to see how far back Armagh’s history actually reaches and for this reason it is of unequalled archaeological importance with over 6,000 years of history. It is believed that Armagh (its ancient name was Ard Macha) came from a settlement which was built in or around 600 BC by a queen who saw the benefits and security of the hills surrounding. Over the years Ard Macha expanded and grew and it wasn’t until the year of 444 AD that a man by the name of Patrick decided to settle there and spread Christianity throughout Ireland, which began a new era in the province. The man would become known as St Patrick. In 445 AD St Patrick built his first stone church in Ireland, Churches and Colleges were soon built around St Patrick’s church and Armagh was soon to be known as a land of saints and scholars. Today Armagh City’s current site on which the Church of Ireland stands is the original location of the first church of St Patrick.
Throughout its long and ancient history Armagh has always maintained an air of knowledge and culture. Today it is a county that is proud of its strong ancient history that holds such an important place in the history of Ireland as a country. With beautiful scenery and a relaxing and easy way of life, Armagh is one of the most pleasant of places for anyone to visit and is definitely recommended.