Editor Pick
Interesting Castle!
- September 12, 2009
- Rated 4 of 5 by
tartlette from Bath, United Kingdom
On a trip to Northern Ireland for a wedding we were looking for something to occupy us on the Sunday. We were staying quite close to Carrickfergus and loving all things historical we decided to visit the castle there. I didn't really know anything about the castle beforehand so I'll try to give you a bit of background.
HISTORY:
Carrickfergus castle was begun in 1177 by John de Courcy, an English baron who conquered Ulster. He remained there until 1204 when another Englishman, Hugh de Lacy, captured the castle. The castle was taken by King John when he went to Ireland in 1210, but was restored to de Lacy in 1227 by Henry III. From around 1330 the castle was in the hands of the crown and remained their main stronghold in the North. The castle was taken by the French in the 18th century. It was used to house an armoury until 1928 when it was handed over to the government to look after.
ACCESS AND OPENING TIMES:
The castle is located in Carrickfergus, near Belfast. It right on the waterfront of Belfast Lough. To get there by road from Belfast take the M5 northbound, then follow the A2 through Whiteabbey and Jordanstown, along the coast. There are buses which go from Belfast city centre and there are also trains which go from Belfast to Carrickfergus station, which is only a short walk from the castle. If you are there on a Sunday make sure you plan your journey well because the trains and buses are very infrequent - maybe once every 2-3 hours! Guide dogs are allowed in. I didn't see a lift inside the castle, but there may have been one, so I can't comment on whether there is any disabled access but there were certainly parts of the castle, such as some of the towers, which had no disabled access.
Summer opening times (1st Apr - 30th Sept):
Monday-Saturday 10.00am - 6.00pm
Sunday 2.00pm - 6.00pm
In June, July and August the castle opens from 12.00pm - 6.00pm on Sundays.
Winter opening times (1st Oct - 31 Mar):
Monday - Saturday 10.00am - 4.00pm
Sunday 2.00pm - 4.00pm
Last admission is 30 mins before closing but I think that this would be too short a time to see all the castle has to offer.
Prices:
Adult £3.00
Children/seniors £1.50
Family £8.00
THE VISIT:
At first I wasn't that excited about the visit as the castle does not look that big or impressive from the road. However, it is bigger than it looks and there is lots to see inside. So we paid our money and got our maps and set off to explore. The map is laid out with numbers so that people follow a route, although its really up to you which bit you see first.
The keep is the main part of the castle. This keep is around 30 metres high and has walls which are 3-4 metres thick. You go in up some stairs and there is a display, with a model of the castle and lots of boards telling the visitor about the castle. This was interesting although it did look slightly outdated. You then go through to the audio-visual room which shows a cartoon of de Courcy, de Lacy and King John arguing over the castle. I expect it showed more than that but we didn't have a huge amount of time. We found this cartoon hilarious (being historians - it was amusing to see King John 'brought to life'!!) but it would be great for kids visiting the castle and certainly told the story in an accessible way. Then we went up to the banqueting hall. This was all a bit modern looking for me, with modern furniture and modern stairs going up inside the keep but they were certainly a lot easier to climb than normal castle steps! On the top floor was the 'solar room' which has a few displays in but the main part is that there is a giant chess set and giant snakes and ladders set which are great for the kids (although if we'd had more time I would have played with them too!).
Around the keep is the Inner Courtyard (which is also where the toilets are for reference!). This is a grassy area with a few information signs. There are lots of figures around the castle and in the Inner Courtyard you can see John de Courcy on horse back, and his wife, the Manx princess Affreca is shown looking out to sea in the direction of the Isle of Man. There is also a model of a Tudor gunner. in the Inner Courtyard you can climb up to the ramparts and this gave a great view over the Lough.
The next port of call on the map was the Postern Gate, but this was not open at the time of our visit. We went to the Sea Tower next, which also gives great views. Here you can see the castle prison and there is a model of one of the prisoners who escaped in 1603. There is also a model of a crossbowman, firing out of the arrow slits.
Around the interior you can see models of the soldiers who defended the castle against the French attack of 1760, as well as many canons dating from the 19th century. On the Grand Battery you can see models of Napoleonic War soldiers (some of them have the most hillarios expressions on their faces!).
Near the gatehouse you can see the Chapel, which you can only look at through glass, and the top of the gatehouse where you can see models of people defending the castle. The last thing to see is the Constable's Quarters, where there is again a model and the room has been constructed to how it might have been in the Medieval period.
There is also a visitor centre and a shop at the castle but these were not open at the time of our visit which I found quite surprising.
We only stayed in the castle for about one hour but you could easily make the visit last longer by seeing all the video and playing the games and using the visitors centre.
MY VERDICT:
I thought that this castle was very interesting. It has a great history and lots of stories to tell. There is a lot of information provided around the castle (we learnt a lot even though the visitor centre was closed). The games, the cartoon and the lifesize models would be great for those with kids and the majority of people going in had children with them. The modernisation of some parts of the castle annoyed me slightly (being a traditionalist I like to keep heritage attractions as they were) but it certainly made getting around the castle easy. I think that the admission price is fairly reasonable as you could spend quite a bit of time here. Overall this castle was well worth a visit and provides for a reasonable family day out. I learnt from the visit as well which I find important. If you go just make sure you remember that Sunday transport!