Cregagh () is an area southeast of

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdom ...

County Down County Down () is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. It covers an area of and has a population of 531,665. It borders County Antrim to th ...

, Northern Ireland. It is the name of a

townland A townland ( ga, baile fearainn; Ulster-Scots: ''toonlann'') is a small geographical division of land, historically and currently used in Ireland and in the Western Isles in Scotland, typically covering . The townland system is of Gaelic orig ...

and has been adopted as the name of an

electoral ward A ward is a local authority area, typically used for electoral purposes. In some countries, wards are usually named after neighbourhoods, thoroughfares, parishes, landmarks, geographical features and in some cases historical figures connected to ...

of Belfast City council. The townland dates back to medieval times, when it was part of the territory held by the O'Neills of Clannaboy. The area is centred on the Cregagh Road. The Woodstock/Cregagh Road is a continuous arterial route in the city, with the Woodstock making up the lower half of the route and the Cregagh the upper half. It runs from the Albertbridge Road, close to the

Short Strand The Short Strand ( ga, an Trá Ghearr) is a working class, inner city area of Belfast, Northern Ireland. It is a mainly Catholic and Irish nationalist enclave surrounded by the mainly Protestant and unionist East Belfast. It is on the east ba ...

, to the A55 Outer Ring road.

Woodstock Road

The Woodstock Road forms the beginning of the continuous road that includes Cregagh and which runs from close to the

River Lagan The River Lagan (; Ulster Scots: ''Lagan Wattèr'') is a major river in Northern Ireland which runs 53.5 miles (86 km) from the Slieve Croob mountain in County Down to Belfast where it enters Belfast Lough, an inlet of the Irish Sea. T ...

to the outskirts of Belfast. The road begins at the end of Woodstock Link, which itself starts at a junction which turns off from the Albertbridge Road facing Mountpottinger Road. The Mount, a prominent conference facility built in 1997, is located close to this junction on the Woodstock Link. Following the junction with the Beersbridge Road the Woodstock Road is mainly lined with shops and other places of business. The area, also known as Willowfield, is also home to a number of churches, including the

Church of Ireland The Church of Ireland ( ga, Eaglais na hÉireann, ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Kirk o Airlann, ) is a Christian church in Ireland and an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. It is organised on an all-Ireland basis and is the sec ...

place of worship Willowfield Parish Church, Saint Anthony's

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

Church. and the Cregagh Gospel Hall. Other amenities include a public library and a

Police Service of Northern Ireland The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI; ga, Seirbhís Póilíneachta Thuaisceart Éireann; Ulster-Scots: ') is the police force that serves Northern Ireland. It is the successor to the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) after it was reform ...

station. The Willowfield area formerly lent its name to the Belfast Willowfield constituency of the old

Parliament of Northern Ireland The Parliament of Northern Ireland was the home rule legislature of Northern Ireland, created under the Government of Ireland Act 1920, which sat from 7 June 1921 to 30 March 1972, when it was suspended because of its inability to restore ord ...

. An

Ulster loyalist Ulster loyalism is a strand of Ulster unionism associated with working class Ulster Protestants in Northern Ireland. Like other unionists, loyalists support the continued existence of Northern Ireland within the United Kingdom, and oppose a u ...

flute band, Crimson Star, is based in the area and their badge is shown on a mural painted on a wall on Ardenvohr Street just off the Woodstock Road. During

the Troubles The Troubles ( ga, Na Trioblóidí) were an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted about 30 years from the late 1960s to 1998. Also known internationally as the Northern Ireland conflict, it is sometimes described as an "i ...

notorious

Ulster Volunteer Force The Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) is an Ulster loyalist paramilitary group. Formed in 1965, it first emerged in 1966. Its first leader was Gusty Spence, a former British Army soldier from Northern Ireland. The group undertook an armed campaign ...

hitman Robert "Squeak" Seymour ran a video shop on the Woodstock Road. It was whilst working at his shop that Seymour was shot and killed by two

Provisional Irish Republican Army The Irish Republican Army (IRA; ), also known as the Provisional Irish Republican Army, and informally as the Provos, was an Irish republican paramilitary organisation that sought to end British rule in Northern Ireland, facilitate Irish reu ...

operatives on 15 June 1988. The Woodstock Road continues as far as Ravenhill Avenue where it becomes the Cregagh Road. The Woodstock Road was formerly known as the lower Cregagh Road and in the nineteenth century it was mainly made up of farmland. Until the 1920s parts of the Cregagh Road, which is now entirely urbanised, were agricultural.

Lower Cregagh Road

At its lower stage, the Cregagh Road, like the Woodstock Road, is lined with several shops. This area also has a number of churches, the most prominent of which are Cregagh Methodist Church and Cregagh Presbyterian Church. Just off the Cregagh Road, on Gibson Park Avenue, are two locally well-known sporting venues,

Cregagh Cricket Club Cregagh Cricket Club is a cricket club in Belfast, Northern Ireland, playing in the Premier League of the NCU Senior League.Clarence J Hiles (2003), A History of Senior Cricket in Ulster, Hilltop Publications, p. 164 It shares a ground with Or ...

and Malone Rugby Club. Cregagh Cricket Club celebrated its centenary in 2006. The cricket ground is also used by Northern Amateur Football League club Orangefield Old Boys and is part of Cregagh Sports Club, effectively a merger of the cricket and association football clubs, with both sharing the same Gibson Park Avenue facilities. This alliance was concluded in the early 1980s, with the two clubs being previously unconnected.

Ravenhill Stadium Ravenhill Stadium (known as the Kingspan Stadium for sponsorship reasons) is a rugby stadium located in Belfast, Northern Ireland. It is the home of Ulster Rugby. With the opening of a new stand for the 2014 Heineken Cup quarter-final against ...

, the home of

Ulster Rugby Ulster Rugby is one of the four professional provincial rugby teams from the island of Ireland. They compete in the United Rugby Championship and the European Rugby Champions Cup. The team represents the IRFU Ulster Branch, which is one of ...

, lies a short distance away, about halfway between the Cregagh Road and the Ravenhill Road to the east.

Cregagh Estate

The Cregagh Estate is located off the Cregagh Road, starting after the roundabout junction with Ladas Drive and Mount Merrion Avenue. The junction is immediately after Bell's Bridge which crosses the Loop River, one of Belfast's myriad minor rivers. The estate was built as a public housing project in 1946–1947 and was designed by government architect

T. F. O. Rippingham Thomas Francis Ord Rippingham (29 January 1896 – 17 December 1964) was an English-born architect who spent most of his professional life in Northern Ireland, mainly working for the Northern Ireland Civil Service (NICS). "Rip", as he was aff ...

. Tenants have subsequently been offered the opportunity to purchase their homes. The estate is characterised by its uncommon flat roofs and staggered house fronts. The streets in the Cregagh Estate are named after the rivers and streams of the island of Ireland (e.g. Callan Way, Kilbroney Bend). Although predominantly

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

from its inception, Cregagh had a significant

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

minority for a number of years and at the start of the Troubles, Catholics even joined in local vigilante patrols under the auspices of the Cregagh Tenants Association. This co-operation ended in 1972 with the arrival of the

Ulster Defence Association The Ulster Defence Association (UDA) is an Ulster loyalist paramilitary group in Northern Ireland. It was formed in September 1971 as an umbrella group for various loyalist groups and undertook an armed campaign of almost 24 years as one of t ...

(UDA) and before long most of the Catholic residents had left the area for west Belfast.Community Case Studies
/ref> Around this time housing allocation in the area came under UDA control and the local "

Tartan gangs The Ulster Young Militants (UYM) are considered to be the youth wing of the Ulster Defence Association (UDA), an Ulster loyalist paramilitary group in Northern Ireland. Commonly known as the Young Militants or UYM, the group formed in 1974 when ...

" were taken over as the junior UDA. Subsequently, however the UDA declined in the area, and east Belfast in general, and the

became more important, with UVF murals being painted on Cregagh's walls. By 2018 however the only murals on Cregagh estate are one commemorating

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previousl ...

winners

Eric Norman Frankland Bell Eric Norman Frankland Bell VC (28 August 1895 – 1 July 1916) was an Irish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. A ...

Geoffrey Cather Geoffrey St. George Shillington Cather (11 October 1890 – 2 July 1916) was a recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. ...

William McFadzean William Frederick McFadzean VC (9 October 1895 – 1 July 1916) was a British recipient of the Victoria Cross (VC), the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth f ...

and

Robert Quigg Robert Quigg (28 February 1885 – 14 May 1955) was an Irish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. The award was m ...

and another showing local boy

George Best George Best (22 May 1946 – 25 November 2005) was a Northern Irish professional footballer who played as a winger, spending most of his club career at Manchester United. A highly skilful dribbler, Best is regarded as one of the greatest pla ...

Upper Cregagh Road

Beyond the Cregagh estate the road is made up of mainly private housing and continues as far as Upper Knockbreda Road. Cregagh Library and the former home of

Castlereagh Borough Council Castlereagh may refer to: People * Marquess of Londonderry, subsidiary title Viscount Castlereagh, used as courtesy title for the Marquess's eldest son; in particular ** Robert Stewart, Viscount Castlereagh (1769–1822), later 2nd Marquess of Lon ...

are found on this part of the road. The latter building has been extensively refurbished and is now the Museum Of Orange Heritage. The neighbouring Montgomery Road is the location for the former Robinson Centre leisure facility and the Castlereagh campus of

Belfast Metropolitan College Belfast Metropolitan College, also known as ''Belfast Met'', is a further and higher education institution in Belfast, Northern Ireland. The college offers both vocational education and academic qualifications. With over 37,000 enrolments and ...

. The area was sometimes nicknamed the "Bible belt". Immediately beyond the end of the Cregagh Road, on the opposite side of the Upper Knockbreda Road, is a forested area known as Cregagh Glen. The Upper Knockbreda Road, otherwise known as the A55 Outer Ring, was completed in 1967 to link Cregagh with the Knock area on the outskirts of east Belfast. Some of the streets in Cregagh are named after

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

generals (e.g. Montgomery,

Alanbrooke Field Marshal Alan Francis Brooke, 1st Viscount Alanbrooke, (23 July 1883 – 17 June 1963), was a senior officer of the British Army. He was Chief of the Imperial General Staff (CIGS), the professional head of the British Army, during the Se ...

) while a significant number are named after

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

battlefields (e.g.

Picardy Picardy (; Picard and french: Picardie, , ) is a historical territory and a former administrative region of France. Since 1 January 2016, it has been part of the new region of Hauts-de-France. It is located in the northern part of France. Hist ...

, Hamel). This connection with the wars reflects the numbers of people from the area who died in those wars. This was also a reason why the location was chosen for a large number of ex-servicemen's homes, with 150 of the so-called "

homes fit for heroes A council house is a form of British public housing built by local authorities. A council estate is a building complex containing a number of council houses and other amenities like schools and shops. Construction took place mainly from 1919 a ...

" promised by

David Lloyd George David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor, (17 January 1863 – 26 March 1945) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1916 to 1922. He was a Liberal Party (United Kingdom), Liberal Party politician from Wales, known for lea ...

built around this area in the late 1920s. However this area, which was known locally as "the Colony", remained the only significant public housing scheme for ex-soldiers to be undertaken in Belfast in the aftermath of the First World War. A memorial to the dead of the First World War, consisting of a

Celtic Cross The Celtic cross is a form of Christian cross featuring a nimbus or ring that emerged in Ireland, France and Great Britain in the Early Middle Ages. A type of ringed cross, it became widespread through its use in the stone high crosses e ...

, was unveiled in 1929 before being rededicated in 1932 by Edward, Prince of Wales. Castlereagh council expanded the memorial a number of times during the 1990s, adding a stone for the

Ulster Special Constabulary The Ulster Special Constabulary (USC; commonly called the "B-Specials" or "B Men") was a quasi-military reserve special constable police force in what would later become Northern Ireland. It was set up in October 1920, shortly before the part ...

, another stone for the

Ulster Defence Regiment The Ulster Defence Regiment (UDR) was an infantry regiment of the British Army established in 1970, with a comparatively short existence ending in 1992. Raised through public appeal, newspaper and television advertisements,Potter p25 their offi ...

and a back plaque commemorating members of both of these groups and the

Royal Ulster Constabulary The Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) was the police force in Northern Ireland from 1922 to 2001. It was founded on 1 June 1922 as a successor to the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC)Richard Doherty, ''The Thin Green Line – The History of the Roya ...

as well as civilians killed during the Troubles and local residents who died during the Second World War.

Notable people

The late footballer

grew up in the Cregagh Estate, and as a boy played football on the open playing fields at the centre of the estate. These playing fields, Cregagh Green, are now protected for community recreation in perpetuity as a Fields in Trust Active Space. Best's funeral originated from Burren Way where his father continued to live until his death in April 2008. George Best is commemorated by a mural in the Cregagh estate and formerly by another on the Woodstock Road. Singer-songwriter David McWilliams, who achieved mainstream success with his song "Days of Pearly Spencer", was born in the Cregagh estate although he moved to

Ballymena Ballymena ( ; from ga, an Baile Meánach , meaning 'the middle townland') is a town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is part of the Borough of Mid and East Antrim. The town is built on land given to the Adair family by King Charles I i ...

at an early age. Former

Democratic Unionist Party The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) is a unionist, loyalist, and national conservative political party in Northern Ireland. It was founded in 1971 during the Troubles by Ian Paisley, who led the party for the next 37 years. Currently led by J ...

(DUP) politician

Iris Robinson Iris Robinson (née Collins; born 6 September 1949) is a former Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) politician in Northern Ireland. She is married to Peter Robinson, who was First Minister of Northern Ireland from 2008 to 2016. Robinson was fir ...

grew up in the Cregagh estate and met her husband, future

First Minister of Northern Ireland The First Minister and deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland are the joint heads of government of the Northern Ireland Executive and have overall responsibility for the running of the Executive Office. Despite the different titles for the two ...

Peter Robinson, at Castlereagh College, where they both studied.

Politics

Sections of the Woodstock and Cregagh roads mark the official boundary between the

Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, B ...

constituencies of Belfast East and Belfast South, with the area being divided between the two. This division is replicated in the Belfast East and Belfast South Stormont constituencies, which make use of the same electoral map. In local government, the area falls under the authority of

Belfast City Council Belfast City Council ( ga, Comhairle Cathrach Bhéal Feirste) is the local authority with responsibility for part of the city of Belfast, the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland. The Council serves an estimated population of (), the ...

, with the roads running through the

Titanic RMS ''Titanic'' was a British passenger liner, operated by the White Star Line, which sank in the North Atlantic Ocean on 15 April 1912 after striking an iceberg during her maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York City, Unite ...

and Lisnasharragh district electoral areas (DEAs). The Cregagh area also lends its name to one of the Lisnasharragh DEA's six wards. With the upper Cregagh Road forming the ward's eastern edge, it encompasses the Cregagh Estate and streets as far south as Upper Knockbreda Road, and as far west as Knockbreda Park and Mount Merrion Avenue. As part of the DEA, Cregagh has been represented by Councillors Michael Long and Eric Hanvey (

Alliance Party of Northern Ireland The Alliance Party of Northern Ireland (APNI), or simply Alliance, is a liberal and centrist political party in Northern Ireland. As of the 2022 Northern Ireland Assembly election, it is the third-largest party in the Northern Ireland Assembl ...

) (APNI), Brian Smyth (

Green Party A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as social justice, environmentalism and nonviolence. Greens believe that these issues are inherently related to one another as a foundation f ...

), (

Alderman An alderman is a member of a municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council member chosen by the elected members ...

) Tommy Sandford and Sammy Douglas (DUP), and Séamus De Faoite ( Social Democratic and Labour Party) since June 2022. Sandford, a former UVF prisoner who became a community worker in Cregagh, had been a member of the

Progressive Unionist Party The Progressive Unionist Party (PUP) is a minor unionist political party in Northern Ireland. It was formed from the Independent Unionist Group operating in the Shankill area of Belfast, becoming the PUP in 1979. Linked to the Ulster Volun ...

(PUP) but left in 2009 over its continuing links to the loyalist paramilitary group, joining the DUP the following year. The ward lies within the Belfast East constituencies. Following the 2022 Assembly election,

Naomi Long Naomi Rachel Long MLA (née Johnston; born 13 December 1971) is a Northern Irish politician who served as Minister of Justice in the Northern Ireland Executive from January 2020 to October 2022. She has served as leader of the Alliance Party ...

and

Peter McReynolds Peter McReynolds (born 21 March 1987) is a Northern Irish politician who is an Alliance Party Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA). He was elected as an MLA in the 2022 Northern Ireland Assembly election for Belfast East. Early life and ...

(APNI),

Joanne Bunting Joanne Bunting (born 7 June 1974) is a Unionist politician from Northern Ireland representing the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP). She has been an MLA for Belfast East since the 2016 election. Bunting was educated at Braniel Primary School a ...

and David Brooks (DUP), and Andy Allen (

Ulster Unionist Party The Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) is a unionist political party in Northern Ireland. The party was founded in 1905, emerging from the Irish Unionist Alliance in Ulster. Under Edward Carson, it led unionist opposition to the Irish Home Rule m ...

) (UUP) have represented the area as Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs).

Gavin Robinson Gavin James Robinson (born 22 November 1984) is a Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) politician and barrister. He has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Belfast East in the UK House of Commons since the 2015 general election. He was Lord Ma ...

(DUP) has represented the constituency in the House of Commons since

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the April ...

. East Belfast has historically been strongly Unionist, with Nationalist parties consistently performing poorly at elections, and Cregagh reflects this trend. However, the constituency does have a strong centrist presence, appearing to be something of a stronghold for the Alliance Party. It is between this party and the DUP, which has proven to be the dominant political rivalry in the area.

Transport

Woodstock and Cregagh are served by Service 6 of the Metro buses provided by Translink which links the areas with Belfast city centre at one end and

Forestside Shopping Centre Forestside Shopping Centre (better known as Forestside) is located in Newtownbreda in the southern suburbs of Belfast, Northern Ireland. The first phase of the centre, the Sainsbury's store, opened in March 1997. The popularity of the centre has ...

at the other.Route 6

References

{{County Down Geography of Belfast Townlands of County Down Wards of Northern Ireland Civil parish of Knockbreda