Armagh ( ; , , "

Macha Macha () was a sovereignty goddess of ancient Ireland associated with the province of Ulster, particularly the sites of Navan Fort (''Eamhain Mhacha'') and Armagh (''Ard Mhacha''), which are named after her.Koch, John T. ''Celtic Culture: A Hi ...

's height") is a city and the

county town In Great Britain and Ireland, a county town is usually the location of administrative or judicial functions within a county, and the place where public representatives are elected to parliament. Following the establishment of county councils in ...

County Armagh County Armagh ( ) is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. It is located in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster and adjoins the southern shore of Lough Neagh. It borders t ...

, in

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

, as well as a

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

. It is the

ecclesiastical capital The religious capital or ecclesiastical capital of a region is a place considered pre-eminent by the adherents of a particular religion within that region. This is most often significant for the region's predominant religion or state religion, if ...

of Ireland – the seat of the

Archbishops of Armagh The Archbishop of Armagh is an Episcopal polity, archiepiscopal title which takes its name from the Episcopal see, see city of Armagh in Northern Ireland. Since the Reformation in Ireland, Reformation, there have been parallel apostolic success ...

, the Primates of All Ireland for both the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

and the

Church of Ireland The Church of Ireland (, ; , ) is a Christian church in Ireland, and an autonomy, autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. It is organised on an all-Ireland basis and is the Christianity in Ireland, second-largest Christian church on the ...

. In ancient times, nearby

Navan Fort Navan Fort ( ; ) is an ancient ceremonial monument near Armagh, Northern Ireland. According to tradition it was one of the great royal sites of pre-Christian Gaelic Ireland and the capital of the Ulaidh. It is a large circular hilltop enclos ...

() was a

pagan Paganism (, later 'civilian') is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Christianity, Judaism, and Samaritanism. In the time of the ...

ceremonial site and one of the great royal capitals of

Gaelic Ireland Gaelic Ireland () was the Gaelic political and social order, and associated culture, that existed in Ireland from the late Prehistory of Ireland, prehistoric era until the 17th century. It comprised the whole island before Anglo-Norman invasi ...

. Today, Armagh is home to two cathedrals (both named after

Saint Patrick Saint Patrick (; or ; ) was a fifth-century Romano-British culture, Romano-British Christian missionary and Archbishop of Armagh, bishop in Gaelic Ireland, Ireland. Known as the "Apostle of Ireland", he is the primary patron saint of Irelan ...

) and the

Armagh Observatory Armagh Observatory is an astronomical research institute in Armagh, Northern Ireland. Around 25 astronomers are based at the observatory, studying stellar astrophysics, the Sun, Solar System astronomy and Earth's climate. In 2018, Armagh Obs ...

, and is known for its

Georgian architecture Georgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1714 and 1830. It is named after the first four Monarchy of the United Kingdom, British monarchs of the House of Han ...

. Statistically classed as a medium-sized town by

NISRA The Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA, ) is an executive agency within the Department of Finance in Northern Ireland. The organisation is responsible for the collection and publication of statistics related to the economy, ...

, Armagh was given

city status City status is a symbolic and legal designation given by a monarch, national or subnational government. A municipality may receive city status because it already has the qualities of a city, or because it has some special purpose. Historically, ci ...

in 1994 and Lord Mayoralty status in 2012. It had a population of 16,310 people in the 2021 Census.

History

Foundation

''Eamhain Mhacha'' (or Navan Fort), at the western edge of Armagh, was an ancient

ritual or ceremonial site. According to

Irish mythology Irish mythology is the body of myths indigenous to the island of Ireland. It was originally Oral tradition, passed down orally in the Prehistoric Ireland, prehistoric era. In the History of Ireland (795–1169), early medieval era, myths were ...

it was one of the great royal sites of

and the capital of

Ulster Ulster (; or ; or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional or historic provinces of Ireland, Irish provinces. It is made up of nine Counties of Ireland, counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United Kingdom); t ...

. It appears to have been largely abandoned after the 1st century. In the 3rd century, a ditch and bank was dug around the top of Cathedral Hill, the heart of what is now Armagh. Its circular shape matches the modern street layout. Evidence suggests that it was a pagan sanctuary and the successor to Navan. Like Navan, it too was named after the

goddess A goddess is a female deity. In some faiths, a sacred female figure holds a central place in religious prayer and worship. For example, Shaktism (one of the three major Hinduism, Hindu sects), holds that the ultimate deity, the source of all re ...

: ''Ard Mhacha'', meaning "Macha's height". This name was later

anglicised Anglicisation or anglicization is a form of cultural assimilation whereby something non-English becomes assimilated into or influenced by the culture of England. It can be sociocultural, in which a non-English place adopts the English language ...

as ''Ardmagh'',Placenames Database of Ireland
(see archival records) which eventually became ''Armagh''. Navan and Armagh were linked by an ancient road which passes over Mullacreevie hill. After

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

spread to Ireland, the pagan sanctuary was converted into a Christian one, and Armagh became the site of an important church and

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of Monasticism, monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in Cenobitic monasticism, communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a ...

. According to tradition,

founded his main church there in the year 445, and it eventually became the head church of Ireland. Muirchú writes that a pagan chieftain named

Dáire Dáire is an Old Irish name which fell out of use at an early period, remaining restricted essentially to legendary and ancestral figures, usually male. It has come back into fashion since the 18th century. The anglicised form of this name is Dar ...

would not let Patrick build a church on the hill of Ard Mhacha, but instead gave him lower ground to the east. One day, Dáire's horses died after grazing on the church land. He told his men to kill Patrick, but was himself struck down with illness. They begged Patrick to heal him, and Patrick's holy water revived both Dáire and his horses. Dáire rewarded Patrick with a great bronze cauldron and gave him the hill of Ard Mhacha to build a church. Dáire has similarities with the Irish god

the Dagda The Dagda ( , ) is considered the great god of Irish mythology. He is the chief god of the Tuatha Dé Danann, with the Dagda portrayed as a father-figure, king, and druid.Koch, John T. ''Celtic Culture: A Historical Encyclopedia''. ABC-CLIO, ...

Medieval era

By the 7th century, Armagh had become the site of the most important church, monastery and

monastic school Monastic schools () were, along with cathedral schools, the most important institutions of higher learning in the Latin West#Use with regard to Christianity, Latin West from the early Middle Ages until the 12th century. Since Cassiodorus's educatio ...

in the north of Ireland.Duffy, Seán. ''Medieval Ireland: An Encyclopedia''. Routledge, 2005. pp.48-50 The ''

Book of Armagh The ''Book of Armagh'' or Codex Ardmachanus (ar or 61) (), also known as the ''Canon of Patrick'' and the ''Liber Ar(d)machanus'', is a 9th-century Irish art, Irish illuminated manuscript written mainly in Latin. It is held by the Library of Tri ...

'' was produced in the monastery in the early 9th century and contains some of the oldest surviving specimens of

Old Irish Old Irish, also called Old Gaelic (, Ogham, Ogham script: ᚌᚑᚔᚇᚓᚂᚉ; ; ; or ), is the oldest form of the Goidelic languages, Goidelic/Gaelic language for which there are extensive written texts. It was used from 600 to 900. The ...

. Armagh was at the heart of the kingdom of the Airthir, a part of the

Airgíalla Airgíalla (; Modern Irish: Oirialla, English: Oriel, Latin: ''Ergallia'') was a medieval Irish over-kingdom and the collective name for the confederation of tribes that formed it. The confederation consisted of nine minor kingdoms, all indepen ...

federation. The church at Armagh looked to both the Airthir and neighbouring

Uí Néill The Uí Néill (; meaning "descendants of Niall") are Irish dynasties that claim descent from Niall Noígíallach (Niall of the Nine Hostages), a historical King of Tara who is believed to have died around c. 405. They are generally divided ...

for patronage. The Uí Néill

High King A high king is a king who holds a position of seniority over a group of other kings, without the title of emperor. Similar titles include great king and king of kings. The high kings of history usually ruled over lands of cultural unity; thus ...

Niall Caille Niall mac Áeda (died 846), called Niall Caille (Niall of the Callan) to distinguish him from his grandson Niall mac Áeda (died 917), was High King of Ireland. Background Niall belonged to Cenél nEógain, a northern branch of the Uí Néill, ...

(Niall of the Callan), was buried at Armagh in 846 after drowning in the River Callan. His son, High King

Áed Findliath Áed mac Néill (died 879), called Áed Findliath ("fair-grey Áed"; Modern Irish: ''Aodh Fionnadhliath'') to distinguish him from his paternal grandfather Áed Oirdnide, was king of Ailech and High King of Ireland. He was also called Áed Olach ...

, had a house at Armagh. The first

Viking Vikings were seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway, and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded, and settled throughout parts of Europe.Roesdahl, pp. 9� ...

raids on Armagh were recorded in 832, with three in one month, and it suffered at least ten Viking raids over the following century. A hoard seemingly lost by Vikings in the River Blackwater shows the high quality of metalwork being made in Armagh at this time.

Brian Boru Brian Boru (; modern ; 23 April 1014) was the High King of Ireland from 1002 to 1014. He ended the domination of the High King of Ireland, High Kingship of Ireland by the Uí Néill, and is likely responsible for ending Vikings, Viking invasio ...

High King of Ireland High King of Ireland ( ) was a royal title in Gaelic Ireland held by those who had, or who are claimed to have had, lordship over all of Ireland. The title was held by historical kings and was later sometimes assigned anachronously or to leg ...

, visited Armagh in 1004, acknowledging it as the head church of Ireland and bestowing it a large sum of gold. Brian was buried at Armagh cathedral after his death at the

Battle of Clontarf The Battle of Clontarf () took place on 23 April 1014 at Clontarf, near Dublin, on the east coast of Ireland. It pitted an army led by Brian Boru, High King of Ireland, against a Norse- Irish alliance comprising the forces of Sigtrygg Silkbea ...

in 1014. Armagh's claim to being the head church of Ireland was formally acknowledged at the

Synod of Ráth Breasail The Synod of Ráth Breasail (or Rathbreasail; ) was a synod of the Catholic Church in Ireland that took place in Ireland in 1111. It marked the transition of the Irish church from a monastic to a diocesan and parish-based church. Many present-day ...

in 1111. The 1171 Council of Armagh freed all Englishmen and women who were enslaved in Ireland. Following the

Anglo-Norman invasion of Ireland The Anglo-Norman invasion of Ireland took place during the late 12th century, when Anglo-Normans gradually conquered and acquired large swathes of land in Ireland over which the List of English monarchs, monarchs of England then claimed sovere ...

, Armagh was attacked by Anglo-Normans led by Philip de Worcester in 1185 and by

John de Courcy Sir John de Courcy (c. 1150–1219) was an Anglo-Norman knight who lived in Ireland from 1176 until his expulsion in 1204. He conquered a considerable territory, endowed religious establishments, built abbeys for both the Benedictines and the ...

in 1189. It was also raided by Ruaidrí mac Duinn Sléibe of

Ulaid (Old Irish, ) or (Irish language, Modern Irish, ) was a Gaelic Ireland, Gaelic Provinces of Ireland, over-kingdom in north-eastern Ireland during the Middle Ages made up of a confederation of dynastic groups. Alternative names include , which ...

in 1196 and 1199. Archbishop

Máel Patraic Ua Scannail Máel Patraic Ua Scannail or Patrick Ó Scannail (sometimes Patrick O'Scanlan) was an Irish Roman Catholic cleric. He served as Bishop of Raphoe, and later as Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland from 1262 to 1272. In 1268 he laid ...

rebuilt Armagh cathedral in 1268 and founded a

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...

friary, whose remains can still be seen. There was also a small

Culdee The Culdees (; ) were members of ascetic Christian monastic and eremitical communities of Ireland, Scotland, Wales and England in the Middle Ages. Appearing first in Ireland and then in Scotland, subsequently attached to cathedral or collegiate ...

community in Armagh until the 16th century.

Early modern era

During the 16th century

Tudor conquest of Ireland Ireland was conquered by the Tudor monarchs of England in the 16th century. The Anglo-Normans had Anglo-Norman invasion of Ireland, conquered swathes of Ireland in the late 12th century, bringing it under Lordship of Ireland, English rule. In t ...

, Armagh suffered greatly in the conflict between the English and the

O'Neills O'Neills Irish International Sports Company Ltd. is an Irish sporting goods manufacturer established in 1918. It is the largest manufacturer of sportswear in Ireland, with production plants located in Dublin and Strabane. O'Neills has a long r ...

. Armagh was strategically important as it lay between the

English Pale The Pale ( Irish: ''An Pháil'') or the English Pale (' or ') was the part of Ireland directly under the control of the English government in the Late Middle Ages. It had been reduced by the late 15th century to an area along the east coast s ...

and the O'Neill heartland of Tyrone, and the town changed hands many times during the wars.Quinn, Kevin
"The Lost Castle of Armagh"
''History Armagh''. In the 1560s, English troops under Thomas Radclyffe occupied and fortified the town, which was then attacked and largely destroyed by Shane O'Neill. After the

Battle of the Yellow Ford The Battle of the Yellow Ford was fought in County Armagh on 14 August 1598, during the Nine Years' War in Ireland. An English army of about 4,000, led by Henry Bagenal, was sent from the Pale to relieve the besieged Blackwater Fort. Marching ...

in 1598, the

rout A rout is a Panic, panicked, disorderly and Military discipline, undisciplined withdrawal (military), retreat of troops from a battlefield, following a collapse in a given unit's discipline, command authority, unit cohesion and combat morale ...

ed English army took refuge at Armagh before surrendering to Hugh O'Neill. By the end of the

Nine Years' War The Nine Years' War was a European great power conflict from 1688 to 1697 between Kingdom of France, France and the Grand Alliance (League of Augsburg), Grand Alliance. Although largely concentrated in Europe, fighting spread to colonial poss ...

, Armagh lay in ruins, as shown on Richard Bartlett's 1601 map. Following the Nine Years' War, Armagh came under English dominance and the cathedral came under the control of the Protestant

. The cathedral was rebuilt under Archbishop

Christopher Hampton Sir Christopher James Hampton (born 26 January 1946) is a British playwright, screenwriter, translator and film director. He is best known for his play Les Liaisons Dangereuses (play), ''Les Liaisons Dangereuses'' based on the Les Liaisons da ...

and the town began to be settled by Protestants from Britain, as part of the

Plantation of Ulster The Plantation of Ulster (; Ulster Scots dialects, Ulster Scots: ) was the organised Settler colonialism, colonisation (''Plantation (settlement or colony), plantation'') of Ulstera Provinces of Ireland, province of Irelandby people from Great ...

. During the

Irish Rebellion of 1641 The Irish Rebellion of 1641 was an uprising in Kingdom of Ireland, Ireland, initiated on 23 October 1641 by Catholic gentry and military officers. Their demands included an end to anti-Catholic discrimination, greater Irish self-governance, and ...

, many British settlers fled to Armagh cathedral for safety. After negotiations with the besieged settlers, Catholic rebels under Felim O'Neill occupied the town. In May 1642, following several rebel defeats and massacres by settlers elsewhere, the rebels in Armagh seized the settlers' property and set fire to the town.

Modern era

Armagh geograph-3773981-by-Ben-Brooksbank

The parliamentary borough of Armagh was a two-seat constituency in the

Irish House of Commons The Irish House of Commons was the lower house of the Parliament of Ireland that existed from 1297 until the end of 1800. The upper house was the Irish House of Lords, House of Lords. The membership of the House of Commons was directly elected, ...

prior to 1801. It continued as a one-seat constituency in the

United Kingdom House of Commons The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the upper house, the House of Lords, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. The House of Commons is an elected body consisting of 650 memb ...

from 1801 to 1885. It had a municipal corporation which was abolished under the

Municipal Corporations (Ireland) Act 1840 The Municipal Corporations Act (Ireland) 1840 ( 3 & 4 Vict. c. 108), ''An Act for the Regulation of Municipal Corporations in Ireland'', was passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom on 10 August 1840. It was one of the Municipal Corporat ...

. Armagh has been an educational centre since the time of Saint Patrick, and thus it has been referred to as "the city of saints and scholars". The educational tradition continued with the foundation of the Royal School in 1608, St Patrick's College in 1834 and the

in 1790. The Observatory was part of

Archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...

Lord Rokeby's plan to have a university in the city. This ambition was finally fulfilled, albeit briefly, in the 1990s when

Queen's University of Belfast The Queen's University of Belfast, commonly known as Queen's University Belfast (; abbreviated Queen's or QUB), is a public research university in Belfast, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom. The university received its charter in 1845 as part of ...

opened an outreach centre in the former hospital building. The

Catch-my-Pal Catch-my-Pal, alternatively known as the 'Protestant Total-Abstinence Union', was an anti-alcohol organisation founded on 13 July 1909 in Armagh, Ireland. The organisation closed down in January 1970, when its last club stopped operations. Its di ...

Protestant Total Abstinence Union was founded in 1909 in Armagh by the minister of 3rd Armagh (now The Mall) Presbyterian Church, Rev. Robert Patterson. Although relatively short-lived it was very successful for that time, attracting many tens of thousands of members. It was influential in the development of a "two-community" narrative in Ulster which was important in the Ulster Unionist campaign during the

Home Rule Crisis The Home Rule Crisis was a political and military crisis in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland that followed the introduction of the Government of Ireland Act 1914, Third Home Rule Bill in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom ...

. A

blue plaque A blue plaque is a permanent sign installed in a public place in the United Kingdom, and certain other countries and territories, to commemorate a link between that location and a famous person, event, or former building on the site, serving a ...

historical marker commemorating Rev. Patterson was erected on The Mall in 2019. Three brothers from Armagh died at the

Battle of the Somme The Battle of the Somme (; ), also known as the Somme offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British Empire and the French Third Republic against the German Empire. It took place between 1 July and 18 Nove ...

during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. None of the three has a known grave and all are commemorated on the

Thiepval Memorial to the Missing of the Somme The Thiepval Memorial to the Missing of the Somme is a war memorial to 72,337 missing British and South African servicemen who died in the Battles of the Somme of the First World War between 1915 and 1918, with no known grave. It is near the ...

. A fourth brother was wounded in the same attack. On 14 January 1921, during the

Irish War of Independence The Irish War of Independence (), also known as the Anglo-Irish War, was a guerrilla war fought in Ireland from 1919 to 1921 between the Irish Republican Army (1919–1922), Irish Republican Army (IRA, the army of the Irish Republic) and Unite ...

, a

Royal Irish Constabulary The Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC, ; simply called the Irish Constabulary 1836–67) was the police force in Ireland from 1822 until 1922, when all of the island was part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom. A sep ...

(RIC) sergeant was assassinated by the

Irish Republican Army The Irish Republican Army (IRA) is a name used by various Resistance movement, resistance organisations in Ireland throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. Organisations by this name have been dominantly Catholic and dedicated to anti-imperiali ...

(IRA) in Armagh. He was attacked with a

grenade A grenade is a small explosive weapon typically thrown by hand (also called hand grenade), but can also refer to a Shell (projectile), shell (explosive projectile) shot from the muzzle of a rifle (as a rifle grenade) or a grenade launcher. A mod ...

as he walked along Market Street and later died of his wounds. On 4 September 1921, republican leaders

Michael Collins Michael Collins or Mike Collins most commonly refers to: * Michael Collins (Irish leader) (1890–1922), Irish revolutionary leader, soldier, and politician * Michael Collins (astronaut) (1930–2021), American astronaut, member of Apollo 11 and Ge ...

and

Eoin O'Duffy Eoin O'Duffy (born Owen Duffy; 28 January 1890 – 30 November 1944) was an Irish revolutionary, soldier, police commissioner, politician and fascist. O'Duffy was the leader of the Monaghan Brigade of the Irish Republican Army (IRA) and a promin ...

addressed a large meeting in Armagh, which was attended by up to 10,000 people. Armagh Library and open air market - geograph

During the Troubles in Armagh, the violence was substantial enough for a stretch of road on the outskirts of the city to be referred to by one RUC officer as " Murder Mile". Over the span of 36 years, although mainly concentrated in the years from 1969 until 1994, the small city, including some outlying areas, saw 86 deaths in the Troubles, including those of a number of people from the city who died elsewhere in Troubles-related incidents. Armagh City Hall, which had been built as the Tontine Buildings in 1828 and converted into a municipal building in 1910, was badly damaged in a bomb attack on 27 September 1972 and subsequently demolished.

City status

As the seat of the

Primate of All Ireland The Primacy of Ireland belongs to the diocesan bishop of the Irish diocese with highest precedence. The Archbishop of Armagh is titled Primate of All Ireland and the Archbishop of Dublin Primate of Ireland, signifying that they are the senior ...

, Armagh was historically regarded as a

city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

, and recognisably had the status by 1226.Beckett 2005
p.134
It had no charter granted but claimed the title by prescription, and was later formerly chartered as a borough in 1613 under

James I James I may refer to: People *James I of Aragon (1208–1276) * James I of Sicily or James II of Aragon (1267–1327) * James I, Count of La Marche (1319–1362), Count of Ponthieu * James I, Count of Urgell (1321–1347) *James I of Cyprus (1334� ...

; Acts of the

Parliament of Ireland The Parliament of Ireland () was the legislature of the Lordship of Ireland, and later the Kingdom of Ireland, from 1297 until the end of 1800. It was modelled on the Parliament of England and from 1537 comprised two chambers: the Irish Hou ...

in 1773 and 1791 refer to the "City of Armagh". Armagh lost the status with the abolition of its city corporation by the

after it was deemed ineffective and unrepresentative of its population. From 1953, Armagh began to argue for the restoration of the status lost in 1840,Beckett 2005
p.133
with several applications to the Home Office being made. The council used the appellation "city" unofficially until 1994 when, at Queen Elizabeth's personal request, Armagh along with the Welsh town of

St Davids St Davids or St David's (, , "David's house”) is a cathedral city in Pembrokeshire, Wales. It lies on the River Alun and is part of the community of St Davids and the Cathedral Close. It is the resting place of Saint David, Wales's ...

was awarded the status.

Charles, Prince of Wales Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. Charles was born at Buckingham Palace during the reign of his maternal grandfather, King George VI, a ...

during a visit in July 1994 announced it had been granted to mark the 1,550th anniversary of the traditional date of Armagh's foundation by Saint Patrick, and also "in recognition of rmagh's and St Davids'important Christian heritage and their status as cities in the last century". The award of city status is typically granted to a

local authority Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of governance or public administration within a particular sovereign state. Local governments typically constitute a subdivision of a higher-level political or administrative unit, such a ...

body, and the

letters patent Letters patent (plurale tantum, plural form for singular and plural) are a type of legal instrument in the form of a published written order issued by a monarch, President (government title), president or other head of state, generally granti ...

was initially presented to dignitaries and Armagh District Council by Queen Elizabeth during a visit on 9 March 1995. Following this, it was renamed Armagh City and District Council from 1 October 1995.

Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council is a local authority that was established on 1 April 2015. It replaced Armagh City and District Council, Banbridge District Council and Craigavon Borough Council. The first elections to the ...

presently holds the status on behalf of the city as there is no localised council body since the aforementioned districts were merged in 2015 as a result of local government reform. Armagh contains the lowest population of all the cities of Northern Ireland, and is sixth physically smallest in the UK. Its urban area covering , makes it the smallest city by size in Northern Ireland, however several other cities are smaller when the UK is taken as a whole.

Notable buildings

Armagh is the site of two cathedrals, both on hills and both named after

. The Church of Ireland cathedral dates back to around 445. The present-day, post-Reformation, Roman Catholic cathedral was constructed during the latter half of the 19th century and features twin

spire A spire is a tall, slender, pointed structure on top of a roof of a building or tower, especially at the summit of church steeples. A spire may have a square, circular, or polygonal plan, with a roughly conical or pyramidal shape. Spire ...

s, making it the tallest such structure in the county. Armagh is one of the few cities in the world that is home to two cathedrals of the same name. Armagh has a Georgian area of heritage importance. Perhaps one of the more well known of the buildings is the former women's prison.Kerr, Robert: ''Three Gaols: Images of Crumlin Road, Long Kesh and Armagh Prisons'', MSF Press, 2011, The construction of Armagh Gaol began in 1780 and was extended in the 1840s and 1850s. The front façade of the prison was built in the Georgian style, while the later development, based on the design of

Pentonville (HM Prison) HM Prison Pentonville (informally "The Ville") is an English prison security categories in the United Kingdom, Category B men's prison, operated by His Majesty's Prison Service. Pentonville Prison is not in Pentonville, but is located further nor ...

, is Victorian. For most of its working life it was a women's prison although not exclusively so. Armagh Gaol was the primary women's prison in Northern Ireland. In 1986 the prison closed and its prisoners were transferred to the new prison at

Maghaberry Maghaberry or Magaberry (pronounced , ) is a village and townland in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is west of Lisburn and north of Moira. In the 2011 census it had a population of 4,716 people. It is one of the biggest villages within ...

. The city is home to the

, founded in 1790, and to the

Armagh Planetarium Armagh Planetarium is a planetarium in Armagh, Northern Ireland. It is located close to the city centre and neighbouring Armagh Observatory in approximately fourteen acres of landscaped grounds known as the Armagh Astropark. History Armagh P ...

, established in 1968 to complement the research work of the Observatory. The palace of the Archbishop of Armagh is now the local council offices and, along with the archbishop's private chapel, is open to the public. The Palace Stables heritage centre is a reconstructed

stable A stable is a building in which working animals are kept, especially horses or oxen. The building is usually divided into stalls, and may include storage for equipment and feed. Styles There are many different types of stables in use tod ...

block dating from the 18th century, which was once part of the Archbishop's estate. Among the city's chief glories is Armagh Public Library on Abbey Street. It was founded in 1771 by Archbishop Richard Robinson (later created the first

Baron Rokeby Baron Rokeby, of Armagh in the County of Armagh, was a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1777 for The Most Rev. Dr Richard Robinson, Church of Ireland Lord Primate of All Ireland and Lord Archbishop of Armagh, with remainder ...

in 1777), using his own library as its nucleus. It is especially rich in 17th- and 18th-century books in English, including Dean

Jonathan Swift Jonathan Swift (30 November 1667 – 19 October 1745) was an Anglo-Irish writer, essayist, satirist, and Anglican cleric. In 1713, he became the Dean (Christianity), dean of St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin, and was given the sobriquet "Dean Swi ...

's own copy of the first edition of his ''

Gulliver's Travels ''Gulliver's Travels'', originally titled ''Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World. In Four Parts. By Lemuel Gulliver, First a Surgeon, and then a Captain of Several Ships'', is a 1726 prose satire by the Anglo-Irish writer and clerg ...

'' with his manuscript corrections. Armagh Market House was built in 1815 as a two-storey five-bay building, and is currently used as a library. Armagh County Museum is the oldest county museum in Ireland. The building dates from 1833 and was originally a school house. It was opened as th
County Museum
in 1937.

Townlands

Armagh is within the civil parish of Armagh. Like the rest of Ireland, this parish is divided into

townland A townland (; Ulster-Scots: ''toonlann'') is a traditional small land division used in Ireland and in the Western Isles of Scotland, typically covering . The townland system is of medieval Gaelic origin, predating the Norman invasion, and mo ...

s, whose names mostly come from the Irish language. When these townlands were built upon, they lent their names to various streets, roads and housing estates. In 1830, most of Armagh's urban townlands were amalgamated for administration and became known as Corporation Lands or simply Corporation. The surrounding townlands remained as separate units and they were eventually built upon too. They are listed below alongside their likely

etymologies Etymology ( ) is the study of the origin and evolution of words—including their constituent units of sound and meaning—across time. In the 21st century a subfield within linguistics, etymology has become a more rigorously scientific study. ...

. *Aghamoat () *Ballynahone More (from ''Baile na hAbhann'', "townland of the river") *Cargagh (from ''Cairgeach'', "rocky land") *Cavanacaw (from ''Cabhán an Chatha'', "hollow of the battle" or ''Cabhán na Cáithe'', "hollow of the

chaff Chaff (; ) is dry, scale-like plant material such as the protective seed casings of cereal grains, the scale-like parts of flowers, or finely chopped straw. Chaff cannot be digested by humans, but it may be fed to livestock, ploughed into soil ...

") *Drumadd (formerly Drumadokeenan, from ''Dromad Uí Chianáin'', "O'Keenan's ridge") *Drumarg (from ''Droim Mairge'', "ridge of the boundary") *Drumman More (from ''Dromann'', "the ridge") *Killuney (from ''Cill Liamhna'', "Liamhain's church") *Legarhill or Mullaghcreevie (from ''Mullach Craoibhe'', "hilltop of the branch"; ''legar'' is from an old English word for a military camp) *Longstone (named after a

standing stone A menhir (; from Brittonic languages: ''maen'' or ''men'', "stone" and ''hir'' or ''hîr'', "long"), standing stone, orthostat, or lith is a large upright rock (geology), stone, emplaced in the ground by humans, typically dating from the Eur ...

) *Lurgyvallen (from ''Lorga Uí Mhealláin'', "O'Mallon's long low ridge") *Mullynure (from ''Mullach an Iúir'', "hilltop of the yew") – part of Grange parish *Parkmore (from ''Páirc Mhór'', "great field") *Tullyelmer (originally Tullyelmaine, possibly from ''Tulaigh Alúine'', "hillock of the yellow clay") *Umgola (from ''Iomghuala'', "hill-shoulder") Some of the former townlands included: *Doonullagh (possibly from ''Dún Ulaidhe'', "fort of the tomb")Corporation
Place Names NI. *Drumbreda (from ''Droim Brighde'', "Brigid's hill")Oates, Gerry
"Origins of some Armagh place-names"
''History Armagh'', Spring 2007. *Knockadrain (from ''Cnoc an Droighin'', "blackthorn hill") – site of the Catholic cathedral *Knockamell (from ''Cnoc Uí Ághmaill'', "O'Hamill's hill") – site of the Observatory *Knockenboy (from ''Cnocán Buidhe'', "yellow hillock") *Lisanally (formerly Liosconalia, from ''Lios Chon Allaidh'' meaning "fort of the wolf"; "Cú Allaidh's fort") *Tullynalecky (from ''Tulaigh na Leice'', "flagstone hill") – site of St Patrick's Catholic graveyard *Templebreed (from ''Teampall Brighde'', "Brigid's chapel") *Templefertagh (from ''Teampall Fearta'', "chapel of the graves or miracles") *Tullyasnagh

Demography

2021 Census

On Census day (21 March 2021) there were 16,310 people living in Armagh. Of these: * 22.36% were aged under 16, 62.11% were aged between 16-65, and 15.52% were aged 66 or over. * 51.91% of the usually resident population were female and 48.09% were male. * 67.3% (10,977) belong to or were brought up Catholic, 23.76% (3,875) belong to or were brought up 'Protestant and Other Christian (including Christian related)', 1.35% belong to other religions and 7.59% have no religious background. * 47.93% had an Irish national identity, 20.17% indicated that they had a British national identity, 24.08% had a Northern Irish national identity, and 16.27% had an 'other' national identity. (respondents could indicate more than one national identity). * 21.67% had some knowledge of Irish (Gaeilge) and 5.35% had some knowledge of

Ulster Scots Ulster Scots, may refer to: * Ulster Scots people * Ulster Scots dialect Ulster Scots or Ulster-Scots (), also known as Ulster Scotch and Ullans, is the dialect (whose proponents assert is a dialect of Scots language, Scots) spoken in parts ...

2011 Census

On Census day (27 March 2011) there were 14,777 people living in Armagh (5871 households), accounting for 0.82% of the NI total, This article contains quotations from this source, which is available under th
Open Government Licence v3.0
© Crown copyright. representing an increase of 1.3% on the Census 2001 population of 14,590. Of these: * 20.90% were aged under 16 years and 15.44% were aged 65 and over. * 52.52% of the usually resident population were female and 47.48% were male. * 68.85% belong to or were brought up in the Catholic Christian faith and 26.95% belong to or were brought up in a 'Protestant and Other Christian (including Christian related)' religion. * 44.39% had an Irish national identity, 27.18% indicated that they had a British national identity and 26.43% had a Northern Irish national identity (respondents could indicate more than one national identity). * 37 years was the average (median) age of the population; * 18.76% had some knowledge of Irish (Gaeilge) and 4.08% had some knowledge of Ulster-Scots.

Governance

Armagh City and District Council Armagh City and District Council was a district council in County Armagh in Northern Ireland. It merged with Banbridge District Council and Craigavon Borough Council in May 2015 under local government reorganisation in Northern Ireland to beco ...

was a single district council until 2015 when it merged with

Banbridge District Council Banbridge District Council was the local authority of Banbridge in Northern Ireland. It was created in 1973 when the Local Government (Boundaries) Act (Northern Ireland) 1971 came into force. In May 2015, it merged with Armagh City and District ...

and

Craigavon Borough Council Craigavon Borough Council was a local council in counties Armagh, Down and Antrim, in Northern Ireland. It merged with Armagh City and District Council and Banbridge District Council in May 2015 under local government reorganisation in Nor ...

under local government reorganisation in Northern Ireland to become

, sometimes colloquially referred to as the ABC council. Armagh is part of the Newry and Armagh Assembly constituency. Together with part of the district of

Newry and Mourne Newry and Mourne District Council () was a local council in Northern Ireland. It merged with Down District Council in May 2015 under local government reorganisation in Northern Ireland to become Newry, Mourne and Down District Council. It inclu ...

, it forms the Newry & Armagh constituency for elections to the

Westminster Parliament The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, and may also legislate for the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of ...

and

Northern Ireland Assembly The Northern Ireland Assembly (; ), often referred to by the metonym ''Stormont'', is the devolved unicameral legislature of Northern Ireland. It has power to legislate in a wide range of areas that are not explicitly reserved to the Parliam ...

Administration

The Education Authority (Southern) and the Southern Health and Social Care Trust have their headquarters in the city, which has a long reputation as an administrative centre. The secretariat of the

North/South Ministerial Council The North/South Ministerial Council (NSMC) (, Ulster-Scots: ) is a body established under the Good Friday Agreement to co-ordinate activity and exercise certain governmental powers across the whole island of Ireland. The Council takes the for ...

is based in Armagh, and consists jointly of members of the civil services of both Northern Ireland and the

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 Counties of Ireland, counties of the island of Ireland, with a population of about 5.4 million. ...

. Armagh is the seat of both the

Church of Ireland Archbishop of Armagh The Anglican archbishop of Armagh is the ecclesiastical head of the Church of Ireland, bearing the title Primate of All Ireland, the metropolitan of the Province of Armagh and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Armagh.

and the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Armagh, both of whom hold the position of ''

'' for their respective denominations.

Education

Primary

*Armstrong Primary School *Christian Brothers Primary School Armagh *The Drelincourt Primary School *Dromintee Primary School *Drumhillery Primary School *Mount St Catherine's Primary School * The Royal School Preparatory School *Saints and Scholars Integrated Primary School *St. Malachy's Primary School *St. Patrick's Primary School

Post-primary

* City of Armagh High School *

St. Catherine's College, Armagh Saint Catherine's College Armagh ( Irish: ''Coláiste Chaitríona Ard Mhacha'') is an all level Catholic school in Armagh, Northern Ireland. It caters for the 11-18 age group and is associated with the international group of schools served by th ...

St. Patrick's Grammar School, Armagh St Patrick's Grammar School () is a Roman Catholic boys' voluntary grammar school in Armagh, Northern Ireland. The present‑day school was officially opened on Thursday, 27 October 1988, by the late Cardinal (Catholicism), Cardinal Tomás Ó Fi ...

The Royal School, Armagh The Royal School, Armagh is a co-educational voluntary grammar school, founded in the 17th century, in the city of Armagh in Northern Ireland. It has a boarding department with an international intake. It is a member of the Headmasters' and He ...

Southern Regional College Southern Regional College (SRC) is a further and higher education college in the southern area of Northern Ireland in the United Kingdom. It was formed in 2007 following a merger of the Further Education colleges of Armagh College, Newry and K ...

Transport

The

Ulster Railway The Ulster Railway was a railway company operating in Ulster, Ireland. The company was incorporated in 1836 and merged with two other railway companies in 1876 to form the Great Northern Railway (Ireland). History The Ulster Railway was au ...

linked Armagh with

Belfast Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...

in 1848 and

Monaghan Monaghan ( ; ) is the county town of County Monaghan, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It also provides the name of its Civil parishes in Ireland, civil parish and Monaghan (barony), Monaghan barony. The population of the town as of the 2022 cen ...

in 1858. The

Newry and Armagh Railway The Newry and Armagh Railway, initially the Newry and Enniskillen Railway, was opened in 1864 and ran until 1879. Stations and line description Armagh The Newry and Armagh Railway (N&A) opened in 1864, and had its own temporary terminus just ou ...

(N&A) opened in 1864 and the

Castleblayney, Keady and Armagh Railway The Castleblayney, Keady and Armagh Railway (CK&A) was an Irish gauge railway in Ulster. It linked in County Armagh with in County Monaghan. The Armagh – section was opened in 1909 and closed in 1957. The Castleblayney – Keady section w ...

(CK&A) was completed in 1910. In 1876 the Ulster Railway became part of the new Great Northern Railway (GNR), which took over the N&A in 1879 and the CK&A in 1911. The

Armagh rail disaster The Armagh rail disaster happened on 12 June 1889 near Armagh, County Armagh, in Ireland, when a crowded Sunday school excursion train had to negotiate a steep incline; the steam locomotive was unable to complete the climb and the train stalled ...

, which killed 80 people, occurred on 12 June 1889 on the N&A line near Armagh. The

partition of Ireland The Partition of Ireland () was the process by which the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (UK) divided Ireland into two self-governing polities: Northern Ireland and Southern Ireland (the area today known as the R ...

in 1922 hastened the railways' decline, and the GNR closed the

Keady Keady () is a town and civil parish in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. It is south of Armagh and near the border with the Republic of Ireland. It is situated mainly in the historic barony of Armagh with six townlands in the barony of Tiranny ...

–

Castleblayney Castleblayney (; ) is a town in County Monaghan, Ireland. The town had a population of 3,926 as of the 2022 census. Castleblayney is near the border with County Armagh in Northern Ireland, and lies on the N2 road from Dublin to Derry and L ...

section of the CKA in 1923.Hajducki, ''op. cit.'', map 39 The GNR withdrew passenger trains from the Armagh – Keady section of the CKA in 1922 and closed the Armagh –

Markethill Markethill is a village in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. It is beside Gosford Forest Park. It had a population of 1,647 people in the 2011 United Kingdom census, 2011 census. This article contains quotations from this source, which is availabl ...

section of the N&A in 1933. The

Government of Northern Ireland A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...

forced the GNR Board to close all remaining lines serving Armagh railway station on 1 October 1957: the goods branch from Armagh to Keady and the main line through Armagh from as far as the border at

Glaslough Glaslough ( ; ) is a village and townland in the north of County Monaghan, Ireland, on the R185 regional road south of the border with Northern Ireland and northeast of Monaghan town. Glaslough won the Irish Tidy Towns Competition in 1978 a ...

on the way to Monaghan. Today Armagh is the only city in Ireland that is not served by rail, however Portadown is the nearest station.

NI Railways NI Railways, also known as Northern Ireland Railways (NIR; and for a brief period Ulster Transport Railways; UTR), is the railway operator in Northern Ireland. NIR is a subsidiary of Translink, whose parent company is the Northern Ireland Tr ...

train services run from Portadown to Belfast Grand Central and the cross-border

Enterprise Enterprise (or the archaic spelling Enterprize) may refer to: Business and economics Brands and enterprises * Enterprise GP Holdings, an energy holding company * Enterprise plc, a UK civil engineering and maintenance company * Enterpris ...

service runs via

Newry Newry (; ) is a City status in Ireland, city in Northern Ireland, standing on the Newry River, Clanrye river in counties County Down, Down and County Armagh, Armagh. It is near Republic of Ireland–United Kingdom border, the border with the ...

Dublin Connolly Connolly station () or Dublin Connolly is the busiest railway station in Dublin and Ireland, and is a focal point in the Irish route network. On the North side of the River Liffey, it provides InterCity, Enterprise and commuter services to ...

Poyntzpass Poyntzpass () is a small village on the border between southern County Armagh and County Down in Northern Ireland. It is situated in the civil parish of Ballymore and the historic barony of Orior Lower within the Armagh City, Banbridge and C ...

also has a limited service. When he was Minister for the

Department for Regional Development The Department for Infrastructure (DfI, ; ) is a devolved Northern Ireland government department in the Northern Ireland Executive. Up until May 2016, the department was called the Department for Regional Development. Aim DfI's overall aim ...

, then MLA Danny Kennedy had indicated plans to restore the railway from Armagh station to Portadown.

Sport

Armagh City Football Club, which plays in the

NIFL Championship The Northern Ireland Football League Championship (known as the Playr-Fit Championship for sponsorship reasons) is the second level of the Northern Ireland Football League, the national football league in Northern Ireland. Clubs in the Championsh ...

is the main association football club, and the City of Armagh Rugby Club is the local rugby club. Lisanally Rangers F.C. is another football team, playing in the

Mid-Ulster Football League The Daily Mirror Mid-Ulster Football League, or simply referred to as the Mid-Ulster League, is an association football league in Northern Ireland. It contains 9 divisions. These comprise two intermediate sections: the Intermediate A and Intermed ...

Gaelic football Gaelic football (; short name '')'', commonly known as simply Gaelic, GAA, or football, is an Irish team sport. A form of football, it is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score ...

is represented by Armagh Harps and Pearse Ógs. The local

GAA Gaa may refer to: * Gaa language, a language of Nigeria * gaa, the ISO 639 code for the Ga language of Ghana GAA may stand for: Compounds * Glacial (water-free), acetic acid * Acid alpha-glucosidase, also known as glucosidase, alpha; acid, an e ...

handball club is Eugene Quinn's, named after a player from the Armagh area who died on an attempted swim from

Tory Island Tory Island, or simply Tory, is an island 14.5 kilometres (7+3⁄4 nautical miles) off the north-west coast of County Donegal in the north-west of Ulster, the northern Provinces of Ireland, province in Ireland. It is officially known by its Iris ...

to mainland

County Donegal County Donegal ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county of the Republic of Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster and is the northernmost county of Ireland. The county mostly borders Northern Ireland, sharing only a small b ...

. The local

hurling Hurling (, ') is an outdoor Team sport, team game of ancient Gaelic culture, Gaelic Irish origin, played by men and women. One of Ireland's native Gaelic games, it shares a number of features with Gaelic football, such as the field and goa ...

club is Armagh Cúchulainns. In 2004, the Royal School, Armagh became only the second team in history to win both the schools'

rugby Rugby may refer to: Sport * Rugby football in many forms: ** Rugby union: 15 players per side *** American flag rugby *** Beach rugby *** Mini rugby *** Rugby sevens, 7 players per side *** Rugby tens, 10 players per side *** Snow rugby *** Tou ...

and

hockey ''Hockey'' is a family of List of stick sports, stick sports where two opposing teams use hockey sticks to propel a ball or disk into a goal. There are many types of hockey, and the individual sports vary in rules, numbers of players, apparel, ...

cups in the same year. The Mall in Armagh has a long association with

cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...

, and is the location of the

Armagh Cricket Club Armagh Cricket Club is a cricket club in Armagh, County Armagh, Northern Ireland. The club, which was founded in 1859, was fielding teams in Section 1 of the NCU Senior League as of 2024. History The club was formed in 1859. Originally playing a ...

clubhouse. Armagh Athletics Club, which was founded in 1969, organises the annual Armagh International 5k Road Race. The race was first organised in 1980.

Notable people

Only people who are sufficiently notable to have individual entries on Wikipedia have been included in the list and, in each instance, their birth or residence has been verified by citations. * Tom Boyd, Irish professional golfer, was born in Armagh in 1888 *

Daragh Carville Daragh Carville (born in Armagh in 1969) is an Irish playwright, screenwriter and educator. He is best known for co-creating and writing the ITV crime drama '' The Bay'', first broadcast on ITV in 2019, attracting an average audience of over seven ...

, playwright and screenwriter, whose works include '' Cherrybomb'', was born in Armagh in 1969 * David Cunningham (born 1954), musician *

Moses Harvey Moses Harvey (March 21, 1820 – September 3, 1901) was an Irish-born Newfoundland clergyman, essayist and naturalist. He is notable for his contributions to the fields of natural history and literature. Biography Harvey was of Scottish ...

, clergyman and naturalist, famous for studies of the

giant squid The giant squid (''Architeuthis dux'') is a species of deep-ocean dwelling squid A squid (: squid) is a mollusc with an elongated soft body, large eyes, eight cephalopod limb, arms, and two tentacles in the orders Myopsida, Oegopsida, ...

, was born in Armagh in 1820 *

John Lennox John Carson Lennox (born 7 November 1943) is a mathematician, bioethicist, and Christian apologist originally from Ireland. He has written many books on religion, ethics, the relationship between science and God (like his books, ''Has Scienc ...

(born 1943),

mathematician A mathematician is someone who uses an extensive knowledge of mathematics in their work, typically to solve mathematical problems. Mathematicians are concerned with numbers, data, quantity, mathematical structure, structure, space, Mathematica ...

who grew up in Armagh and attended the Royal School. He specialises in

group theory In abstract algebra, group theory studies the algebraic structures known as group (mathematics), groups. The concept of a group is central to abstract algebra: other well-known algebraic structures, such as ring (mathematics), rings, field ( ...

, is a

philosopher of science Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

and a

Christian apologist Christian apologetics (, "verbal defense, speech in defense") is a branch of Christian theology that defends Christianity. Christian apologetics have taken many forms over the centuries, starting with Paul the Apostle in the early church and Pa ...

* Patrick Magee, actor and director known for his collaborations with

Samuel Beckett Samuel Barclay Beckett (; 13 April 1906 – 22 December 1989) was an Irish writer of novels, plays, short stories, and poems. Writing in both English and French, his literary and theatrical work features bleak, impersonal, and Tragicomedy, tra ...

and

Harold Pinter Harold Pinter (; 10 October 1930 – 24 December 2008) was a British playwright, screenwriter, director and actor. A List of Nobel laureates in Literature, Nobel Prize winner, Pinter was one of the most influential modern British dramat ...

, was born in Armagh in 1922 *

Saint Malachy Malachy (; ; Modern ; ) (11th century in Ireland, 1094 – 2 November 1148 in Ireland, 1148) is an Irish saint who was Archbishop of Armagh, to whom were attributed several miracles and an alleged vision of 112 popes later attributed to t ...

of Armagh was born there in 1094 *

Seamus McGarvey Seamus McGarvey (born 29 June 1967) is a cinematographer from Armagh, Northern Ireland. He lives in Tuscany, Italy. He has received two Academy Award nominations for his cinematography, on Joe Wright's 2007 drama '' Atonement'' and his 2012 ...

Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...

-nominated cinematographer (''

Atonement Atonement, atoning, or making amends is the concept of a person taking action to correct previous wrongdoing on their part, either through direct action to undo the consequences of that act, equivalent action to do good for others, or some othe ...

'', ''

Anna Karenina ''Anna Karenina'' ( rus, Анна Каренина, p=ˈanːə kɐˈrʲenʲɪnə) is a novel by the Russian author Leo Tolstoy, first published in book form in 1878. Tolstoy called it his first true novel. It was initially released in serial in ...

''), was born in Armagh in 1967 *

Colin Morgan Colin Morgan (born 1 January 1986) is an actor from Northern Ireland. He is known for playing the title character in the BBC fantasy series ''Merlin'' (2008–2012), Leo Elster in ''Humans'' (2015–2018), and Billy Clanton in Kenneth Branagh' ...

, actor, known for playing the lead role in ''

Merlin The Multi-Element Radio Linked Interferometer Network (MERLIN) is an interferometer array of radio telescopes spread across England. The array is run from Jodrell Bank Observatory in Cheshire by the University of Manchester on behalf of UK Re ...

'', was born in Armagh in 1986 *

Ian Paisley Ian Richard Kyle Paisley, Baron Bannside, (6 April 1926 – 12 September 2014) was a loyalist politician and Protestant religious leader from Northern Ireland who served as leader of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) from 1971 to 2008 and ...

, politician, founder of the

Democratic Unionist Party The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) is a Unionism in Ireland, unionist, Ulster loyalism, loyalist, British nationalist and national conservative political party in Northern Ireland. It was founded in 1971 during the Troubles by Ian Paisley, who ...

and First Minister of Northern Ireland, was born in Armagh in 1926 *

Thomas Romney Robinson John Thomas Romney Robinson (23 April 1792 – 28 February 1882), usually referred to as Thomas Romney Robinson, was an Irish astronomer. He was the director of the Armagh Observatory, one of the chief astronomical observatories in the UK o ...

(1792–1882), astronomer, lived in Armagh *

Christopher Vokes Major-General Christopher Vokes (13 April 1904 – 27 March 1985) was a Canadian Army officer who fought in World War II. Born in Armagh, Ireland, he commanded the 2nd Canadian Infantry Brigade during the Allied invasion of Sicily. Promoted to ...

, Major General, was born in Armagh in 1904 *

William Whitford Dr. William Whitford (1846 – 15 June 1930) was a physician who served as chairman of the Everton F.C. and the Everton Liberal Club. He was a prominent temperance reformer. Whitford was born in Armagh, Ireland, and was a physician at Queen's ...

(1846 – 1930), physician and temperance reformer * Charles Wood, composer, was born in Armagh in 1866

Climate

Armagh has a temperate maritime climate (''Cfb'') according to the

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

system. The nearest

Met Office The Met Office, until November 2000 officially the Meteorological Office, is the United Kingdom's national weather and climate service. It is an executive agency and trading fund of the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology and ...

standard weather station, at Armagh Observatory, provides long term weather data back to 1794. The lowest temperature was on 7 February 1895. This is also the coldest temperature on record for February in Northern Ireland. Armagh also holds the record for highest daily minimum temperature in Northern Ireland, at on 31 July 1868. The lowest daily maximum temperature on record is which occurred on 20 December 2010.

Annalistic references

See

Annals of Inisfallen The ''Annals of Inisfallen'' () are a chronicle of the medieval history of Ireland. Overview There are more than 2,500 entries spanning the years between 433 and 1450. The manuscript is thought to have been compiled in 1092, as the chronic ...

(AI) * ''AI715.2 Flann.Febla,

abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the head of an independent monastery for men in various Western Christian traditions. The name is derived from ''abba'', the Aramaic form of the Hebrew ''ab'', and means "father". The female equivale ...

of Ard Macha, rested.'' * ''AI729.1 Kl. Repose of Suibne, abbot of Ard Macha.'' * ''AI750.1 Kl. Repose of Congus, abbot of Ard Macha.'' * ''AI768.3 Repose of Feradach son of Suibne, abbot of Ard Macha.'' * ''AI772.2 Suibne, abbot of Ard Macha, ested'' * ''AI791.1 Kl. Cú Dínisc son of Cú Ásaig, abbot of Ard Macha, rested.'' * ''AI793.1 Dub dá Leithe, abbot of Ard Macha, rested.'' * ''AI794.1 Kl. Airechtach, abbot of Ard Macha, ested'' * ''AI795.3 Repose of Faendledach Bec, abbot of Ard Macha.'' * ''AI807.1 Kl. Connmach son of Dub dá Leithe, abbot of Ard Macha, rested.'' * ''AI808.1 Kl. Taicthech grandson of Tigernán,

lector Lector is Latin for one who reads, whether aloud or not. In modern languages it takes various forms, as either a development or a loan, such as , , and . It has various specialized uses. Academic The title ''lector'' may be applied to lecturers ...

of Ard Macha, rested.'' * ''AI834.1 Kl. Eógan, bishop of Ard Macha, rested.'' * ''AI845.2 Forannán, abbot of Ard Macha, was carried off by the heathens from Cluain Comarda, and the shrine of Pátraic was broken and carried off by them.'' * ''AI846.1 Kl. Niall son of Aed, king of Temuir, was drowned in the Calann, i.e. a river beside Ard Macha.'' * ''AI852.2 Forannan and

Diarmait Diarmuid Ua Duibhne (, ), also known as Diarmuid of the Love Spot, is a hero and demigod in the Fenian Cycle of Irish mythology, traditionally thought to be set in the 2nd to 4th century. He is the son of Donn, son of Duibhne of the Fianna, ...

, abbots of Ard Macha, fell asleep.'' * ''AI852.2 Repose of Cathasach, abbot of Ard Macha.'' * ''AI874.1 Kl. The third

feria In the liturgy of the Catholic Church, a feria is a day of the week other than Sunday. In more recent official liturgical texts in English, the term ''weekday'' is used instead of ''feria''. If the feast day of a saint falls on such a day, the ...

uesday ninth of the moon. Féthgna, abbot of Ard Macha, rested in Christ.'' * ''AI883.2 Repose of Cathasach, abbot of Ard Macha.'' * ''AI888.3 Repose of Mael Coba son of Crunnmael, abbot of Ard Macha.'' * ''AI893.1 First after Bissextile. Kl. Repose of Mochta, bishop of Ard Macha.'' * ''AI924.2 Muiredach son of Domnall, abbot of Mainister Búiti and tanist-abbot of Ard Macha, rested.'' * ''AI927.1 Kl. Repose of Mael Brigte son of Tornán, abbot of Ard Macha and abbot of Í Coluim Chille.'' * ''AI936.1 Kl. Repose of Ioseph, abbot of Ard Macha; and Mael Pátraic succeeded him in the abbacy.'' * ''AI966.2 Repose of Muiredach son of Fergus, abbot of Ard Macha.'' * ''AI973.3 Dub dá Leithe,

coarb A coarb, from the Old Irish ''comarbae'' (Modern Irish: , ), meaning "heir" or "successor", was a distinctive office of the medieval Celtic Church among the Gaels of Ireland and Scotland. In this period coarb appears interchangeable with " erenac ...

of Patrick, came to Mumu and made his visitation; and he and the coarb of

Ailbe Saint Ailbe ( ; ), usually known in English as St Elvis ( British/ Welsh), Eilfyw or Eilfw, was regarded as the chief 'pre-Patrician' saint of Ireland (although his death was recorded in the early 6th-century). He was a bishop and later saint. ...

quarrelled regarding the levy, and Mathgamain, king of Mumu, made peace between them, and they agreed upon the perpetual right of he coarb ofPatrick.'' * ''AI996.4 Ard Macha was set on fire by lightning, which did not leave unburnt a steeple therein, nor a house, nor the house of an elder inside the fort.'' * ''AI996.5 Dub dá Leithe, coarb of Ard Macha (or, of Patrick) and coarb of Colum Cille, rested in Christ.'' * ''AI1001.2 Muirecán, abbot of Ard Macha, was expelled from his abbot's seat, and Mael Maire took the abbacy instead.'' * ''AI1005.5 Repose of

Eochaid ua Flannacáin Eochaid ua Flannacáin (935–1004) was an Irish cleric and poet. Life Eochaid was the author of more than twenty surviving quasi-historical, genealogical and topographical poems, many of which were incorporated into Lebor Gabala Erenn. He ...

, historian of Ard Macha.'' * ''AI1020.3 Mael Muire son of Eochaid, coarb of Patrick, rested in Christ.'' * ''AI1020.4 Ard Macha was burned, both stone-church and bellhouse, and all the buildings.'' * ''AI1026.3 The coarb of Patrick, accompanied by his venerable clerics, and Donnchadh son of Gilla Pátraic, king of

Osraige Osraige (Old Irish) or Osraighe (Classical Irish), Osraí (Modern Irish), anglicized as Ossory, was a medieval Irish kingdom comprising what is now County Kilkenny and western County Laois, corresponding to the Diocese of Ossory. The home of ...

ere Ere or ERE may refer to: * ''Environmental and Resource Economics'', a peer-reviewed academic journal * ERE Informatique, one of the first French video game companies * Ere language, an Austronesian language * Ebi Ere (born 1981), American-Nigeria ...

in the house of Donnchad, son of

Brian Brian (sometimes spelled Bryan (given name), Bryan in English) is a male given name of Irish language, Irish and Breton language, Breton origin, as well as a surname of Occitan language, Occitan origin. It is common in the English-speaking world. ...

, at Cenn Corad at Eastertide.'' * ''AI1029.8

Flaithbertach Ua Néill Flaithbertach Ua Néill (before 978–1036) was king of Ailech, a kingdom of north-west Ireland. He abdicated in 1030 and undertook a pilgrimage to Rome, for which reason he was known as Flaithbertach an Trostáin (Flaithbertach of the Pilgri ...

, on his pilgrimage to Ard Macha.''

References

External links

Visit ArmaghOnline Guide to Armagh City
{{authority control 457 establishments Cities in Northern Ireland Civil parishes of County Armagh County towns in Northern Ireland Georgian architecture in Ireland Georgian architecture in the United Kingdom