Braddan () is one of the seventeen

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

es of the

Isle of Man The Isle of Man ( , also ), or Mann ( ), is a self-governing British Crown Dependency in the Irish Sea, between Great Britain and Ireland. As head of state, Charles III holds the title Lord of Mann and is represented by a Lieutenant Govern ...

. It is located on the east of the island (part of the traditional ''South Side'' division) in the sheading of Middle. Administratively, a small part of the historic parish of Braddan is now covered by part of the

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English language, English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History ...

of Douglas, the capital and largest town of the Isle of Man. Other settlements in the parish include

Port Soderick Port Soderick () is a small hamlet to the south of Douglas, capital of the Isle of Man, once famed for its pleasure grounds and beach. In later years there have been various attempts to rejuvenate the area, all of which have been unsuccessful to ...

, Strang, Tromode and Union Mills.

Local government

For the purposes of

local government 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 ...

, the ''majority'' of the historic parish forms a single parish

district A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municip ...

with five elected

Commissioner A commissioner (commonly abbreviated as Comm'r) is, in principle, a member of a commission or an individual who has been given a commission (official charge or authority to do something). In practice, the title of commissioner has evolved to incl ...

s: In 1896, a small area in the south-east of the historic parish of Braddan became part of the borough of Douglas, since when it has been governed by a

municipal corporation Municipal corporation is the legal term for a local governing body, including (but not necessarily limited to) cities, counties, towns, townships, charter townships, villages, and boroughs. The term can also be used to describe municipally o ...

with 18 councillors and an elected

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

. The

Captain of the Parish The Captain of the Parish is an official in each parish in the Isle of Man—formerly the title was ''Captain of the Parish Militia'', but it is now only a titular honour. Historically the Captain of the Parish was authorised to raise his own mi ...

(since 1996) is Thomas Philip Caley.

Politics

Braddan parish

is part of the Middle

constituency An electoral (congressional, legislative, etc.) district, sometimes called a constituency, riding, or ward, is a geographical portion of a political unit, such as a country, state or province, city, or administrative region, created to provi ...

, which elects two Members to the House of Keys. The part of the historic parish which falls under the Borough of Douglas elects MHKs to the separate Douglas constituencies.

Geography

Braddan is an elongated parish, stretching from Druidale in the north to Port Soderick in the south. It is nearly 10 miles (16 km) from north to south, but less than wide in two places. It borders the parishes of

Michael Michael may refer to: People * Michael (given name), a given name * he He ..., a given name * Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael Given name * Michael (bishop elect)">Michael (surname)">he He ..., a given nam ...

and Lezayre in the north, German, Marown and Onchan in the middle and Santon in the south. The name Braddan is another form of Brendan, an Irish saint and patron of voyagers. The northern end of the parish is mountainous and uninhabited. The southern end is flatter and includes the village of Union Mills and nearby residential areas bordering Douglas to the west and north-west. The Middle River runs through the parish in the Kewaigue - Oakhill area in the south, where the original Fairy Bridge can be found. The parish church (Kirk Braddan, 1876) is by

John Loughborough Pearson John Loughborough Pearson (5 July 1817 – 11 December 1897) was a British Gothic Revival architect renowned for his work on churches and cathedrals. Pearson revived and practised largely the art of vaulting, and acquired in it a proficie ...

. The former parish church (Old Kirk Braddan, 1777) contains some ancient crosses. Hampton Court House, near Port Soderick, was built c. 1800 by Thomas Stowell, a leading Manx advocate who became acting Attorney General in 1796 and Clerk of Rolls in 1804.

Demographics

The Isle of Man census of 2016 returned a parish population of 3,621, an increase of 1% from the figure of 3,586 in 2011. However, there has been a decline in population since then, as evidenced by the Isle of Man census of 2021, which recorded a population of 3,404.

Eccesiastical parish

The ecclesiastical parish of Braddan formerly comprised the parish district of Braddan (above) and almost the whole of the present borough of Douglas. The ecclesiastical parishes of St George, St Barnabas (now merged with St George), St Matthew, St Thomas and St Ninian, Douglas were established in the 19th and early 20th centuries, and the only parts of the borough now remaining in the ecclesiastical parish are the Anagh Coar, Ballaughton and Farmhill suburbs. The Baldwin area, with the chapel of St Luke's, was transferred in 1978 to the ecclesiastical parish of Marown (now Marown, Foxdale and Baldwin). On 1 November 2012 an area between the Middle River and Douglas Head was transferred to the parish of St Matthew, and an area between Mount Murray and Port Walberry, including part of the Mount Murray estate, Port Soderick and Quine's Hill, was transferred to the parish of Santan (now Malew and Santan).

References

Braddan Commissioners Website
- with photogallery and in depth information.

Detail about Manx parishes and description of the parish.

– with full description of the parish and photographs

Isle of Man Building Control Districts
– showing parish boundaries
Glenology - Manx Glens
An ongoing study of Manx glens, their locations and meanings

{{Isle of Man Parishes of the Isle of Man