Enniskillen

Enniskillen ( , from , ' Ceithlenn's island') is the largest town in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. It is in the middle of the county, between the Upper and Lower sections of Lough Erne. It had a population of 14,086 at the 2011 census. Enniskillen Castle was built in the 15th century as a stronghold of the Maguires, before coming under English control in the early 17th century. The castle and town were expanded during the Plantation of Ulster. It was the seat of local government for the former Fermanagh District Council, and is the county town of Fermanagh. The town is in a civil parish of the same name.

Toponymy

The town's name comes from the . This refers to Cethlenn, a figure in Irish mythology who may have been a goddess. Local legend has it that Cethlenn was wounded in battle by an arrow and attempted to swim across the River Erne, which surrounds the island, but she never reached the other side, so the island was named in reference to her. It has been anglicised many ways over the centuries – ''Iniskellen'', ''Iniskellin'', ''Iniskillin'', ''Iniskillen'', ''Inishkellen'', ''Inishkellin'', ''Inishkillin'', ''Inishkillen'' and so on.

History

The town's oldest building is Enniskillen Castle, built by Hugh (Maguire) the Hospitable who died in 1428. An earthwork, the Skonce on the shore of Lough Erne, may be the remains of an earlier motte. The castle was the stronghold of the junior branch of the Maguires. The first watergate was built around 1580 by Cú Chonnacht Maguire, though subsequent lowering of the level of the lough has left it without water. The strategic position of the castle made its capture important for the English in 1593, to support their plans for the control of Ulster. The castle was besieged three times in 1594–95. The English, led by a Captain Dowdall, captured it in February 1594. Maguire then laid siege to it, and defeated a relieving force at the Battle of the Ford of the Biscuits at Drumane Bridge on the Arney River. Although the defenders were relieved, Maguire gained possession of the castle from 1595 to 1598 and it was not finally captured by the English until 1607.

This was part of a wider campaign to bring the province of Ulster under English control; the final capture of Enniskillen Castle in 1607 was followed by the Plantation of Ulster, during which the lands of the native Irish were seized and handed over to planters loyal to the English Crown. The Maguires were supplanted by William Cole, originally from Devon, who was appointed by James I to build an English settlement there in 1612.

Captain Cole was installed as Constable and strengthened the castle wall and built a "fair house" on the old foundation as the centre point of the county town. The first Protestant parish church was erected on the hilltop in 1627. By 1630 the town had around 180 inhabitants, mostly comprising English and Scottish settlers. The Royal Free School of Fermanagh was moved onto the island in 1643. The first bridges were drawbridges; permanent bridges were not installed before 1688.

By 1689 the town had grown significantly. During the conflict which resulted from the ousting of King James II by his Protestant rival, William III, Enniskillen and Derry were the focus of Williamite resistance in Ireland, including the nearby Battle of Newtownbutler.

Enniskillen and Derry were the two garrisons in Ulster that were not wholly loyal to James II, and it was the last town to fall before the Siege of Derry. As a direct result of this conflict, Enniskillen developed not only as a market town but also as a garrison, which became home to two regiments.

The former site of Fermanagh College at Gaol Square (the college has now moved to the old Erne Hospital site) was the former Enniskillen Gaol. Many people were tried and hanged in the square during the times of public execution. Part of the old goal is still standing. Enniskillen Town Hall was designed by William Scott and completed in 1901.

Military history

Enniskillen is the site of the foundation of two British Army regiments:
* Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers
* The Inniskillings (6th Dragoons)

The town's name (with the archaic spelling) continues to form part of the title to The Royal Irish Regiment (27th (Inniskilling) 83rd and 87th and Ulster Defence Regiment). Enniskillen Castle features on the cap badge of both regiments.

The Troubles

Enniskillen was the site of several events during The Troubles, the most notable being the Remembrance Day bombing in which 11 people were killed. Bill Clinton opened The Clinton Centre in 2002 on the site of the bombing. The Provisional Irish Republican Army claimed responsibility for the attack.

Alleged sexual abuse and assault

In 2019, at least nine men reported to the police and the press and said in public forums that, in the 1980s and 90s, when they were children, they were repeatedly molested and raped by a paedophile ring of at least 20 men in the Enniskillen area. Investigations are continuing.

Demography

2021 Census

On Census day 2021 there were 14,086 people living in Enniskillen. Of these:

* 61.52% (8,666) belong to or were brought up in the Catholic Christian faith and 29.09% (4,097) belong to or were brought up in various 'Protestant and Other Christian (including Christian related)' denominations. 2.2% (310) belong to other religions and 7.19% (1,013) had no religious background.
* 22.8% (3,212) indicated that they had a British only identity, 34.68% (4,885) had an Irish only identity and 26.4% (3,179) had a Northern Irish only identity (respondents could indicate more than one national identity)

2011 Census

On Census day (27 March 2011) there were 13,823 people living in Enniskillen (5,733 households), This article contains quotations from this source, which is available under th
Open Government Licence v3.0
© Crown copyright. accounting for 0.76% of the NI total and representing an increase of 1.6% on the Census 2001 population of 13,599. Of these:

* 19.76% were aged under 16 years and 15.59% were aged 65 and over;
* 51.80% of the usually resident population were female and 48.20% were male;
* 61.62% belong to or were brought up in the Catholic Christian faith and 33.55% belong to or were brought up in various 'Protestant and Other Christian (including Christian related)' denominations
* 35.59% indicated that they had a British national identity, 33.77% had an Irish national identity and 30.35% had a Northern Irish national identity (respondents could indicate more than one national identity)
* 39 years was the average (median) age of the population
* 13.03% had some knowledge of Irish (Gaelic) and 3.65% had some knowledge of Ulster-Scots

Places of interest

Churches

There are four churches in the town centre. These are:
* St. Macartin's Cathedral (Church of Ireland) – This church dates from 1840. It was built on the site of an earlier Plantation church.
* St. Michael's Church (Catholic) – This church dates from 1875 although an earlier church on the site dates from 1803.
* Enniskillen Methodist Church – This church opened in 1867. It has a Palladian facade.
* Enniskillen Presbyterian Church – The current church was erected in 1897 although there is evidence of a building dating back to 1700.
There are several other churches outside the town centre.

Historic Buildings

Some of these buildings are outside the town.
* Castle Coole