Kilkeel
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Kilkeel (Cill Chaoil in Irish) is a town in County Down, Northern Ireland. The important fishing port contains a ruined church, winding streets, terraced shops and a fort dating from the fourteenth century. A much newer attraction is the Nautilus Centre. The town is also known as the location where William Hare died.
Geography
Kilkeel is located on the south east most point of County Down, east of the city of Newry and south to the capital Belfast. It is situated on the sea and and is surrounded by the Mountains of Mourne. It is about 4 miles away from the important Silent Valley Reservoir which supplies most of the water to Northern Ireland.
History
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Kilkeel takes its name from the old church overlooking the town, it being the anglicised version of the Gaelic 'Cill Choal'. For many years it was thought to translate to 'Narrow Church' however nowadays it is thought to mean 'The Church of/in the Narrow Place' and because of its location, on an elevated narrow site this seems to have been confirmed.
It is believed that this old church was financed by a Spanish noble family after their son had been drowned and washed ashore and given a Christian burial by the locals. However there are references to Kilkeel as a Christian settlement as far back as the 11th century. Kilkeel is the capital of the ancient Kingdom of Mourne and even today the surrounding area is referred to as the Kingdom of Mourne.
The old church, dating back to the 13th century was dedicated to St. Colman and was known in 1388 as 'St Colman Del Morne'. It was thought to be the principle Church in a group which included Kilmegan and Kilcoo despite the fact that Kilkeel was very sparsely populated in the Middle ages. The cemetery attached to the church was used for burials until the early years of last century. Some of the victims of the collision between two steamer in Carlingford Lough in 1916 were the last people to be buried there.
Industry
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The harbour at Kilkeel bustles with the province's largest fleet, and is busiest during landings and at auction time when fish, including herring, are sold on the quay. There are fish-processing factories around the port, pleasure angling off the piers and miles of lobster pots along the coast.
- See also: List of towns in Northern Ireland