Londonderry: county
Londonderry 's original name was Daire Calgaigh (Gaelic for Oakwood of Calgach), given for a warrior who led the Caledonians at the battle of the Grampians. This old Irish word was particular to an oak grove or an island surrounded by water or peat bog - such was the case at old Derry . The channel sweeping past the western side of the island site gradually dried out leaving a marshy, boggy area - in time this was referred to as the Bogside, one of the best-known districts of present-day Londonderry .
The earliest historical references date back to the 6 th century AD when a monastery was founded on the site in AD546 by the renowned Irish saint Colmeille or Columba (521-97); the spot was renamed Doire Chelmeille . Archaeological evidence, however, indicates that for thousands of years prior to the monastery ‘prehistoric' people had inhabited the vicinity.
Viking raiders settled around Loughs Foyle and Swilly, but Doire escaped their worst excesses, being attacked only once. By the 12 th century the MacLochlainn dynasty, based in Inishowen, had control of the area and under their patronage Doire prospered. The population grew, the monastery and its school thrived and prestigious buildings were erected. However, with the decline of the MacLochlainns in the 14 th century, Doire sank into obscurity. The Anglo-Norman de Burgos family built a great fortress at Greencastle and briefly held sway over Doire in the late 14 th century. By 1500 the power of the local O'Docherty family had spread from Inishowen and they constructed a tower house at Doire, later to be absorbed into the 17 th century walls.
Throughout the 16 th century, Queen Elizabeth I's military machine attempted to conquer Ulster , the only part of Ireland still outside of English control. In 1566 an unsuccessful English garrison was established in Doire. At the turn of the 17 th century a more concerted effort was made and a garrison was successfully established; the town was given the status of city in 1603 and the anglicised name of Derry . The Nine Years War then ensued against an Irish army led by the Gaelic Earls O'Neill and O'Donnell. In 1608 Sir Cahir O'Docherty turned against his English paymasters and burnt the infant city to the ground. Ironically, this occurred shortly after the so-called ‘Flight of the Earls' when O'Neill and O'Donnell fled to the continent, fearing their fight was a lost cause. Their absence, together with Derry 's demise, left a political vacuum in Ulster , which the new king, James I of England , took advantage of.
In 1613, James I decided on a revolutionary stratagem to subordinate Ulster once and for all. The ‘Plantation of Ulster' witnessed thousands of English and Scottish settlers, mostly Protestants, brought over from the mainland to colonise Ulster - their loyalty to the crown was to counter local Catholic opposition. The enterprise received the financial assistance of wealthy trade guilds in London and the new fortified city, that arose from the ashes of old Derry, was renamed Londonderry in honour of its association with England's capital. The original street layout of Londonderry , with roads radiating out in straight lines from the central Diamond, survive to the present almost intact. Importantly, for its security, Londonderry was enclosed by massive stone and earthen walls, was the last walled city built in Ireland and the only Irish city whose ancient walls survive complete. Despite this the population of the new city grew slowly in numbers, by the 1680's it still numbered only about 2000.
In 1649 England 's internal divisions came to Londonderry when the city fathers declared themselves in support of the English Republicans. The Catholic Irish and Scottish Presbyterian settlers, all of whom were condemned to live outside the city walls, besieged the town in support of Charles I.
The most dramatic event in the city's evolution came in December 1688, when a group of 13 young apprentices seized the keys and locked the city gates against Catholic troops loyal to James II. Londonderry had declared for William of Orange and fearing a Jacobite backlash local Protestants fled to the city, swelling its numbers from 2000 to 30000. Thus began the Siege of Derry with its famous policy of ‘no surrender under any terms'. For 105 days (the longest siege in British history) the city suffered appallingly as cannon and mortar shot rained down, and famine and disease took their terrible toll. Survivors were reduced to eating dogs, cats and rats. Outside the walls too there was much devastation, as cannon-fire from the city walls wreaked havoc; these cannon pieces can still be seen in situ to this day. Finally, the siege was over in late July, when a relief fleet of ships broke through the barricading ‘boom' stretched across the River Foyle.
The siege held-up the Catholic forces long enough for William of Orange to gather strength and win the Battle of the Boyne in 1690, thereby ensuring absolute English Protestant supremacy. The Protestant Governor of Derry , Robert Lundy, who escaped the siege and fled to London , is forever reviled in Londonderry as a traitor. Despite there being an end to the fighting, the siege with its suffering and heroism has left an indelible mark in the minds of Londonderry citizens and upon its traditions to this day. The famous skeleton on the city coat-of-arms commemorates the siege, and the lyrical tag ‘maiden city' refers to its unbreached walls.
After the siege many citizens emigrated to America to avoid harsh English laws, and some of their descendants, such as Daniel Boone, achieved fame there. The city port became an important embarkation point for Irish emigrants setting out for the New World in the 18/19 th centuries. Some founded the colonies of Derry and Londonderry in the state of New Hampshire . Londonderry itself, rebuilt in the 18 th century, remained relatively peaceful for a few centuries more.
In 1921, however, with the arrival of Partition, Derry suddenly found itself a border city with the newly founded Republic on its backdoor. As Catholic resentment grew and sectarian conflict became the norm in the latter half of the 20 th century, Londonderry , once again, became the scene of much bloodshed.
However, try and put the Troubles to one side and view Londonderry for what it is - an old but beautiful city with many fine buildings, wrapped in a wealth of history; in fact, it is one of the longest continuously-inhabited places in all Ireland . The countryside around the city is quite breathtaking, its frothy river is enchanting and that seamless blending of old city with nature's beauty is unparalleled anywhere else in Ireland .