Castlewellan is a small town in County Down, in the north-east of Northern Ireland close to the Irish Sea. It is beside Castlewellan Lake and Slievenaslat mountain, southwest of Downpatrick. It lies between the Mourne Mountains and Slieve Croob. It had a population of 2,392 people in the 2001 Census. Castlewellan has a wide main street which runs through two main squares lined with chestnut trees. The town was designed by a French architect for the Annesley Family. The Annesley family did not always own the land as they bought it from The Maginess Family., then owners of what is now Castlewellan Christian Conference Centre and Forest Park, and is unique within Ireland due to its tree-lined squares both in the old town and new town as well as its very wide main street. The old market house in the upper square was built in 1764 and now houses the public library.
Places of interest
Drumena Cashel is a good example of a small stone built farmstead enclosure or cashel of the Early Christian period. It is situated south west of Castlewellan off the A25 road toRathfriland.
Castlewellan Forest Park and Castlewellan Lake are situated to the northwest of the village. The Arboretum in the park was begun in 1740 and contains plants and trees from many different countries including Spain, Mexico and Wales; the 'Castlewellan Gold' form of Leyland Cypress – originating from a single mutant tree in the arboretum and widely propagated from the 1970s – was selected by the park director, John Keown, being first named Cupressus macrocarpa Keownii, 1963. The Peace Maze was constructed in the park between 2000 and 2001. Until 2007 it was the longest permanent hedge maze in the world. In the very early hours of 7 April 2007 two youths died in a canoeing incident in the lake.
Castlewellan Castle, a Scottish baronial castle of 1856, overlooks the lake and the park. Nowadays the castle is used as a privately run Christian conference centre, and is not generally open to the public.
Legannany Dolmen is north of Castlewellan, near the village of Leitrim, on the slopes of Slieve Croob.
Goward Dolmen is an impressive megalithic monument from Hilltown on the road to Castlewellan. It is known locally as Pat Kearney's Big Stone or Cloughmore Cromlech. The huge granite capstone has slipped from its original horizontal position.
History
12 July 1849 saw the Dolly's Brae conflict. Up to 1400 armed Orangemen marched from Rathfriland to Tollymore Park near Castlewellan, County Down. On their homeward journey, shots were fired and police were unable to control the situation. None of the Orangemen were harmed, but it was estimated that about 80 Catholics were killed and homes burnt. According to the Sunday Times Insight Team, the entire village was bound over to keep the peace for a year in 1953 after disorder at an Orange walk.
The Troubles
For more information see The Troubles in Castlewellan, which includes a list of incidents in Castlewellan during the Troubles resulting in two or more fatalities. Castlewellan throughout the course of The Troubles, had a significant paramilitary presence in the Village, mostly through the presence of the Provisional Irish Republican Army In January 2009 a 300 lb car bomb was abandoned outside Castlewellan. It had been destined for the British Army base at Ballykinler. Óglaigh na hÉireann claimed responsibility for the attack, saying that it had planned to drive the bomb through the gates of the barracks before detonating it.
Castlewellan Forest Park Played Host To The All British Open Field Archery Championships Put On And Arranged By Ballyvally Archery Club Banbridge The Weekend Of 28–29 May 2011
Demography
2001 Census
Castlewellan is classified as an intermediate settlement by the NI Statistics and Research Agency . On Census day there were 2,392 people living in Castlewellan. Of these:
29.8% were aged under 16 and 13.8% were aged 60 and over
49.4% of the population were male and 50.6% were female
92.1% were from a Catholic background and 6.6% were from a Protestant background
