Castles, Monuments & Monasteries

Northern Ireland has some of the finest castles on the island. The earliest are from Norman times, but fortified homes continued to be built well into the 17th century - much of Derry City dates from this era, including its encircling walls. Centuries of war, siege and expansion, have left a well-preserved legacy which is still there to be explored!

Back in the mists of time, some of our remotest areas were bustling! The first known dwelling in Ireland was found at Mountsandel near Coleraine (7,000 BC). Fermanagh and Tyrone are especially rich in Stone Age archaeology. There are even more antiquities from the early Christian era; and superb examples of monastic sites, gravestones, abbeys, round towers and Celtic crosses crop up in every County.