An appeal has been made to Stormont to fund the 400th anniversary of Kirkistown castle on the Ards Peninsula castle this year.
Elected members at a Ards and North Down Council committee agreed to task council officers to work with the Historic Monuments Division at the Department for Communities, as well as with local community groups and schools, to deliver a community programme of events marking an important milestone in the history of the area.
Kirkistown Castle, a three-storey late medieval tower house near Cloughey, was built in 1622 by Roland Savage, a Norman landlord, at the site of a ninth-century round tower, and was occupied until 1731 when it was deserted.
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The tower was remodelled in Gothic style in 1800 and received further work in 1836. In the twentieth century it fell into disrepair, before being opened to the public for the first time in 2001 by the Northern Ireland Environment Agency. The castle has a golf course beside it stretching out to the shore.
The council motion calling for Stormont's help was tabled at the council’s Community and Wellbeing Committee by Deputy Mayor and DUP Councillor Robert Adair.
He told the committee: “Michelle McIlveen MLA and I were approached by the local community regarding this historic occasion, and I believe it is too significant an occasion to go unmarked.
“We should work to bring the community together to celebrate this important milestone in history, and to showcase this special place in Cloughey and our rich heritage to a wider audience.”
The deputy mayor said in terms of council funding for the anniversary, there was money still to be spent that was unused from last year’s Northern Ireland centenary budget.
He said: “The Ards peninsula is rich in built heritage, and we are blessed to have a lot of that heritage still about. Kirkistown castle will be 400 years old this year, and a number of years ago the Cloughey District Community Association were successful in getting the building opened up to the public during the summer months. That has been very successful, we get visitors from all over the world coming to see this unique building.”
He added: “It is a state care monument, and I want to pay tribute to the Department for Communities for the recent refurbishment work in it, and keeping it preserved for future generations to enjoy.
“I think we as a council should work with the department, the community association, and the schools to bring the wider community together. It could involve Kirkistown Primary school and St Patricks Ballygalget and a family day to celebrate the history of the castle, Cloughey and the wider area.”
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