Lough Swilly
Encyclopedia
Lough Swilly in Ireland
is a glacial fjord
or sea inlet lying between the western side of the Inishowen Peninsula
and the Fanad
Peninsula, in County Donegal
. Along with Carlingford Lough
and Killary Harbour
it is one of three known glacial fjords in Ireland.
At the northern extremities of the lough are Fanad Head with its famous lighthouse and Dunaff Head. Towns situated on the lough
include Buncrana on Inishowen and Rathmullan
on the western side. At the southern end of the Lough lies Letterkenny
.
The lough is also famous for its wildlife-watching (dolpins, porpoise, sea birds, migratory geese and swans) and diving on the numerous ship wrecks, including the SS Laurentic
sunk by a German mine (possible torpedo), which went down with 3,211 ingots of gold of which 3,191 were recovered.
In the south of the lough a number of islands (Burt, Inch, Coney, Big Isle) were polder
ed and the land reclaimed during the 19th century for agriculture and the Lough Swilly to Derry City Railway embankments. These reclaimed lands are now regarded as one of Ireland's premier wetlands for wildlife conservation
and birdwatching
, supporting over 4,000 Whooper Swan
s and thousands of Greenland white front, Barnacle
, Greylagg and Brent
geese.
's map of the world. It has numerous early stone age monuments and Iron Age fortifications along its shores as well as a number of shell midden finds dated to approximately 7000 BC. It is most famous for its part in hosting what is known as Flight of the Earls
. After a failed general uprising, in September 1607, Hugh O'Neill, 2nd Earl of Tyrone and Rory O'Donnell, 1st Earl of Tyrconnell
the last Gaelic chieftains and upholders of Brehon law in Ireland at that time, set sail from Rathmullan
with ninety of their followers.
On 4 December 1811, during a gale the Royal Navy
36-gun Apollo class frigate
HMS Saldanha was shipwrecked in Lough Swilly. There were no survivors out of the estimated 253 aboard, and some 200 bodies washed up on shore.
Due to its natural shelter and impressive depth the lough was an important naval port from earliest times.
In October 1798, immediately prior to the outbreak of the Napoleonic wars
, a French fleet carrying Wolfe Tone of the United Irishmen, plus troops to assist in 1798 rebellion
, was intercepted and defeated in a naval battle at the entrance to Lough Swilly. Subsequently Tone was captured and taken ashore at Buncrana on the east side of the Swilly.
A subsequent reassessment of the threat of invasion led to the building of a series of fortifications guarding the different approaches and landing points within the lough which were completed between 1800-1820. Martello towers were built around 1804 to defend the approaches to Derry. The six on the lough cost €1,800 each, were armed with smooth bore cannon, firing round shot and were completed in six months.
Immediately prior to World War I
the British improved the Napoleonic forts and their armaments as well as adding an additional fort at the entrance to the lough at Lenan Head with 9 inch guns (12 mile range) - the largest in Ireland at the time. The remains of these fortifications can still be inspected at Lenan Head, Dunree (now a military and wildlife museum), neds point- Buncrana, Inch Island and on the west coast at Rathmullan, Knockalla and Macamish point.
During World War I, the lough was used by the Royal Navy
as an anchorage for the North Atlantic Fleet under Admiral Jellicoe
and a gathering/staging point for North Atlantic convoys. During this period a boom was placed across the lough supported by a number of trawlers to prevent U-Boat attacks. After the Irish War of Independence
the lough was also one of the Treaty Ports
specified in the Anglo-Irish Treaty
until its final handing over at Fort Dunree in 1938.
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
is a glacial fjord
Fjord
Geologically, a fjord is a long, narrow inlet with steep sides or cliffs, created in a valley carved by glacial activity.-Formation:A fjord is formed when a glacier cuts a U-shaped valley by abrasion of the surrounding bedrock. Glacial melting is accompanied by rebound of Earth's crust as the ice...
or sea inlet lying between the western side of the Inishowen Peninsula
Inishowen
Inishowen is a peninsula in County Donegal, part of the Province of Ulster in the north of Ireland. It is also the largest peninsula in all of Ireland. Inishowen is a picturesque location with a rich history...
and the Fanad
Fanad
Fanad is a peninsula that lies between Lough Swilly and Mulroy Bay on the north coast of County Donegal in Ireland. It encompasses the parishes of Clondavaddog, Killygarvan and parts of Tullyfern and Aughinish. The peninsula includes the towns and villages of Milford, Kerrykeel , Tamney,...
Peninsula, in County Donegal
County Donegal
County Donegal is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Border Region and is also located in the province of Ulster. It is named after the town of Donegal. Donegal County Council is the local authority for the county...
. Along with Carlingford Lough
Carlingford Lough
Carlingford Lough is a glacial fjord or sea inlet that forms part of the border between Northern Ireland to the north and the Republic of Ireland to the south. On its northern shore is County Down and on its southern shore is County Louth...
and Killary Harbour
Killary Harbour
Killary Harbour/An Caoláire Rua is a fjord located in the West of Ireland in the heart of Connemara which forms a natural border between counties Galway and Mayo. It is 16 kilometres long and in the centre over 45 metres deep...
it is one of three known glacial fjords in Ireland.
At the northern extremities of the lough are Fanad Head with its famous lighthouse and Dunaff Head. Towns situated on the lough
Lough
A lough is a body of water and is either:* A lake* A sea lough, which may be a fjord, estuary, bay, or sea inlet.It can also be used as a surname, with various pronunciations: law, loch, low, lowe, loth, loff....
include Buncrana on Inishowen and Rathmullan
Rathmullan
Rathmullan is a small seaside village on the Fanad Peninsula in County Donegal, part of the Province of Ulster in Ireland. It is situated on the western shore of Lough Swilly, 11 km north-east of Ramelton and 12 km east of Milford...
on the western side. At the southern end of the Lough lies Letterkenny
Letterkenny
Letterkenny , with a population of 17,568, is the largest town in County Donegal, part of the Province of Ulster in Ireland. The town is located on the River Swilly...
.
The lough is also famous for its wildlife-watching (dolpins, porpoise, sea birds, migratory geese and swans) and diving on the numerous ship wrecks, including the SS Laurentic
SS Laurentic (1908)
SS Laurentic was a British ocean liner of the White Star Line.The Dominion Line steamship company operated liners on the Liverpool-Canada route in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Their ships had become outdated, so in 1907 two new liners were ordered from Harland and Wolff, the SS Alberta...
sunk by a German mine (possible torpedo), which went down with 3,211 ingots of gold of which 3,191 were recovered.
In the south of the lough a number of islands (Burt, Inch, Coney, Big Isle) were polder
Polder
A polder is a low-lying tract of land enclosed by embankments known as dikes, that forms an artificial hydrological entity, meaning it has no connection with outside water other than through manually-operated devices...
ed and the land reclaimed during the 19th century for agriculture and the Lough Swilly to Derry City Railway embankments. These reclaimed lands are now regarded as one of Ireland's premier wetlands for wildlife conservation
Wildlife conservation
Wildlife conservation is the preservation, protection, or restoration of wildlife and their environment, especially in relation to endangered and vulnerable species. All living non-domesticated animals, even if bred, hatched or born in captivity, are considered wild animals. Wildlife represents all...
and birdwatching
Birdwatching
Birdwatching or birding is the observation of birds as a recreational activity. It can be done with the naked eye, through a visual enhancement device like binoculars and telescopes, or by listening for bird sounds. Birding often involves a significant auditory component, as many bird species are...
, supporting over 4,000 Whooper Swan
Whooper Swan
The Whooper Swan , Cygnus cygnus, is a large Northern Hemisphere swan. It is the Eurasian counterpart of the North American Trumpeter Swan. An old name for the Whooper Swan is Elk; it is so called in Francis Willughby and John Ray's Ornithology of 1676.-Description:The Whooper Swan is similar in...
s and thousands of Greenland white front, Barnacle
Barnacle Goose
The Barnacle Goose belongs to the genus Branta of black geese, which contains species with largely black plumage, distinguishing them from the grey Anser species...
, Greylagg and Brent
Brent Goose
The Brant or Brent Goose, Branta bernicla, is a species of goose of the genus Branta. The Black Brant is an American subspecies. The specific descriptor bernicla is from the same source as "barnacle" in Barnacle Goose, which looks similar but is not a close relation.-Appearance:The Brant Goose is...
geese.
History
Steeped in history the lough and the Grianán Ailigh hill fort (early fortification and palace dating from 2000- 5000 BC) at its southeastern bend was recorded on PtolemyPtolemy
Claudius Ptolemy , was a Roman citizen of Egypt who wrote in Greek. He was a mathematician, astronomer, geographer, astrologer, and poet of a single epigram in the Greek Anthology. He lived in Egypt under Roman rule, and is believed to have been born in the town of Ptolemais Hermiou in the...
's map of the world. It has numerous early stone age monuments and Iron Age fortifications along its shores as well as a number of shell midden finds dated to approximately 7000 BC. It is most famous for its part in hosting what is known as Flight of the Earls
Flight of the Earls
The Flight of the Earls took place on 14 September 1607, when Hugh Ó Neill of Tír Eóghain, Rory Ó Donnell of Tír Chonaill and about ninety followers left Ireland for mainland Europe.-Background to the exile:...
. After a failed general uprising, in September 1607, Hugh O'Neill, 2nd Earl of Tyrone and Rory O'Donnell, 1st Earl of Tyrconnell
Rory O'Donnell, 1st Earl of Tyrconnell
Rudhraighe Ó Domhnaill, 1st Earl of Tyrconnell was the last King of Tír Chonaill . An apparent original of the Letters Patent of the Earldom are in the possession of Graf O'Donell von Tyrconnell in Austria, although that family did not inherit the title, nor the related territorial Lordship of...
the last Gaelic chieftains and upholders of Brehon law in Ireland at that time, set sail from Rathmullan
Rathmullan
Rathmullan is a small seaside village on the Fanad Peninsula in County Donegal, part of the Province of Ulster in Ireland. It is situated on the western shore of Lough Swilly, 11 km north-east of Ramelton and 12 km east of Milford...
with ninety of their followers.
On 4 December 1811, during a gale the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
36-gun Apollo class frigate
Apollo class frigate
The Apollo-class sailing frigates were a series of twenty-seven ships that the British Admiralty commissioned be built to a 1798 design by Sir William Rule. Twenty-five served in the Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars, two being launched too late....
HMS Saldanha was shipwrecked in Lough Swilly. There were no survivors out of the estimated 253 aboard, and some 200 bodies washed up on shore.
Due to its natural shelter and impressive depth the lough was an important naval port from earliest times.
In October 1798, immediately prior to the outbreak of the Napoleonic wars
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
, a French fleet carrying Wolfe Tone of the United Irishmen, plus troops to assist in 1798 rebellion
Irish Rebellion of 1798
The Irish Rebellion of 1798 , also known as the United Irishmen Rebellion , was an uprising in 1798, lasting several months, against British rule in Ireland...
, was intercepted and defeated in a naval battle at the entrance to Lough Swilly. Subsequently Tone was captured and taken ashore at Buncrana on the east side of the Swilly.
A subsequent reassessment of the threat of invasion led to the building of a series of fortifications guarding the different approaches and landing points within the lough which were completed between 1800-1820. Martello towers were built around 1804 to defend the approaches to Derry. The six on the lough cost €1,800 each, were armed with smooth bore cannon, firing round shot and were completed in six months.
Immediately prior to World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
the British improved the Napoleonic forts and their armaments as well as adding an additional fort at the entrance to the lough at Lenan Head with 9 inch guns (12 mile range) - the largest in Ireland at the time. The remains of these fortifications can still be inspected at Lenan Head, Dunree (now a military and wildlife museum), neds point- Buncrana, Inch Island and on the west coast at Rathmullan, Knockalla and Macamish point.
During World War I, the lough was used by the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
as an anchorage for the North Atlantic Fleet under Admiral Jellicoe
John Jellicoe, 1st Earl Jellicoe
Admiral of the Fleet John Rushworth Jellicoe, 1st Earl Jellicoe, GCB, OM, GCVO was a British Royal Navy admiral who commanded the Grand Fleet at the Battle of Jutland in World War I...
and a gathering/staging point for North Atlantic convoys. During this period a boom was placed across the lough supported by a number of trawlers to prevent U-Boat attacks. After the Irish War of Independence
Irish War of Independence
The Irish War of Independence , Anglo-Irish War, Black and Tan War, or Tan War was a guerrilla war mounted by the Irish Republican Army against the British government and its forces in Ireland. It began in January 1919, following the Irish Republic's declaration of independence. Both sides agreed...
the lough was also one of the Treaty Ports
Treaty Ports (Ireland)
Following the establishment of the Irish Free State, three deep water Treaty Ports at Berehaven, Queenstown and Lough Swilly were retained by the United Kingdom as sovereign bases in accordance with the Anglo-Irish Treaty of 6 December 1921...
specified in the Anglo-Irish Treaty
Anglo-Irish Treaty
The Anglo-Irish Treaty , officially called the Articles of Agreement for a Treaty Between Great Britain and Ireland, was a treaty between the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and representatives of the secessionist Irish Republic that concluded the Irish War of...
until its final handing over at Fort Dunree in 1938.
See also
- List of loughs in Ireland
- Londonderry and Lough Swilly RailwayLondonderry and Lough Swilly RailwayThe Londonderry and Lough Swilly Railway Company is an Irish public transport and freight company incorporated in June 1853. Despite its name it operates no railway services. It formerly operated 99 miles of railways but closed its last line in July 1953...