The City of Armagh

Following the last great ice-age, which ended about 10,000 BC, the landscape of Ireland evolved from a bleak tundra to, first birch, then oak forest. As the ice receded it revealed the undulating countryside which covers much of the counties of Armagh, Monaghan and Cavan today.

Also, where rocky outcrops had withstood the grinding ice, prominent hills, such as the one which lies in the centre of the City of Armagh, became exposed. It was to this hill that the earliest known settlers of Armagh came – the neolithic people. Remains of their occupation are still to be seen in various stone monuments which were erected in the neighbouring countryside. One such site was recently revealed by excavations in Scotch Street, Armagh.

Whilst we have no written records from this period, (5,000 – 2,300 BC), the interest of the neolithic peoples in the movement of astronomical bodies is demonstrated in the layout of some of their major constructions, such as the great burial tumulus at Newgrange. Here the alignment of the passageway leading to the central chamber with the midwinter sunrise displays to posterity the architectural skill and the interest in astronomy of these early settlers of Ireland.

In succeeding centuries, the centre of occupation moved from the hill of Armagh to a site about 2 miles west, where, on the hill of Navan, one of the celtic Queens called Macha built a magnificent palace. Here, at the Capital of Ulster, the exploits of the legendary Cuchullain and the Kings of Ulster were preserved in the oral tradition.

After the destruction of Navan, the centre of influence moved back to the present site of Armagh, probably in the 5th century AD. In this century, also, following his conversion of the King to Christianity, St Patrick founded his first church in Armagh. For the next four centuries Armagh was renowned throughout Europe as an ecclesiastical centre and was regarded as the Metropolis of Ireland. During this period the religious colleges in Armagh were said to have had several thousand students.

Amongst the various duties of the teachers at the monastic university was the recording of important historical events. Many of these relate to the activities of the ruling families, outbreaks of wars and civil disturbances etc, but occasionally they also noted various astronomical apparitions, such as comets or eclipses. These are the earliest recorded astronomical observations from Armagh and are compiled in the medieval manuscript The Annals of Ulster.

In later centuries, following the Viking and Norman invasions, the centre of power in Ireland moved to coastal towns such as Dublin and Drogheda and by 1600 Armagh was only a collection of ruins and thatched cabins. (Contemporary Map) During this period, Armagh and its surroundings, became a battlefield for the continuing strife between the opposing forces of the Earl of Tyrone and Elizabeth.

The Archbishops of Armagh at this time only visited their primatial capital occasionally and preferred to reside in Drogheda. One such Archbishop, the great scholar James Ussher, is renowned for his calculation of the age of the world.

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