rathlin island

Rathlin's population is just over 100, and the islanders are proud of their culture and traditions, with storytelling, song, music and dance being popular leisure pursuits. The economy of the island is made up of many activities, including farming, tourism and fishing, and although the population is small, the islanders are positive about the future and believe the decline of the past is now over.

And some history... The caves in the cliffs have magnificent interiors some iridescent with reflected light, some with walls and pillars of white limestone. Most of them can only be reached by boat. The most famous is Bruce's Cave, beneath the East Lighthouse. Robert the Bruce hid here in 1306 after his defeat by the English at Perth in Scotland. According to legend, the dispirited warrior watched a spider repeatedly trying to reach the room of the cave by its thread. Eventually it succeeded. 'If at first you don't suceed, try, try and try again', he concluded. With renewed determination, he returned to Scotland, defeated his adversaries, and gained the Scottish throne at the battle of bannockburn.

Rathlin's history is a tale of battles, massacres and troubles, brought about by its strategic position in the North Channel between Ireand an Scotland. Francis (later Sir Francis) Drake landed guns here in 1575 and battered down the fort of Bruce's Castle, possibly built by John de Courcy. Only a ditch and part of a gate and wall remain.

A hill in the middle of the island, called Cnoc na Screedlin, 'the hill of Screaming', got its name following a gruesome incident in the island's history. A large force of Campbells landed on Rathlin in 1642 and slaughtered the MacDonnells. Their women folk looked on helpless from this hill.

Pirates and smugglers had bases on Rathlin, and a ruined house called the Smuggler's House, near the South Lighthouse, has cavities in the wall probably used for hiding contraband.

In the Stone Age Rathlin had an axe factory, and axe heads of porcellanite identified as Rathlin-made have been found in many parts of the British Isles. The factory site is at Brockley.

In Early Christian times, Rathlin's remote position provided a safe haven for monks but the peace was rudely shattered in the ninth century, when the Vikings came to plunder. There are traces of a monastic settlement at Knockans.

The most noticeable ruins on Rathlin are those of the cottages inhabited when the population was much larger. But there is a prehistoric mound-fort called Doonmore, near the Stone Age settlement at Brockley. The monks of Knockans (or their successors) have left a stone 'sweat house', a form of early sauna bath. East of the harbour is a standing stone.

In 1898 one of the greatest technical advances in history was demonstrated on the island. Marconi, the discoverer of wireless was commissioned to establish a wireless link between Rathlin and Ballycastle - a task which was successfully completed by his assistant, John Kemp. Near the East Lighthouse there are still cement blocks bearing the name 'Lloyds', the remains of Kemp's wireless mast.