Larne

Larne c.1888

The coastal area around Larne has been inhabited for millennia, and is thought to have been one of the earliest inhabited areas of Ireland, with these early human populations believed to have arrived from Scotland via the North Channel. Knockdhu, north of Larne, was the site of a Bronze Age promontory fort and settlement. The early coastal dwellers are thought to have had a sophisticated culture which involved trading between the shores of the North Channel and between other settlements on the coasts of Scotland. The coast of Scotland is in fact clearly visible from here. Archaeological digs in the area have found flintwork and other artefacts which have been assigned dates from 6000 BC onwards. The term Larnian has even been coined by archaeologists to describe such flintworks and similar artefacts of the Mesolithic era (and one time to describe Mesolithic culture in Ireland as a whole).[7][8][9] Larnian is also currently used to refer to people from Larne.

Larne takes its name from Latharna, a Gaelic territory or túath that was part of the Ulaid minor-kingdom of Dál nAraidi.[10] The name spelt as Latharne was used at one point in reference to the Anglo-Norman cantred of Carrickfergus.[10] Latharna itself means "descendants of Lathar", with Lathar according to legend being a son of the pre-Christian king Úgaine Mór.[11] The town sprang up where the River Inver flows into Larne Lough. This area was known in Irish as Inbhear an Latharna ("rivermouth/estuary of Latharna")[12] and was later anglicised as Inver Larne or simply Inver. Latharna was only applied exclusively to the town in recent centuries. The Roman emperor Severus is known to have described how, in 204 AD, a Roman galley bound for Scotland veered off course to a place called Portus Saxa, which was believed to be Larne Lough. The ancient Greeks also knew of the coast of Antrim and Ptolemy, the 2nd century AD astronomer and geographer, referred to Islandmagee on one of his maps.[13]

There was Viking activity in the area during the 10th and 11th centuries AD. Viking burial sites and artefacts have been found in the area and dated to that time.[14] Ulfreksfjord was an Old Norse name for Larne Lough. According to the Norse historian Snorri Sturluson, Connor, King of Ireland, defeated Orkney Vikings at Ulfreksfjord in 1018. Later anglicised names include Wulfrichford, Wolderfirth, Wolverflete and the surviving name Olderfleet. The ending -fleet comes from the Norse fljot, meaning "inlet".[15] Older- may come from the Norse oldu, meaning "wave".[15]

Ruins of Olderfleet Castle in the late 19th century

In the 13th century the Scots Bissett family built Olderfleet Castle at Curran Point. In 1315, Edward the Bruce of Scotland (brother of Robert the Bruce, King of Scotland) landed at Larne with his 6000 strong army en route to conquer Ireland, where Olderfleet Castle was of strategic importance. Edward saw Ireland as another front in the ongoing war against Norman England.

In 1569, Queen Elizabeth I, Queen of England and Ireland, appointed Sir Moyses Hill as the governor of Olderfleet Castle. It was seen as strategically important for any Tudor conquest of Ulster. Following the 17th century Union of the Crowns of Scotland, England and Ireland under James VI & I many more settlers would have arrived to Ulster via Larne during the Plantation of Ulster. The area around County Antrim itself, however, was not part of the official 17th century Plantation; instead many Scottish settlers arrived in the area through private settlement in the 17th century (as they had also been doing for centuries before).

During the 18th century many Scots-Irish emigrated to America from the port of Larne. A monument in the Curran Park commemorates the Friends Goodwill, the first emigrant ship to sail from Larne in May 1717, heading for Boston, Massachusetts in the New England region of the modern United States of America. Boston's long standing Scots-Irish roots can be traced to Larne. The town is documented as being the first in county Antrim to be taken by United Irishmen during the ill-fated rebellion of 1798. The Protestant rebels from this area (almost entirely Presbyterian) filled Larne and engaged the government forces around 2am on the morning of 7 June. This surprise attack drove the garrison to flee the town, at which point the rebel force marched off to join up with McCracken and fight in the Battle of Antrim.[16]

In 1914, Loyalists opposed to the Home Rule Act 1914 prepared for armed resistance. In an episode known as the Larne Gun Running German, Austrian and Italian weapons with ammunition were transported into the ports of Larne and Bangor in the dead of night and distributed throughout Ulster.[17] This event marked a major step in cementing the right to Ulster Unionist self-determination, with the recognition of such a right ultimately leading to the creation of Northern Ireland.

Photograph looking north from Islandmagee illustrating the proximity to Scotland.

In the foreground is Islandmagee in Northern Ireland, followed by Stena Line ferries entering and leaving Larne, and The Maidens lighthouses.

In the background are the Scottish Paps of Jura on the left and Mull of Kintyre on the right.

Larne sits on the western side of a narrow inlet that links Larne Lough to the sea. On the eastern side of the inlet is a peninsula called Islandmagee. To the west of Larne is the ancient volcanic formation of Antrim Plateau, with its glaciated valleys scenically sweeping down to the sea to the north of Larne in what are known as the Glens of Antrim. Larne is 25 miles from the Scottish mainland, with views across the North Channel towards the Mull of Kintyre, Rhins of Galloway, Islay and Paps of Jura often visible from the Larne area – this proximity to Scotland has had a defining influence on Larne's history and culture.

The town is within the small parish of the same name. Like the rest of Ireland, this parish is divided into townlands. The following is a list of townlands within Larne's urban area, along with their likely etymologies:[29]

• Antiville (likely from An Tigh Bhile meaning "the house of the old tree")
• Ballyboley (from Baile Buaile meaning "townland of the booley/dairy place")
• Ballycraigy (from Baile Creige meaning "townland of the rocky outcrop")
• Ballyloran (from Baile Loairn meaning "Loarn's townland")
• Blackcave North
• Blackcave South
• Curran and Drumalis (from Córran meaning "crescent" and Druim a' Lios meaning "ridge of the ringfort")
• Greenland
• Inver (from Inbhear meaning "rivermouth")

Many street names in Larne end in brae, such as 'Whitla's Brae' which comes from the Scots for "hillside".

Gallery

North Channel, Larne town, Islandmagee and Larne Lough from The Roddens.

Panorama of the Antrim Plateau and Antrim Coast from the Blackcave area of Larne.
From left to right (panning from West to North): Craigy Hill, Agnew's Hill, Sallagh Braes, Knock Dhu, Scawt Hill, Drains Bay, Ballygally Head, North Channel

Looking towards Chaine Memorial Tower and north along the Antrim Coast towards the Glens of Antrim

The bandstand on Larne Main Street. Removed in 2016 during upgrade work to the town centre pavements.

Maze in the shape of Northern Ireland in Carnfunnock Country Park

The town has several parks, including Town Park, Chaine Park, Curran Park, and Smiley Park.[30] Other leisure facilities include Larne Leisure Centre[31] and Larne Museum & Arts Centre.[32] Cairndhu Golf Course is situated atop of Ballygally Head[33] and Larne Golf Course on sits atop of the Islandmagee peninsula.[34]

Significant buildings and structures include Olderfleet Castle.[35]

Magheramorne, 5 miles to the south along Larne Lough,[36] has a film studio which was used to film much of HBO TV Series Game of Thrones.[37]

Larne in March 2007, with the FG Wilson plant dominating the top of the picture, Moyle Hospital in the centre, and the Laharna Retail Park (site of the former Invercon paper mill) at the bottom.

Ballylumford power station in Northern Ireland's main power station. Other energy operators in Larne include B9 Energy (a renewable energy development company).[44]

Larne is also home to the headquarters of Caterpillar (NI) Limited (part of the Caterpillar group which manufactures diesel and gas generators),[45] InspecVision (industrial inspection equipment), TerumoBCT (a Japanese manufacturer of intravenous drip solutions and blood products),[46] and the LEDCOM (Larne Enterprise Development Company) business park.[47]

A number of shops can be found along Larne Main Street, Dunluce Street, Laharna Retail Park, and large supermarkets off the Harbour Highway near the harbour. A market is also held every Wednesday at the Larne Market Yard.[48]

Larne Town Hall

Larne Town Hall, the former headquarters of Larne Borough Council, was completed in 1870.[50] Moyle Hospital offers limited services after the closure of its accident and emergency department.[51]

Secondary schools serving the area include Larne Grammar School and Larne High School.[52] Northern Regional College (formerly Larne Technical College) is a college of further education.[53]

• Smiley baronets, series of baronets important in History of Larne
• Dianne Barr, paralympic swimmer
• Billy Brown, musician
• James Chaine, Member of Parliament
• Dave Clements, footballer and football manager
• Fyfe Ewing, musician, drummer (Therapy?)
• Robert Ferguson, disc jockey
• Keith Gillespie, Sheffield United and Northern Ireland midfielder.
• Robert John Gregg, pioneer of the academic study of Ulster-Scots dialects as well as a linguistic authority on Canadian English
• Mark Haggan, activist
• Richard Hayward, actor/singer, author
• Valerie Hobson, actress
• Jeff Hughes, footballer
• Michael Hughes, Wimbledon and Coventry City footballer
• Whitford Kane, actor
• Valerie Lilley, actor (Shameless)
• Phillip Magee (The X Factor, series 2 finalist
• Sir Ivan Magill, innovating anaesthetist; went to Larne Grammar school
• Dave McAuley, former IBF Flyweight world champion boxer
• Gareth McAuley, current West Bromwich Albion defender
• Colin McGarry, Professional Darts Corporation player
• Adam McGurk, footballer
• James McIlroy, Olympic runner
• Bobby McKee, Democratic Unionist Party councillor; former Mayor of Larne[54]
• Jack McKee, alderman and veteran loyalist politician
• Michael McKeegan, musician (Therapy?)
• Amanda McKittrick Ros, author, poet; taught at Millbrook National School during the 1880s
• Eddie McMorran, footballer
• Eddie Mooney, musician (The Dakotas, The Fortunes)
• Hugh Nelson, Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia (1830–1893)
• Robert Nelson, electronic music producer (Agnelli & Nelson)
• Jonathan Rea, Superbike World Championship rider
• Maxwell Reed, actor
• Keith Semple, (One True Voice from the ITV series Popstars: The Rivals)
• Jonny Steele, Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C., New York Red Bulls and Northern Ireland footballer
• Norman Surplus, first person to complete a circumnavigation of Earth by Autogyro
• Harry Towb, actor

In memory of a battle in the town of Musa Qala in Afghanistan in 2006, involving the Royal Irish Regiment, a new regimental march, composed by Chris Attrill and commissioned by Larne Borough Council, was gifted to the regiment on Saturday 1 November 2008 in Larne, during an event in which the regiment was presented with "the Freedom of the Borough".

This gave the regiment the right to march through the towns of the borough with 'flags flying, bands playing and bayonets fixed'. The march was named Musa Qala.[55]

The Friends Goodwill Music Festival occurs in May each year and supports local music.[56]

Larne F.C., a professional association football club, plays in the NIFL Premiership.[57] Local amateur football clubs include Larne Technical Old Boys F.C. and Wellington Recreation F.C.[58]

Larne is twinned with Clover, South Carolina, which has named one of its schools, Larne Elementary School,[59] after Larne.

• Larnite – this mineral is named after Larne.[60]

• List of civil parishes of County Antrim
• List of localities in Northern Ireland by population
• List of RNLI stations

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Larne.

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Larne.

• A history of the Port of Larne