Belfast and its history

As the capital of Northern Ireland, Belfast has been making international headlines for many years. Since 1969, the city has been receiving more than its share of attention because of sharply increased political, religious, and economic upheaval, as well as terrorist activity. However, because most of the violence is directed toward specific targets, tourists have not been drawn into it, and the citizenry seems to take the security measures in stride and carries on with life almost normally. Visitors are unlikely to see many outward signs of the troubles.

A security check on vehicles approaching Belfast's Aldergrove International Airport is possible, though increasingly rare recently, and cars entering and leaving the city centre usually undergo a quick parcel inspection (the trunk is opened), but pedestrians are no longer stopped. Indeed, the city is best seen on foot, since large areas of Belfast's streets have been reborn as pedestrian shopping districts (closed to private cars) with such a profusion of flowers, benches, and trees that the city was recognized in the Beautiful Britain in Bloom competition.

Car hire in Belfast

The best way to explore Belfast is to hire a car from the airport. Car rentals can be pre-booked from Belfast International Airport before you travel.

The history of Belfast

For travelers trying to appreciate the origins of the troubles, a look at Belfast's history proves invaluable. Belfast, or Beal Feirste in Irish, means mouth of the Farset, a stream that flows into the river Lagan. It was the natural harbour and strategic defence position formed by the Lagan and Lough Belfast that prompted various marauders over the centuries Anglo-Norman, Scottish, and Irish to establish fortified strongholds or castles here.

By the 16th century, the area was controlled by the O'Neills, Earls of nearby Tyrone. After the defeat of the great Irish chieftain Hugh O'Neill at Kinsale in 1601, the lands were confiscated by the English Crown and later granted to Sir Arthur Chichester, Governor of Carrick fergus, by Elizabeth I.

He built a new castle and supplanted the native Irish with English and Scottish colonists under the Plantation policy instituted by Mary Tudor (Bloody Mary) in the mid16th century, and fully carried out under James I in the early 17th century in the counties that now make up Northern Ireland. In 1613, Belfast was granted a charter of incorporation and was allowed two (Protestant) representatives to the British Parliament.

In the years that followed, the Catholic Irish rose up in revolt several times, with no success; they suffered under harsh penal codes, which usurped their property, outlawed their religion, and denied their civil rights.

Belfast linen and the economy

Soon after the revocation of the Edict of Nantes in France in 1685, Belfast was washed by a new wave of settlers this time French Huguenots fleeing religious persecution. They brought with them improved weaving methods, which spurred the town's fledgling linen industry into rapid expansion throughout the 18th century.

In addition to linen, the development of rope making, engineering, tobacco, and sea trade infused Belfast's economy, causing the town to double in size every 10 years.During this period Roger Mulholland, a local architect, drew up a plan dividing the town into a grid of streets for construction and development. The grid included Donegall Square and was bordered roughly by Wellington Place and Chichester, Great Victoria, May, and Howard Streets. Along these avenues many elegant Georgian buildings were erected by Belfast's prosperous linen merchants.

Social reforms and car hire at Belfast Airport

The best way to get around Belfast and northern Ireland is to hire a car from the airport. Public transport is available from Belfast Airport but the most comfortable and economical way to get around is to hire a car from the airport.

In 1791, Wolfe Tone, the son of a Protestant Dublin tradesman who was inspired by the American and French revolutions and influenced by radical Belfast Presbyterians, formed the Society of United Irishmen in Belfast.

Espousing social as well as political reforms, the society's goal was to substitute the common name of Irishmen in place of the denominations of Protestant, Catholic, and Dissenter. As Belfast became a center of dissent against the British, the United Irishmen supported an effort by both Presbyterians and Catholics to rid Ireland of English rule.

Uprisings in 1798 proved unsuccessful, including a June 7 attack on Antrim, during which the Irish sang the Marseillaise. The United Irishmen's leader, Henry Joy McCracken, later was hanged in Belfast. Wolfe Tone's Belfast born ideas of an Irish republic attractive to all the Irish, together with the uprisings, constituted a watershed for the ideal of a united Ireland. Unfortunately, the concept collapsed into sectarianism soon after.

Economically, Belfast continued to burgeon during the 19th century, aided by the Act of Union (which made Ireland part of Great Britain) and by the growth of its shipbuilding industry. Belfast was fancifully called the Athens of the North for its patronage of the arts, and most of its gracious architecture (designed by Sir Charles Lanyon) dates from this era.

Unfortunately, the city's prosperity was not shared by all its citizens; the Irish Catholics were still excluded from representation in London, from decent housing, and sometimes even from employment.

In 1,920, after much bloody struggle by the Irish for self-government, Britain enacted the Home Rule Bill, which established two new Parliaments one each in Dublin and Belfast. In 1921, a treaty was signed that formally created an Irish Free State consisting of 26 mostly southern counties and leaving the six northern counties to choose between union with the new republic or with Britain. The Protestant dominated Belfast Parliament chose the latter course, and the new entity called Northern Ireland was born.

Ireland and WW2

Because the Republic of Ireland remained neutral in World War II, Northern Ireland became strategically vital to the Allied cause .. The first American contingent of GIs arrived in Belfast by ship in January 1942, and by the end of that year, there were 100,000 American troops in the province. Generals Eisenhower and Patton oversaw the troop training in Northern Ireland for the massive D-Day venture.

Today, Belfast, second in size only to Dublin, is a sturdy, red brick, industrial city ringed by beautiful bluish purple hills that shelter ancient castles and echo with Irish folklore. Although the city is bothered by continued high unemployment (as in the Republic), a glance around downtown Belfast reveals few visual remnants of prior urban renewal projects or overt terrorist activity.

Things to do in Belfast and airport car rentals

Although exploring Belfast on foot is a good option if you don´t plan to travel elsewhere, the best way to explore northern Ireland and south of the border is to book car rentals at Belfast Airport.
Many of the streets in the 18th-century Old City have been converted. To pedestrian walkways and shopping arcades and automobiles are prohibited. This poses no problem to the tourist, as central Belfast is a compact area best seen on foot? A I mile walking tour is described In the Belfast Civic Festival Trail brochure available at the tourist information center 48 High St.

Things to do in Belfast city centre

City Hall Belfast - A statue of Queen Victoria stands in front of this imposing pillared and cornered gray stone structure capped by a 173-foothigh copper dome. Completed in 1906, Its Interior is decorated in the elaborate Edwardian style with stained glass and marble. It IS one of Ireland's most outstanding buildings.

St. Malachy's Church - This is a fine example of the lavish Gothic Roman Catholic churches built in Ireland during the 19th century. Look especially at its remarkable: an vaulted ceiling, virtually dripping with intricate plasterwork, similar to that found In Henry VII's Chapel at Westminster Abbey in London.

Royal Courts of Justice Belfast - An imposing building, finished in 1933, the four courts is constructed of ortland stone and was a gift from Britain. Chichester St. Piert Memonal Looking a little incongruous among parking lots and office buildings, this 116-foot memorial honoring Prince Albert, Queen Victoria's consort, IS often called Belfast's Big Ben since it bears such a striking resemblance to London s famous tower. This clock tower, however, has settled slightly to one side, also earning itself the nick name of Belfast’s Leaning Tower.

At the river ends of High St. Custom House This squarest, solid looking building was designed by the architect Sir Charles Lanyon and corniced, in a somewhat grand Italianate style that was popular In Ireland In the Mid-19th century. Sculptures of Britannia, Neptune, and Mercury decorate the pediment on the seaward side.

Anne´s Cathedral St. Anne's is Belfast's principal Anglican church, and it took 86 years to build: from 1899 to 1985 and therefore combines many architectural styles. It is distinguished by some fine Irish Romanesque carving and sculpture.

St. Peter's Cathedral Belfast was completed in 1866, this Roman Catholic church is noted for Its soaring twin spires and a Circular carving by the doorway depicting angels freeing St. Peter from prison. St. Peter's Sq. First Presbyterian Church John Wesley preached here in 1789, 6 years after the church was completed. It has a lovely Interior.

Port of Belfast – The poised cranes and cables are stock props looming above this busy port, the largest in Ireland. Shipbuilding remains a primary occupation, and numerous ocean liners have been constructed or repaired here. The noted Harland & Wolff (H&W) shipyard grew from 2 acres in 1858 to 300 in the mid-20th century. Once the world's largest shipyard and long renowned for innovative ship design and sophisticated engine and hull construction, H& W once boasted the world's largest dry dock.

On April 2, 1912, the Titanic set out from its H&W birthplace to Southampton, England, for her maiden transatlantic voyage. Just 12 days later, the Titanic struck an iceberg, and in 3 hours the glamorous, virtually unsinkable ocean liner sank.

Stormont Belfast -A mile-long road leads uphill through an estate, with extensive gardens, to the erstwhile Parliament House, once the seat of Northern Ireland's legislature, now a government office building. Two statues on the grounds remind visitors of Ulster's political reality. One, at the juncture of the approach avenues, is of Lord Carson, the Dublin lawyer who kept Belfast British during and after World War I; the other, in the main entrance hall of the Parliament building, is of Lord Craigavon, Northern Ireland's first prime minister, best known for his anti Republican slogans Not an inch'; and No surrender. Upper Newtownards Rd., just east of the city.

Belfast Castle of recent vintage (1870), this mansion with its turrets, tower, gables, and ornate carving is a fine example of the romantic Scottish baronial style imported to this area during the Plantation period. Given to the city in 1934 by a former Mayor of Belfast, the Earl of Shaftsbury, the estate which recently received a $4 million restoration is now open to the public. There is also a restaurant here offering a splendid view of the city.

Cave Hill Belfast is about 2 miles north of the city, Cave Hill is a lovely afternoon's diversion. Stroll through the Hazelwood Gardens, climb to the craggy hill's summit (1,188 feet) and MacArt's Fort (an ancient earthwork), or visit the Belfast Zoo. Easiest access is from the parking lot of Belfast Castle. Belfast Zoo Recently expanded and still undergoing major improvements, it features an African House, sea lion pool, penguin exhibit, and a large free flight aviary.
The zoo, renowned for its excellent climate for breeding and conservation, has a new visitors' center with audiovisual exhibits. For hungry guests, there's a restaurant.

Queen's University Belfast - When founded in 1845, the school was associated with colleges in Galway and Cork; it became independent in 1909. Its original red brick, Tudor buildings designed by Sir Charles Lanyon are now only a small fraction of the many buildings that make up the university complex.

In November the Belfast Festival at Queen's, established more than a quarter century ago and now a rival to the Edinburgh Festival as the largest cultural event in the UK, offers a multitude of events film, music, and drama. The Queen's Film Theatre is also open to the public. University Rd. EXTRA SPECIAL: Between Queen's University and the Ulster Museum lie Belfast's 28-acre Botanic Gardens, the showpiece of which is the charming Palm House glass conservatory.

A famous Victorian era Belfast landmark, the Palm House was begun in 1839, predating London's Kew Gardens conservatory. It is one of the earliest examples of a curvilinear cast-iron glasshouse.