Royal Hillsborough
Royal Hillsborough is located in County Down
Royal Hillsborough
Royal Hillsborough
Location within County Down
Population3,952 (2011 Census)
District
County
CountryNorthern Ireland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townHILLSBOROUGH
Postcode districtBT26
Dialling code028
UK Parliament
NI Assembly
Former Market House – the Court House and Tourist Information Office

Royal Hillsborough (Irish: Cromghlinn, meaning 'Crooked Glen'[2]), more commonly known simply as Hillsborough, is a village and civil parish in County Down, Northern Ireland, 19 km (12 mi) from the city of Belfast. It is within the Lisburn and Castlereagh District Council area. The village is noted for its Georgian architecture. It is home to Hillsborough Castle, the British royal family's official residence in Northern Ireland, and residence of the British Secretary of State for Northern Ireland.

History

Before 1661, the townland was known as Crumlin or Cromlin (from Irish Cromghlinn 'crooked glen').[2] By 1661, during the Plantation of Ulster, the townland and the settlement within it had been renamed Hillsborough.[3] It was named after English army officer Sir Moses Hill,[3] and his son Sir Arthur Hill, who built Hillsborough Fort in 1650 to command the road from Dublin to Carrickfergus. The Hill family became the Earls of Hillsborough, then Marquesses of Downshire.

The mansion known as Hillsborough Castle was built in 1770 for The 1st Earl of Hillsborough (he was later created The 1st Marquess of Downshire, in 1789).[3]

A prominent memorial to The 3rd Marquess of Downshire (1788–1845)—closely resembling Nelson's Column in Trafalgar Square, London—stands to the south of the village and is visible throughout much of the surrounding area.

In 2007, Hillsborough won 3rd place in the annual Ulster in Bloom competition in the large village category.[4]

In 2021, it was announced that letters patent would be issued granting the village the prefix "Royal", thus officially becoming "Royal Hillsborough", in recognition of Hillsborough Castle, the official royal residence for Northern Ireland.[5] The Letters Patent came into effect on 20 October that year.[6]

Governance

Hillsborough was within Lisburn City Council until 1 April 2015, when it formed part of the new Lisburn and Castlereagh District Council. Royal Hillsborough is located within the Westminster constituency of Lagan Valley and Northern Ireland Assembly constituency of Lagan Valley.

Demography

On Census day (27 March 2011) there were 3,952 people living in Hillsborough and Culcavy.[7] Of these:

  • 17.1% were aged under 16 years and 20.6% were aged 65 and over
  • 48.4% of the population were male and 51.6% were female
  • 81.6% were from a Protestant or other Christian background, and 9.8% were from a Catholic background
  • 3.1% of people aged 16–74 were unemployed

Places of interest

Hillsborough, St. Malachy's

Notable people

Railways

Hillsborough railway station was opened by the Banbridge, Lisburn and Belfast Railway on 13 July 1863.[9] The line through the station was part of the Great Northern Railway (Ireland). The station closed on 30 April 1956 under the auspices of the Great Northern Railway Board. Train services were replaced by bus services provided by the Ulster Transport Authority (UTA). No trace of the station now remains, as it was removed when the dual carriageway was built. It was situated where this crosses over the Culcavey Road.

Sport

Climate

Climate data for Hillsborough climate station (91m elevation) 1981–2010 averages
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 14.7
(58.5)
15.8
(60.4)
19.4
(66.9)
22.8
(73.0)
23.8
(74.8)
28.1
(82.6)
29.5
(85.1)
28.4
(83.1)
24.5
(76.1)
21.1
(70.0)
15.8
(60.4)
14.5
(58.1)
29.5
(85.1)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 7.1
(44.8)
7.3
(45.1)
9.2
(48.6)
11.4
(52.5)
14.4
(57.9)
16.8
(62.2)
18.6
(65.5)
18.2
(64.8)
16.0
(60.8)
12.6
(54.7)
9.4
(48.9)
7.4
(45.3)
12.4
(54.3)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 1.7
(35.1)
1.5
(34.7)
2.7
(36.9)
3.8
(38.8)
6.2
(43.2)
9.0
(48.2)
10.9
(51.6)
10.8
(51.4)
9.1
(48.4)
6.6
(43.9)
3.9
(39.0)
2.0
(35.6)
5.7
(42.3)
Record low °C (°F) −12.2
(10.0)
−7.8
(18.0)
−10.0
(14.0)
−4.9
(23.2)
−3.3
(26.1)
0.0
(32.0)
2.5
(36.5)
1.8
(35.2)
−1.2
(29.8)
−4.5
(23.9)
−8.3
(17.1)
−11.5
(11.3)
−12.2
(10.0)
Average rainfall mm (inches) 83.5
(3.29)
58.9
(2.32)
70.7
(2.78)
59.1
(2.33)
60.3
(2.37)
67.8
(2.67)
71.4
(2.81)
85.4
(3.36)
76.0
(2.99)
92.8
(3.65)
90.1
(3.55)
85.6
(3.37)
901.8
(35.50)
Average rainy days (≥ 1.0 mm) 14.4 11.6 13.9 11.5 11.8 11.7 12.2 12.8 12.0 14.4 14.1 14.4 154.8
Mean monthly sunshine hours 46.0 71.9 105.9 151.7 195.4 165.3 158.3 151.1 123.0 96.5 61.3 38.4 1,364.8
Source 1: metoffice.gov.uk[10]
Source 2: KNMI

See also

References

  1. "Hillsborough/Cromghlinn". Placenames Database of Ireland.
  2. 1 2 3 Patrick McKay, A Dictionary of Ulster Place-Names, p. 81. The Institute of Irish Studies, The Queen's University of Belfast, Belfast, 1999.
  3. 1 2 3 "Hillsborough". Place Names NI.
  4. "Translink Press Release Ulster in Bloom Winners". Archived from the original on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 2007-09-06.
  5. "County Down village of Hillsborough granted royal status". BBC News. 1 June 2021. Retrieved 1 June 2021.
  6. "Mayor welcomes Secretary of State as Letters Patent is unveiled for Royal Hillsborough". www.lisburncastlereagh.gov.uk.
  7. "Census 2011 Population Statistics for Hillsborough And Culcavy Settlement". Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA). Retrieved 23 July 2019.
  8. "Hillsborough Parish Church | Lisburn.com". www.lisburn.com. Retrieved 19 August 2016.
  9. "Hillsborough station" (PDF). Railscot - Irish Railways. Retrieved 6 May 2012.
  10. "Climate Normals 1981–2010". Met Office. Retrieved 26 March 2021.
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