Ballygally Castle is in the village of Ballygally, County Antrim, Northern Ireland, located approximately 3 miles (5 kilometres) north of Larne. The castle overlooks the sea at the head of Ballygally Bay. It is now run as a hotel and is reputed to be one of the most haunted places in Ulster.[1]
The castle was built in 1625 by James Shaw of Scotland,[2] who had come to the area and rented the land from Randal MacDonnell, the Catholic Earl of Antrim for £24 a year.[3] Although it is sometimes claimed to be the oldest occupied building in Ireland, Castle Upton is somewhat older.[4] Over the main entrance door to the castle, leading to the tower, is the Middle Scots inscription "Godis Providens is my Inheritans".[2] The bawn and walled garden are registered as Scheduled Historic Monuments at grid ref: D3725 0781.[5]
During the Great Rebellion of 1641, the Irish garrison stationed at Glenarm tried to take the castle, then more fortified than today, several times but without success.[6]
In the late 1730s, the Shaw children were tutored by the later pioneering educator and master of a Belfast "play school", David Manson. For many years, one of the apartments in the castle was known as the "Manson room".[7]
Ballygally Castle
Around 1760, the castle buildings were extended as the squire, Henry Shaw, married a Miss Hamilton, who had two sisters and who all came to live within the castle.[6]
In 1799, the castle passed to William Shaw, the last squire of Ballygally. The family's wealth was exhausted, and within a few years he sold the property. It then passed through several hands, including use as a coastguard station, before being purchased in the early 1950s by Cyril Lord. The textile millionaire refurbished the castle as the hotel seen today.[6][8]
Paranormal enthusiasts, such as Jeff Belanger, suggest that the castle is haunted.[9]
Architecture
The rectangular Scottish baronial-style castle has four storeys, walls of about 1.5 metres thick, four corner turrets and a flanking tower at the northeast side with an entrance and stone spiral stairs. Originally it was enclosed by a bawn with four corner turrets. In the 1840s, the side nearest the sea was removed to accommodate the new coast road.[6][10]
↑ "Ballygalley"(PDF). Scheduled Historic Monuments (2015). Northern Ireland Environment Agency. Archived from the original(PDF) on 27 April 2015. Retrieved 21 April 2015.
↑ O'Neill, B (ed). (2002). Irish Castles and Historic Houses. London: Caxton Editions. p.18.
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