St. Elizabeth's, Dundonald

Side view of the modern St. Elizabeth's Church building, Cleland Mausoleum in the background

St. Elizabeth's, is a religious site for St. Elizabeth's Church and St. Elizabeth's Church Graveyard located at Church Green, Dundonald, Northern Ireland. ^[1] The site sits on the townland of Church Quarter, beside the Moat Park and off Church Road, Dundonald. It is an active Anglican Christian parish church under the Church of Ireland. ^[2]

St. Elizabeth's Church dates back to the 14th century, it was rebuilt beside the original site in 1966. ^[3] The original church building is still standing, surrounded by St. Elizabeth's Church Graveyard form the medieval period. ^{[4] [5]} Dundonald Library faces Church Green. ^[6]

The old, derelict St. Elizabeth's Church building located within the St. Elizabeth's Church Graveyard

History

St. Elizabeth's Church Graveyard was the first graveyard in Dundonald. Due to its small size and increasing population in Belfast, the larger Dundonald Cemetery opened in 1905. ^[7]

The Churchyard features the Cleland Mausoleum, a large memorial to Samuel Cleland in 1842. It was erected by his wife at a cost of £2000. Samuel Cleland was a landlord of the Stormont Estate, and was killed while giving directions to workmen, when a wall suddenly collapsed on him. He was killed instantly by the falling masonry.

This event is often noted by local historians because it occurred at a time when he was at the peak of his wealth and was actively "improving" the estate that would eventually become the seat of Northern Ireland's government. The mausoleum was built at such a height so it could be seen from the Cleland family home, Stormont Castle. ^[8]

In the early 20th-century, Agnes Romily White's Father was the rector of the church. ^[9]

In 2014, the modern building went under construction, which seen a new car park and front exterior. ^{[10] [11]}

Queen's University Belfast - School of Geography, Archaeology and Paleoecology had completed excavations and examinations on the old church and graveyard, lasting 8 weeks. This The work was carried out by the Centre for Archaeological Fieldwork, and was funded by the Northern Ireland Environment Agency. ^[12]

From the study, in which Queen's still monitor the Church and Graveyard, had found that it had been originally built as early as the 14th century, and was likely perished during the Bruce invasion, were the motte and bailey (now known as the moat hill) was destroyed. Following this, no records exist until the 17th century. ^[13]

Notable St. Elizabeth's Churchyard burials

• "Black John" Cleland (1755–1834): Samuel’s father, buried in the family plot, was one of the most controversial figures in County Down history. As the land agent for the Stewart family (the Marquesses of Londonderry) and a magistrate, he was a staunch Loyalist and Orangeman. He was notorious for his ruthless suppression of the United Irishmen during the 1798 Rebellion, specifically by turning informants against their leaders.
• Agnes Romilly White (1872–1945): author, who wrote "Gape Row" and "Graine’s Gate".
• Rev. Robert White: (father of Agnes Romilly White, he served as the Rector of St. Elizabeth’s in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
• Robb family; Alexander Robb: synonymous figures from Dundonald, who helped shape the village, and owned the vast majority of the townland of Ballybeen for generations. "Robbs Road" is named after them. The road acted as a boundary and access point for the family's primary residence, Ballybeen House. ^[14]
• Captain Hawthorne (1852-1892): Captain of the ship known as "Dundonald", who was washed overboard during a voyage returning home from San Francisco. ^[15]
• James Hodge: The local mason who actually built the 1804 iteration of the church. His headstone is an important piece of the "physical" history of the village.
• Rev. Edward Thompson Martin: A long-serving minister whose memorial reflects the deep ties between the church and the Presbyterian community in the village during the 1800s.

The small cemetery has a few veteran's war graves.

• Flight Sergeant George Lynas Hosford (RAFVR): Died January 30, 1943, aged 22. He was a WWII pilot and recipient of the George Medal, one of the highest honors for bravery not in the face of the enemy. Dundonald Primary School, which sits beside Church Green, visit George Hosford's grave around Remembrance Sunday.
• Private John Ireland: Soldier of the 15th Bn. Devonshire Regiment, who was killed in World War I on 6 September 1918. His inscription reads "in the midst of life we are in death. ^[16]
• Sergeant William John Nolan (RASC): Killed during the Dunkirk evacuation in 1940. He is commemorated on a headstone here, though his name is officially on the Dunkirk Memorial in France. ^[17]
• Private Thompson Gray (5th Canadian Infantry): Died of wounds in August 1917; his name is added to the family headstone in the churchyard. ^[18]
• Lieutenant Commander Douglas Bilney: A Royal Navy veteran who, along with his wife Ruby, is buried in the churchyard. They were victims of the MV Princess Victoria disaster in 1953 (the worst peacetime maritime disaster in British coastal waters). ^[19]

There are local Harland & Wolff shipbuilders buried in the churchyard of who contributed to the building of the Titanic.

Sport

St. Elizabeth's Football Club (now defunct) represented the church, winning the 1954–55 season NAFL 2 Division A. They were runners-up twice. ^[20] They were nicknamed the "hatchet men".

References

1. Larmour, Paul (1987). Belfast: An Illustrated Architectural Guide. Friar's Bush Press. ISBN   978-0-946872-10-7.
2. "Dundonald St Elizabeth, Diocese of Down & Dromore - Church of Ireland - A Member of the Anglican Communion". www.churchofireland.org. Retrieved 2025-01-27.
3. Belfast Urban Area Plan. Building Design Partnership. 1969.
4. "Sarah | Centre for Archaeological Fieldwork (CAF) | Queen's University Belfast". www.qub.ac.uk. 2017-03-14. Retrieved 2025-01-27.
5. The Belfast Gazette. H.M. Stationery Office. 1969.
6. "Dundonald Library". www.librariesni.org.uk. Retrieved 2025-12-20.
7. McCabe, Peter (2021). 2020 (1st ed.). Northern Ireland: History Hub Ulster. ISBN   9781999658816.
8. Kneeland, Stillman Foster (1897). Seven centuries in the Kneeland Family: Rückent.: (The Kneeland genealogy.) Familie Kneeland. Books on Demand. ISBN   978-0-608-33756-2.
9. Campbell, Aidan (2016-04-15). Belfast Through Time. Amberley Publishing Limited. ISBN   978-1-4456-3660-3.
10. "Geograph:: New church hall, St Elizabeth's,... © Albert Bridge cc-by-sa/2.0". www.geograph.ie. Retrieved 2025-01-27.
11. Faith and Sexuality in the Church of Ireland. Lulu.com. 2012-02-22. ISBN   978-1-4716-1929-8.
12. Drinkwater, Harry (March 1891). "St. Michael's Church, Oxford" . Journal of the British Archaeological Association. 47 (1): 56–57. doi:10.1080/00681288.1891.11887972. ISSN   0068-1288.
13. Privilege, John (2009-02-01). Michael Logue and the Catholic Church in Ireland, 1879-1925. Manchester University Press. ISBN   978-0-7190-7735-7.
14. White, Barry (1983). "John Robb: A Man for All Ireland". Fortnight (197): 12–14. ISSN   0141-7762.
15. "St Elizabeth's Parish Church Graveyard, Dundonald, Co. Down. Northern Ireland". www.igp-web.com. Retrieved 2025-12-22.
16. https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/661396/john-ireland/
17. "Home". North Down & Ards War Dead. Retrieved 2025-12-22.
18. "Thompson Gray | Veterans Affairs Canada". www.veterans.gc.ca. Retrieved 2025-12-22.
19. "Royal Navy casualties, killed and died, 1953". www.naval-history.net. Retrieved 2025-12-22.
20. "Northern Amateur Football League :: Tables". www.thenafl.co.uk. Retrieved 2025-01-27.

54°35′37″N5°48′21″W / 54.5936°N 5.8059°W / 54.5936; -5.8059