Loughgall ( ; )Placenames NI Placenames Database of Ireland is a small village, townland (of 131 acres) and civil parish in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. It is in the historic baronies of Armagh and Oneilland West. It had a population of 282 people (in 116 households) as of the 2011 census. Loughgall was named after a small nearby loch. The village is surrounded by orchards.
History In the Middle Ages the chiefs of the Uí Nialláin, a Gaelic clan, resided at Loughgall crannog, a fortified lake dwelling.Ireland's History in Maps - Uí Nialláin By the 16th century the O'Neills of Tír Eoghain had taken over the area, and the crannog became the residence of the O'Neill chief's brother or eldest son.
In the early 1600s, the area was settled by English and Scottish Protestants as part of the Ulster Plantation. During the 1641 Irish Rebellion, settlers were held at a prison camp at Loughgall by Catholic rebels led by Manus O'Cane.Mac Cuarta, Brian. Ulster 1641: Aspects of the Rising. Institute of Irish Studies, Queen's University of Belfast, 1993. p.126
In 1795, rival sectarian gangs, the Catholic Defenders and Protestant Peep-o'-Day Boys fought a bloody skirmish near the village, called the Battle of the Diamond, that left around 30 people dead. Following this, the Protestant Orange Order was founded in Dan Winter's House nearby.
The Troubles
The Loughgall area experienced a number of fatal incidents during The Troubles, the best known of which is arguably the 1987 Loughgall ambush.
Loyal Orders
Orange Order Loughgall has a historically significant association with Ulster's Loyal Orders, most notably serving as the birthplace of the Orange Order. Following the Battle of the Diamond nearby in September 1795, a meeting was held at James Sloan’s inn on the village’s Main Street, where the first official Orange warrants were signed. Sloan went on to establish the first ever Orange Lodge, which was located in Dyan under Orange warrant No. 1.
In June 2015, Sloan’s House was refurbished and expanded to serve as a key site for the Museum of Orange Heritage, complete with a replica of the 1795 parlor where the institution was founded.
The Loughgall District LOL No. 3 are associated with the County Armagh Grand Orange Lodge. The district oversees 22 Orange Lodges in the Diamond area with over 700 members. They host an annual Battle of the Somme Commemoration Parade in the village on the 1st of July.
Drumnahuncheon Apprentice Boys LOL 371 is an Orange Lodge within the Portadown District No. 1 of the Orange Order. The lodge was established in October 1887. Their name commemorates the Apprentice Boys of Derry.
The village's seasonal Orange Arch celebrates the marching season and Twelfth of July.
Royal Black Institution The headquarters of the Royal Black Institution is located on Main Street. The grand opening took place in April 2022, which was marked with a parade consisting of Sir Knights and marching bands.
Summerisland Royal Black District Chapter No. 6 is a regional district within the Royal Black Institution. They host the "Last Saturday" parade in the village, which rotates annually with the other districts.
Sport It is home to Loughgall Football Club, which plays in the NIFL Championship, the second tier of football in Northern Ireland.
Education The Cope Primary School serves the area. A Roman Catholic primary school was also previously located on the Eagralougher Road, just outside Loughgall, but this closed in 1996.
People Poet W. R. Rodgers (1909 – 1969). He later gave up the ministry and became a BBC radio producer and scriptwriter. He died in California in 1969 and was buried in Loughgall. Cope family; MPs Robert Cope and Robert Camden Cope; and Anthony Cope (Dean of Armagh) Lieutenant-Colonel Sir William Young, 1st Baronet (1771-1848). A soldier with the British East India Company's army, he later became a director of the East India Company. Born on the outskirts of Loughgall, he purchased Bailieborough Castle and its surrounding estate in the south-east of County Cavan in 1814, establishing his chief residence at the castle. Upon his death, Sir William was buried in the graveyard attached to St. Patrick's Church of Ireland Church in Benburb. Robert Garland (1862-1949): Born in Charlemont, Loughgall, County Armagh, and later lived in Pennsylvania, United States. This individual was known for his role in convincing the U.S. government to institute daylight saving time. James Sloan - First leader of the Orange Order, established first ever Orange Lodge, located in Dyan, Armagh.
Civil parish of Loughgall The civil parish of Loughgall, which spans the villages of Annaghmore, Charlemont and Loughgall, also contains the following townlands:
Aghinlig Altaturk Annaghmacmanus Annaghmore Annasamry Ardress East, Ardress West Ballygasey Ballymagerny Ballytyrone Borough of Charlemont Causanagh Clonmain Cloven Eden Coragh Corr and Dunavally Derrycoose Derrycrew Drumart Drumharriff Drumilly Drumnasoo Dunavally and Corr Eagralougher Fernagreevagh Keenaghan Kinnegoe Kishaboy Legavilly Levalleglish Lislasly Lisneany Lissheffield Loughgall Mullaghbane Mullaghmore Mullanasilla Rathdrumgran Tirmacrannon Turcarra
See also Market houses in Northern Ireland List of civil parishes of County Armagh List of townlands in County Armagh
References
External links
Discover Northern Ireland - Loughgall Country Park (archived 2006) NI Horticulture & Plant Breeding Station (archived 2006) Culture Northern Ireland - Loughall (archived 2006) Loughgall Market House (archived 2006) Loughgall Presbyterian Church