March/April 2023
www.nitravelnews.com SAINTS, CATHEDRALS AND ORCHARDS Take a walk with us through the historical city of Armagh...
to be happy with her death then the men of Ulster, in their greatest hour of need and when the province is under threat, will feel weak and vulnerable like that of a woman close to childbirth.
Many years later and if Conor is still in
is well known that Ireland was once ruled by many kings in different kingdoms across the land, who looked after their people and helped build the areas we see today; Celtic tales of gods and goddesses were well known. The particular story of Macha and her curse starts with a great feast which was organised by the King of Ulster, Conor McNessa. Important guests from across the land travelled to attend the feast, including Crunnic and his wife- The unknown goddess Macha. Crunniuc spent the evening boasting of her incredible abilites , including the speed in which she could run; This angered the king and in doing so, he ordered Macha to prove herself against his Arabian horses.
Macha was concerned by this because at the time of the race she herself was heavily pregnant and such an event could end her life. The king did not care for the woman’s health and threatened Crunniuc’s life if she was not to take part. To everyone’s dismay, Macha ran the seemingly unfair race and outpaced the kings horses, however, this would be the last thing she did, as the event took such a toll on her body she gave birth. Birthing twins at the site, Macha placed both a curse and blessing on Ulster and Conor McNessa, symbolising the birth of both children. The men of Ulster were blessed with great strength and power, however, if Conor was
place, the Curse will strike the heart of Ulster during one of the most famous tales from the Ulster Cycle, the Táin Bó Cúailnge or Cattle Raid of Cooley. You can find out for yourself the final outcome by visiting the Navan Centre and Fort, also known as Emain Macha. The Irish Saint Possibly the most famous of visitors to Armagh is Saint Patrick. Patrick spent many years in Ireland during his crusade of bringing Christianity to the land, which brought him to Armagh. Despite being known to build the first church in Armagh, it is not the one most people think; Patrick did build the Church of Ireland Cathedral, however, this was no the first. Patrick initially built a small church near today’s Scotch Street after local chieftain Daire denied his initial request to build the church on the hill which gave Armagh its name (the Height of Macha). Becoming the centre of Irish Christianity,
Daire
eventually granted Patrick permission to build a stone church on the current site back in 445AD.
The King Who Called Armagh Home Although the tales of Macha, the Red Branch Knights and others within the Ulster
continued on page 46...
THE LOCAL TOURIST
| 45 Proposed Visa
Controls Between NI and ROI Could Harm Tourism Says Tourism Alliance
PROPOSED visa controls for travellers between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, which are set to be introduced by the Home Office in the wake of Brexit, are a cause for concern say local tourism bodies.
The Electronic Travel Authorisation
(ETA) system will apply to people without British or Irish nationality crossing the border into Northern Ireland, including those with legal residency on the island of Ireland. This means travellers flying into Dublin Airport who are not British or Irish citizens would require pre- entry clearance to visit Northern Ireland. The same applies to those flying into one of Northern Ireland’s three airports who wish to visit the Republic of Ireland. Dr Joanne Stuart, Chief Executive of
NITA said: “We don’t want anything that would create a barrier or make people think twice about coming up to Northern Ireland. The ETA was initially meant to be rolled out as a pilot at the beginning of this year, but we see that’s been delayed and we are urging a response as quickly as possible. “We are in a situation where you
have already got operators looking out to 2024/2025 for bookings, so we need to have clarity on the situation. ETAs are a result of post-Brexit border controls but are not connected in any way to the NI Protocol.
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