Newtownards Priory and
Cenotaph
Newtownards Priory is the only
reasonably well-preserved medieval Dominican Priory to survive in
Northern Ireland. It was probably founded by the Savage family
around 1244. The lower parts of the nave, as well as two blocked
doors in the south wall leading to a vanished cloister, survive
from the period of foundation. The upper parts of the nave, its
westward extension and the north aisle arcade date from a 14th
century rebuilding, probably undertaken by the de Burgh
family.
After the Priory was dissolved in
1541, it was involved in warfare and set fire to, falling into
ruin; later, it was granted to Hugh, the first Viscount Montgomery.
It was him who rebuilt in 1607 the north aisle, and added the tall
tower at the entrance, with its Renaissance doorway bearing his
initials. The soft local Scrabo sandstone from which it was carved
has incurred much weathering of the details, but a modern copy was
built into the north wall further to the east in 1988. In 1860 the
roofless Priory was consecrated as a burial ground and the interior
laid out as a garden which was used by the Londonderry family and
in 1970 the family transferred care of the Priory to the Department
of the Environment. The Priory is rarely open to the public unless
by special arrangement or on the European Heritage Day each
year.
The Newtownards and District War
Memorial is located in a small park known locally as The Bowling
Green. This was once owned by the Marquis of Londonderry who
donated it to the town of Newtownards.
Following a heavy snowfall in 1924,
ex-soldiers of Newtownards took full advantage of the snowfall, and
constructed a ‘snow memorial.’ This was assumed to have
been an attempt to embarrass the Council into constructing the long
promised war memorial. They had to wait another 10 years to see
unveiling ceremony 1934 of the Newtownards War Memorial. It
consisted of a snow pedestal standing eight or nine feet in height
with four pillars. On top of this pedestal an ex-soldier sat with
the representation of a rifle through his arm, and wearing a
‘tin hat’ and other accouterments. In front was a large
placard bearing the words “Lest we
forget.”
The
cache is a magnetic nano. It is not attached to the monument
itself. Please take care in crossing the roads to the site as the
roads around it can be quite busy at times, keep a close eye on
children too. As this is an extremely public area ensure
that you are very discrete in retrieving and replacing the
cache. Also please put it back exactly where you got it
from. You may want to move elsewhere to sign the log and then
return to replace it. Parking is available nearby on the street and
also in an NCP car park in Old Cross Street. Please take note of
any parking restrictions in force.