©Notable Dates from the past

1086 The Doomsday Book
A survey, commissioned by William the Conqueror, who invaded England in 1066, to asses the extent of taxes he could raise. The Doomsday Book is housed at National Archives, Kew, London.

1169 Norman invasion of Ireland
Irish people lived according to Brehon Laws prior to the arrival of the Normans.
1154-1189 Henry 2nd., Count of Anjou
He was first Plantagenet King of England. He was descended from the House of Anjou in France which used a sprig of yellow Broom as its emblem. Planta Genesta, is the Latin name for Broom and hence the name Plantagenet. Henry is buried at the Royal Abbey of Fontevraud, France, where his wife Eleanor of Aquitaine and son Richard (1st), "the Lion heart", are also buried.

1171 Henry (2nd) came to Ireland with a large army and declared himself, Overlord of Ireland.
He was granted the title "Lord of Ireland" by the Pope and this title was used by the Kings & Queens of England for nearly 400 years afterwards.
Henry could not speak English; only French and Latin.

1215 Magna Carta, signed by King John at Runnymede, Berkshire
This Charter of 63 articles became recognised as part of the fundamental law of England and, later, of other western countries.

1314 Battle of Bannockburn
The Scottish Army under the leadership of Robert Bruce, King of Scotland, defeated King Edward (2nd) of England at Bannockburn. Murcadh Mear MacSwiney, who was on the losing side, left Scotland and occupied lands along Lough Swilly where he established himself as the first MacSwiney Chieftain of Fanad.

1440 Rathmullan Priory
The Carmelites (White Fathers) built a Priory at Rathmullan. In 1516 the building fell and was rebuilt but in 1595 George Bingham sailed from Sligo with a military force and plundered it.

1517 The Reformation
On 31st October 1517, Martin Luther (1483-1546) a German Monk, posted his "Ninety Five Theses" on the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg.
He was protesting against abuses in the Roman Catholic Church, particularly the selling of indulgences. This was the beginning of the Protestant Faith. After Henry V111 broke with Rome, eating meat on Friday became no longer a hanging offense but to do so could still lead to a prison sentence of 3 months. The 2nd Vatican Council of the Roman Catholic Church (1962-1965) adopted many of the points made by Martin Luther.
William Shakespeare (1564-1616)
Born at Stratford-Upon-Avon, England. His writings continue to influence the use of language to this day and as a truly great writer he still generates constant affection. He married (1582) Anne Hathaway & died 23rd April 1616. His Tomb is in Holy Trinity Church,Stratford-Upon- Avon,
where the pre-reformation Alter is still in place.

1603 King James
King James 4th. Of Scotland (1566 -1625), also became James Ist. Of England.
1607 Flight of the Earls, from Port na Murray, Rathmullan.
The Earls of Tyrone and Tirconnell (O’Neill & O’Donnell) assembled at the bridge in Ballindrait and traveled to Rathmullan from where they and their extended families, ninety nine persons in all, sailed to France and journeyed onwards to Italy.
King James (1st) confiscated their lands.

The John Behan sculpture at Rathmullan, depicts the flight of the Earls about to embark on a ship.

1608 Plantation of Ulster.
The confiscated lands of O'Neill & O'Donnell were divided and redistributed to Scottish and English settlers.
1609 Barony of Kilmacrennan instituted.
"The Description of the Barony of KillmcCrenan in the Countie of Donnegall :
The said barony lyeth bounded on the East with the River of Loughswilly, on the West wth the River of Gidore and the Barony of Boylagh and Banagh, on the South with the River of Swolly and Barony of Rapho and on the North with the sea. The Soyle whereof is generally Mountainous, Boggy and Rocky wth many Loughs and Wayes hardly passable".
1611 Proclamation at Lifford
In the King’s name, ordering all native Irish to cease to occupy (to leave) their several possessions within the precincts of Portlough & Liffer (Lifford) and betake themselves to their new allotments in the Barony of Kilmacrennan.
Rev. Andrew Knox was transferred from the See of Argyle and the Western Isles in Scotland to be Protestant Bishop of Raphoe. He had six sons, all Ministers in the Church, and two daughters.
1611 Ferry Rights
Granted to John Browne for boat service between Fahan, Inch and Rathmullan. (see 1957 Salmon boat "Playmate" tragedy)
1618
Bishop Knox acquired Rathmullan Estate and restored the Priory to be used as a Church of Ireland, Parish Church.
1665 Hearth money tax
One Florin (two shillings) per chimney was imposed as a Tax.
Listed for, "Oghterlin" :
Roory Oige McSwine, Owen Sheridan, James Oige O’Sheridan, Owen O’Fyell, Shan O’Diarmond, Phelomy Ballagh O’Diermond and Bryan O’Dougherty.
1667 Independent Juries established in England
The first Jury was jailed for bringing in the"wrong verdict" !
1672 "Britannia" on the Farthing
The Roman Godess symbolising the British Isles, first used on English coinage; King Charles 2nd.,"Farthing".
1683 Presbyterian Minister, Rev. Francis Makemie emigrated from Ramelton to America.
Founder of Presbyterianism in America, he was arrested in 1707 for preaching, without a license, in a private home in Long Island, New York. In Court, he based his defense on the English Toleration Act of 1689 and was acquitted.

1746 Battle of Culloden near Inverness, Scotland
The Jacobites led by Charles Edward Stuart (Bonnie Prince Charlie) were defeated by troops under the Duke of Cumberland who is remembered by the English, in the flower, "Sweet William" and by the Scots as "butcher Cumberland" (5,000 Scots killed)
1752 Bishop of Raphoe attempts highway Robbery!
Right Rev Philip Twysden, Church of Ireland Bishop of Raphoe was attempting to carry out a highway robbery at Wrotham Heath, Kent, but he was shot dead by his intended victim. The story was covered up at the time and it was said that the Bishop had mysteriously taken ill and died from "inflammation of the bowels".
1761 Half- hanged McNaughton
Col. Andrew Knox, 4th in descent from Bishop Knox married heiress Honoria Tomkins of Prehen. Their daughter Marianne was being courted by John McNaughton from Castlefin. It is said that her father consented that she should marry him and they married in private (1761). Marianne felt that she had been tricked and refused to sleep with McNaughton and went into hiding. Her parents decided to remove her out of his way and were in route to Dublin when McNaughton ambushed the family carriage at Cloghcorr near Strabane. In the melee, Marianne was shot dead. McNaughton was found guilty of murder and sentenced to be hanged at Lifford in 1761. On the gallows, two attempts to hang him failed as the rope broke on each occasion and he was then offered a reprieve but declined the offer because he did not want to be known as "Half hanged McNaughton"!
Marianne's grave is in the grounds of Rathmullan Abbey while McNaughton is buried at Patrick Street graveyard, Strabane, Co. Tyrone.
1779 Bedlam Bridge
First Iron Bridge built at Bedlam Foundry, Shropshire was installed across the river Severn at nearby Coalbrookdale, starting the industrial revolution in Britain. Could it be that the Ordnance Surveyors who named "Bedlam Bridge" at Gortahork, Co. Donegal, came from Shropshire?

The Iron Bridge, across the river Severn at Coalbrookdale, Shropshire, England. There was a toll to be paid to cross the bridge and there were no exceptions; the military and even Royalty had to pay.

1783 Order of St. Patrick
Membership of it was used to reward Irish nobility for their loyalty to the crown.
1784-1878 Richard Griffiths
Buried at Mount Jerome Cemetery, Dublin. He established, Primary Valuation of Ireland completed in 1864.
1792 Post Road Act
Rules of the Road; travelers to keep to left hand side of road. Penalty for not complying, ten shillings.
1795 Orange Order, founded
1796 Yeomanry, established
To combat French invasion and United Irishmen Rebellion. Had been a voluntary force before then.

1809-1882 Charles Darwin
Established that all species of life have descended, over time, from one common ancestry.
1811 Naval Frigate, H.M.S. Saldanha, with 253 persons on board, ship-wrecked on Swilly Rocks north of Portsalon
The frigate sank, 4th December, in strong gales. Sadly, all 253 persons on board died. Captain William Packenham buried at Rathmullan Abbey.
1812 Napoleonic Wars
Six Martello Towers built along Lough Swilly, three on each side, in fear of invasion.
1825 "Limelight" on Slieve Snaght
9th November, Lt. Thomas Drummond after having spent three months camped on the mountain succeeded in experimenting with Calcium oxide to produce a powerful light which enabled the Ordnance Survey of Ireland to proceed in spite of poor visability during daylight hours.
1835 Your Granny was Doherty..... !
At an assault trial in the Court of Assizes, Lifford, Co Donegal; The Judge, Court clerk, Plaintiff, Defendant, both Solicitors and three witnesses were all named; Doherty !
1837 Rathmullan Estate
George Knox sold Rathmullan estate to Thomas Batt, Purdysburn, Co.Down. In 1871, the estate consisted of 4337 acres with a valuation of £2176(pounds). Thomas Edmund Batt succeeded him in 1895.
1839 The night of the Big Wind.
Memory of 6th January 1839 has lived long and remains known as "The night of the Big Wind". The occurrence was noted in the records of Armagh Observatory whose Director, Dr. John T.R. Robinson, is credited (1846) with inventing the "Hemispherical cup-anamometer" for measuring wind velocity which is still in use up to this time.
When the old age Pension was being introduced into Ireland, 1908, those whose age could not be officially verified were considered to qualify if they could give a plausible account of "the night of the big wind"!
1840 The Penny Black
The British Post Office issued the first adhesive postage stamp, known as the "Penny Black". Samuel Cunard got the contract for mail services using a steamship (rather than sail) between England and America. The "Britannia" made her first mail voyage in 1840 from Boston to Liverpool. From then on, vast numbers of Irish emigrants went to America via the Port of Liverpool.

One of the original Liverpool "Special" Post Boxes still in use at Albert Dock. The unique design was introduced in 1863 to meet heavy posting demand in the city of Liverpool.

1842 The Fanad Boat
On 8th August, 16 young men left Ballywhoriskey, Fanad, going to work at the harvest in England. They were on board a small boat going up Loughswilly towards Fahan for their onward journey to Derry. In windy conditions, when off Leathardan, their boat capsized and all were drowned except for one man who held on to the upturned boat and was rescued.

1845 - 1849 "An Ocras Mhor" (The great hunger) The Irish Potato Famine.

1852 The Tenement Act
Provided for a uniform valuation of all property in Ireland to establish a fair & equitable form of taxation and the valuations became known as "Griffiths Valuations".
1855 Rathmullan Pilot Boat
In November a Pilot boat, with a crew of six, returning to Rathmullan capsized at Kerr's Bay in stormy weather. Three crew members drowned; John Kiley, John Montgomery (leaving a wife and three children) & John Quigley (also married with three children).
1866 Gregor Mendel (1822-1884) Austrian Monk & Botanist.
As a result of experiments with garden peas, he published findings of the manner in which parental characteristics are passed on to their offspring.
1874 Barbed Wire, Patented
Barbed wire has become a symbol of division between peoples. In fencing it has become a dominant and sometimes negative feature of the Irish countryside but on the other hand; "good fences make good neighbours".
1879 Irish Land League formed
Michael Davitt, Straid, County Mayo founded the Land League to prevent tenant farmers from being evicted and to campaign for the right of farmers to become proprietors of their lands.
1881 Irish Land Act
Set up the Irish Land Commission to determine fair rents and assist tenants to purchase their properties.
1884-1960 Harry Ferguson, Engineer & Inventor.
Born at Dromore Co. Down, his hydraulic system for tractors (1948) revolutionised farming and the grey Ferguson T20 tractor was an instant success.
1891 Congested Districts Board
Set up by Land Act of 1891 to improve the lot of small farmers (under £7 valuation) by setting up Schemes to improve breeding of horses, cattle, sheep & pigs. Also to encourage poultry keeping and set up classes for knitting, dressmaking etc. Powers transferred to Irish land commission in 1923.
1894 Storm on Lough Swilly
On 23rd December, a sailing boat "Rob Roy" left Buncrana with 50 tons of sand destined for Letterkenny where the Cathedral was being built. A severe storm blew up that evening and the boat foundered off the Lennon estuary at Ramelton. Sadly, James McLaughlin, his son James and 21 years old James Wilkie, all lost their lives.

1903 Irish Land Act
Enabled Tenants to buy their lands.
1904
Batt's, Rathmullan estate, sold by Court of Chancery, Dublin.
1906 - 1984 Sir John Betjemen
English Poet Laureate, commemorated in "Poets Corner", Westminster Abbey.
1908 Old Age Pension
Introduced in Ireland from 1st January 1909. Those over 70 years received 5 shillings per week.
1912 Titanic launched at Belfast on 2nd April
On maiden voyage to New York, 12 days later, hit an iceberg and sank.
1947 Year of "the big snow"
The severe cold spell started on 21st January and remained below freezing for 48 days. A major blizzard lasted for two days, 24th & 25th February leaving snow drifts of six to eight feet deep which remained on the ground for 6 weeks.
1953 The Ferry, "Princess Victoria" sinks in stormy weather.
On 31st January the 7.45AM sailing from Stranraer to Larne carrying 172 passengers and crew was swamped and sank with the loss of 133 lives including the ship's Captain. At the mouth of Lough Ryan, stern doors were breached and an effort to return to port had failed. At 9.45AM, Captain Ferguson put out a distress message "Vessel not under command, urgent assistance of tug required". There were no available ships in the area and the Royal Navy launched HMS Contest from Liverpool, into the storm, to search. The Ferry continued to drift helplessly without Radio or power for nearly 5 hours in atrocious conditions & finally sank, without receiving any assistance, near Mew Island off Belfast Lough, at 2.00PM. Rescue vessels failed to reach the stricken ship in time due the severity of the storm as well as confusion regarding its position. Survivors were rescued from life rafts by the Contest & other vessels.
1957 Brown's Salmon fishing boat "Playmate" sank, off Fanad Head
Jim Brown (44), Bertie Brown (36), Thomas Porter (57) & Eugene McGinley (17), sadly, all lost their lives.
1957 Russia launches first Satellite, Sputnik 1.
On 4th October, it was launched into orbit where it remained until 4th January 1958 when it crashed to earth.
1958 Manchester United Plane crashes.
On 6th February, a British European Airways plane crashed, due to ice on its wings, on its third attempt to take off at Munich Airport. A total of 23 people lost their lives and 8 of them were Manchester United players.The team was affectionately known as the "The Busby Babes" because of their youthfulness and their team manager Matt Busby who was also injured but survived.
1959 Mass x-ray campaign to eradicate T.B.
Four vehicles, specially fitted with Radiography equipment, were launched at Letterkenny on 23rd May to cover Co. Donegal for screening purposes in the eradication of T.B. These Mobile units traveled around the County and no appointment was necessary to avail of the service. The population was advised to have an x-ray once a year. This new approach was both widely used and very successful.
1961 Hurricane Debbie
Saturday 16th September gales of up to 113mph (181kmh) swept across Ireland causing havoc. Eleven deaths and more than 50 people injured.
1962 -1965 The 2nd Vatican Council of Roman Catholic Church
Many of the points made by Martin Luther in 1517 were adopted, particularly that the Language of the people be used for worship, rather than Latin.
1969 Man walks on the moon
On 20th July, Neil Armstrong, USA, became first man to walk on the Moon.
1997 Dolly the sheep
Scientists at Edinburgh's Roslin Institute cloned the first mammal by using DNA from the mammary gland of a ewe to produce "Dolly" the sheep.
1998 Boxing Day Storm
Severe gales lashed Ireland and western Europe. Winds reached 92mph. 79 people killed in France.

2000 Human genome
Sequencing of the entire human genome allows scientists to seek new drugs for treatment of diseases.
2000 Celtic origins
According to Scientists at Trinity College, Dublin., The "native Irish" (Celtic) gene pool had its origins in Bohemia, a region in the Czech Republic, central Europe.
2004
Archaeologist, Dr. Marian Dowd discovered the bones of a Bronze Age child in a cave at the Burren, Co. Clare. The bones were 3500 years old and contained DNA which connected them to children living in the Burren at the present time and to inhabitants of the Basque region of North West Spain from 20,000 years ago.