THE BAHÁ'ÍS OF CASTLEREAGH

WHERE WE ARE

The first references to Castlereagh were made in 1148AD with a battle between soldiers of Ulidia (a townland near Carrickfergus) who occupied the land and raiders from Tyrone. The name itself comes from the  ‘Caislen Riabhach’ or ‘Grey Castle’ of the O’Neill’s that once perched on the Castlereagh Hills. This has since disappeared into the land scape and many a man has his own idea of were it was.

The modern Castlereagh is an urban borough taking in the east and south suburbs of Belfast. It has no town centre but its two main population centres are the large villages of Carryduff which is a market village and Dundonald which is home to the Ulster hospital. A notable sight overlooking Dundonald is the seat of government in Northern Ireland (Parliament Buildings at Stormont, and Stormont Castle).  
 

The local council of which is made up of 21 members sits in the Castlereagh civic centre which is geographically in the centre of the borough.  The area is well known for the Castlereagh hills which tower over the city of Belfast.  Other places of interest of interest include:

• The Moat Park Moat in Dundonald which was once a motte and bailey fort looking over Belfast to the west and Strangford Lough to the east and offers some impressive views.

• The Dundonald Ice Bowl which is Northern Ireland’s only ice skating rink, (and is almost as much of a local landmark as Stormont!).