NEWRY,RATHFRILAND

Rathfriland (in Irish: Ráth Fraoileann, ie Fraoile’s Fort) is a small market town in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is a hilltop Plantation of Ulster town between the Mourne Mountains, Slieve Croob and Banbridge and is in the barony of Upper Iveagh. It had a population of 2,079 people in the 2001 Census. It is within the Banbridge District Council area.

The town was once owned by John Percy Meade, (1847-1919), (see his great-grandmother: Theodosia Hawkins-Magill), who was the lineal descendant of Alderman Hawkins of London, who received the site and a considerable tract of the country from Charles II for services provided during the Parliamentary Wars.

Although the history of the town began with Ald. Hawkins, the high hill upon which it stands was famous long before his time as the natural fortress upon which the Magennises maintained their strongest castle. At the summit of the hill are the remains of the castle. There is a large water tower on the top of the hill which can be seen from many miles around.

Rathfriland was originally spelt with a y instead of an i.

The town square is located on top of the hill, and a market house (erected around 1764), which dominates the main square, was built for the linen market by Theodosia Hawkins-Magill. A clock-faced war memorial stands in the square on the south eastern side.

Places of Worship
The 1st Rathfriland Presbyterian Church
The 2nd Rathfriland Presbyterian Church
The 3rd Rathfriland Presbyterian Church
St. John's Church of Ireland
St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church
Rathfriland Reformed Presbyterian Church (Covenanters)
Rathfriland Baptist Church
Elim Pentecostal Church