Slieve Donard: Difference between revisions

{{shortShort description|Highest mountain in Northern Ireland}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=NovemberJanuary 20132024}}

| photo = MurloughNewcastle Beach,and AugustSlieve 2010Donard (04)from the beach.JPGjpg

| photo_caption = <small>Slieve Donard and Newcastle from Murlough Beach</small>

| location = [[County Down]],<br> [[Northern Ireland]]

| listing = [[List of Irish counties by highest point|County High Point (Down)]],<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.highpointireland.com/county-high-points|title=Ireland's County High Points|publisher=High Point Ireland|date=2015}}</ref> [[List of P600 mountains in the British Isles|P600]], [[List of Marilyns in the British Isles|Marilyn]], [[List of Hewitt mountains in England, Wales and Ireland|Hewitt]], [[Lists of mountains in Ireland#Arderins|Arderin]], [[List of mountains of the British Isles by height|Simm]], [[Lists of mountains in Ireland#Vandeleur-Lynams|Vandeleur-Lynam]]

| map = Northern Ireland#United Kingdom County Down#Island of Ireland#United Kingdom

'''Slieve Donard''' ({{IPAc-en|ˌ|s|l|iː|v|_|ˈ|d|ɒ|n|ər|d}} {{respell|SLEEV|_|DON|ərd}}; {{Irish derived place name|Sliabh Dónairt|Dónairt's mountain}})<ref>[http://www.logainm.ie/130175.aspx Placenames Database of Ireland]</ref> is the highest [[mountain]] in [[Northern Ireland]], the highest in [[Ulster]] and provincethe highseventh-highest pointin [[Ireland]],<ref name="mountainviews"/><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.highpointireland.com/province-high-points|title=Ireland's Province High Points|publisher=High Point Ireland|date=2015}}</ref> of the wider [[Provinces of Ireland|province]] of [[Ulster]], with a height of {{convert|850|m}}.<ref name="mountainviews"/><ref name="OSI"/><ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.irishscientist.ie/2004/contents.asp?contentxml=04isp45b.xml&contentxsl=is04pages.xsl |title = Measuring the height of Slieve Donard |accessdateaccess-date = 21 June 2008 |author = Ken Stewart |year = 2004 |work = 2004 Year Book |quote = This final calculation gives a measured height for Slieve Donard of 849.14m above MSL Belfast, and is estimated to be correct to better than 5cm. |deadurlurl-status=yesdead |archiveurlarchive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071119233723/http://www.irishscientist.ie/2004/contents.asp?contentxml=04isp45b.xml&contentxsl=is04pages.xsl |archivedatearchive-date=19 November 2007}}</ref> ItThe is also the range high point<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.highpointireland.com/range-high-points|title=Ireland's Range High Points|publisher=High Point Ireland|date=2015}}</ref>highest of the [[Mourne Mountains]] and [[List of Irish counties by highest point|county high point]],<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.highpointireland.com/countyrange-high-points|title=Ireland's CountyRange High Points|publisher=High Point Ireland|date=2015}}</ref> of [[County Down]]. The mountainit is near the town of [[Newcastle, County Down|Newcastle]] on the eastern coast of [[County Down]], overlooking the [[Irish Sea]]. It is also the highest mountain in the northern half of [[Ireland]],.<ref>McSherry, Brendan. [https://www.academia.edu/15264625/The_Geoarchaeology_of_Irelands_East_Border_Region "The Geoarchaeology of Ireland's East Border Region - Geology and Borders in War and Peace"]. ''International Conference on Landscape Conservation, 2011''. p.76</ref> and 7th highest on the island.<ref name="mountainviews"/>

The [[Mourne Wall]] – built in the early 20th century – runs up the western and southern slopes of the mountain, joining a small stone tower at the summit. Also on the summit are the remains of two ancient burial [[cairn]]s, one of which is the remains of the highest known [[passage grave|passage tomb]] in Ireland. In [[Irish mythology]] the mountain was associated with the mythical figures Boirche and Slángha. It was later associated with, and named after, Saint Donard, who was said to have made the summit his [[hermitage (religious retreat)|hermitage]]. Up until the 1830s, people would climb the mountain as part of a yearly pilgrimage, which may have originally been a [[Lughnasadh]] (harvest) ritual. [[Royal Engineers]] camped on the summit for four months in 1826 as part of the [[Ordnance Survey]]'s [[Principal Triangulation of Great Britain|Principal Triangulation]]. It is located in the southeastern part of [[Northern Ireland]].

Slieve Donard sits at the northeastern edge of the Mournes, overlooking Newcastle and Dundrum Bay. It has two lesser summits on the seaward side – [[Millstone Mountain]] (460 &nbsp;m),<ref>[http://mountainviews.ie/mv/index.php?mtnindex=584 MountainViews – Millstone Mountain]</ref> and Crossone (540 &nbsp;m). Two [[glen]]s separate Slieve Donard from the neighbouring mountains of [[Slieve Commedagh]] (to the northwest) and Chimney Rock Mountain or Slieve Neir (to the south).<ref name="OSI"/> Slieve Commedagh, at {{convert|767|m|abbr=on}}, is the second-highest of the Mourne Mountains.<ref>[http://mountainviews.ie/mv/index.php?mtnindex=63 MountainViews – Slieve Commedagh]</ref>

The mountain is an easy climb although the path is very eroded at places. The most popular route begins at [[Donard Forest]] on the north side of the mountain and follows the [[Glen River, County Down|Glen River]] and then the Mourne Wall to the summit. In recent years a stone path has been made on the steepest parts of the mountain. The summit has views of the coast, and as far afield as [[Belfast Lough]], {{convert|30&nbsp;miles|mi|km|-1|abbr=off}} north, [[Dublin Bay]], {{convert|55 miles|mi|km|abbr=off|round=5}} south, and the [[Isle of Man]].

On the summit are the remains of two prehistoric burial [[cairn]]s. The Great Cairn is at the highest point and measures about 1m{{convert|1|m|ftin|abbr=on}} high, {{convert|36.5 metres|m|ftin|abbr=on}} from north to south and 43m{{convert|43|m|ft|abbr=on}} from east to west. It appears to have been a [[Neolithic]] [[passage grave|passage tomb]], dating to 3300–3000 BCEBC. It is the highest known passage tomb in Britain and Ireland.<ref name=moore3>[[#Moore|Moore (2012)]], p. 3.</ref> The Lesser Cairn lies 210 metres to the northeast, overlooking Newcastle. It measures about {{convert|4.5m5|m|ftin|abbr=on}} high, 18m{{convert|18|m|ft|0|abbr=on}} from north to south, and 16m{{convert|16|m|ft|0|abbr=on}} from east to west. It appears to have been an Early [[Bronze Age]] multiple-[[cist]] cairn, dating to 2300–1950 BCEBC.<ref name=moore3/> In the past, the cairns had a much more well-defined shape and it is thought the Great Cairn had an east-facing entrance leading to an inner chamber.<ref>[[#Moore|Moore (2012)]], pp.30-31</ref> They appear to parallel the two cairns on [[Slieve Gullion]], which can be seen from Slieve Donard.<ref>[[#Moore|Moore (2012)]], p. 29.</ref>

It is likely that Slieve Donard was seen as a sacred mountain in the far past.<ref>[[#Moore|Moore (2012)]], pp.117-118</ref> [[Irish mythology]] identifies the Great Cairn as being the tomb or abode of mythical figures, and an entrance to [[Celtic Otherworld|the Otherworld]].<ref name=moore17>[[#Moore|Moore (2012)]], pp. 17–18.</ref> In ''[[Cath Maige Tuired]]'' ("'The Battle of Moytura"'), Slieve Donard is called one of the "twelve chief mountains" of Ireland,<ref>[[Augusta, Lady Gregory]]. [http://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/celt/gafm/gafm07.htm Part I Book III: The Great Battle of Magh Tuireadh]. ''Gods and Fighting Men'' (1904) at Sacred-Texts.com.</ref> while in the [[Triads of Ireland]] it is called one of the "three great heights" of Ireland, along with [[Croagh Patrick]] and [[Great Sugar Loaf]].<ref name=moore17/> The earliest sources give two names for the mountain: ''Benn mBoirchi'' (modern spelling: ''Beann Boirche'') and ''Sliab Slánga'' (modern spelling: ''Sliabh Slángha'').<ref name=moore17/><ref>Paul Tempan. [https://www.academia.edu/1657030/Names_in_sliabh_in_the_Mourne_Mountains_and_beyond "Names in ''sliabh'' in the Mourne Mountains and beyond"]. [[Queen's University Belfast]].</ref> ''Beann Boirche'' means "'Boirche's peak"Peak', referring to a mythical [[herderHerder|cowherd]] and king who had seemingly supernatural powers. The plural name ''Beanna Boirche'' ("'Boirche's peaks"Peaks') was given to the Mourne Mountains. The name ''Sliabh Slángha'' means "'Slángha's mountain"Mountain'. This refers to the mythical Slángha, son of [[Partholón]], who was said to be the first physician in Ireland. According to the ''[[Annals of the Four Masters]]'', he died in [[Anno Mundi]] 2533 (2533 years after "the creation of the world") and was buried in the passage tomb.<ref name=moore17/>

Ireland was Christianized from the 5th to 8th centuries. A local Christian missionary, Saint Donard (known in Irish as ''Domhanghart''),<ref name="O'Mulconry">[[#ODonovan|O'Donovan (1856)]], [https://archive.org/stream/annalarioghachta01ocle#page/6/mode/2up p. 6].</ref><ref name="Joyce">[[#Joyce|Joyce (1885)]], [https://archive.org/stream/irishlocalnamese00joyc#page/82/mode/2up p. 83].</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.ulsterplacenames.org/place_and_people_names.htm |title=Celebrating Ulster's Townlands |access-date=2 March 2016 |first=Kay |last=Muhr |date=12 March 2015 |work=UlsterPlaceNames.org |publisher=Ulster Place-Name Society, Queen's University |location=Belfast}}</ref> became associated with the mountain. According to tradition, he was a fifth-century follower of [[Saint Patrick]] and founded a [[Maghera Churches and Round Tower|monastery at Maghera]], a few miles north of the mountain. Donard is said to have "appropriated the mountain and the monument for Christianity",<ref>[[#Moore|Moore (2012)]], p. 113.</ref> allegedly by making the Great Cairn into a [[hermit]]'s cell and using the Lesser Cairn as an [[Oratory (worship)|oratory]].<ref>[[#Moore|Moore (2012)]], p. 57.</ref> According to the ''Life of Saint Patrick'' and the ''Tripartite Life of Saint Patrick'', Patrick blessed Donard in the womb, declaring that Donard would not die but [[King asleep in mountain|abide inside the mountain as a perpetual guardian]].<ref>[[#Moore|Moore (2012)]], pp. 58–59.</ref> According to folklore, a cave runs from the seashore to the cairn on the summit, and it is here that Donard (or Boirche) lives.<ref>[[#Moore|Moore (2012)]], p. 61.</ref> The writings of [[Gerald of Wales|Gerald de Barri]] indicate that in the late 12th century the name ''Sliabh Slángha'' was going out of use and being replaced by ''Sliabh Domhanghairt''.<ref>[[#Moore|Moore (2012)]], p. 19.</ref> ''Sliabh Dónairt'' is the modernised spelling.

*{{cite book |author=Joyce, P. W. |authorlinkauthor-link=Patrick Weston Joyce |year=1885 |title=Irish Local Names Explained |publisher=M. H. Gill & Son |location=Dublin |url=https://archive.org/details/irishlocalnamese00joyc |ref=Joyce}}

*{{cite book |author=Moore, Sam |url=https://www.academia.edu/1601622/_The_Archaeology_of_Slieve_Donard_Co._Down_A_Cultural_Biography_of_Ulsters_Highest_Mountain_Down_County_Museum_2012 |title=The Archaeology of Slieve Donard: a Cultural Biography of Ulster's Highest Mountain |publisher=[[Down County Museum]] |year=2012 |isbn=978-0-9567278-6-2 |ref=Moore}}