Annaduff

Aughanduff () is a small village and townland in the civil parish of Forkhill, in the former barony of Orior Upper, and County of Armagh, Northern Ireland. The townland is roughly co-existent with Upper and Lower Aughanduff Mountains, both of which form part of the Ring of Gullion geological formation, which has been described as the most spectacular example of a ring-dyke intrusion in the British Isles, and was the first ring dyke in the world to be geologically mapped. Aughanduff has been populated since prehistoric times and has been recorded as a distinct district since at least the early 1600s.See the Escheated map of County Armagh: Orior 1609 - ''Map of 'The Barony of Orier', showing bog and woodland, and castles, churches, houses and mountains in perspective'', available a
UK National Archives
Kew. The area's history is both well documented and reflects its location both in rural Ireland and on the borderlands of the Pale, the Plantation of Ulster, and latterly Northern Ireland; indeed, part of the district's northern boundary was proposed for forming part of the northern border of the Irish Free State by the Irish Boundary Commission in its final report of 1925. The Boundary Commission's report was never implemented and today, the area remains within Northern Ireland, some five miles from the border with the Republic of Ireland. Part of the area has been designated by the Northern Ireland Environment Agency as an Area of Special Scientific Interest, and the district lies within the Ring of Gullion Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

Etymology

"Aughanduff" (also spelt "Annduff") is commonly said to derive from the Irish ''Áth an Daimh'', meaning "ford of the oxen" (or "oxford"), with the relevant ford being one across Balina stream which separates the townland from neighbouring Carricknagavina. It has also been argued, however, that the name comes from the Irish ''Achadh Dubh'' meaning "black fields". The spelling used for official purposes is Aughanduff, and the area is commonly pronounced ''Ann-duff''.

The modern English spelling ''Aughanduff'' appears to have emerged during the 18th century, and the Northern Ireland Place-Names Project records the following spellings being used in official documents or maps prior to ''Aughanduff'' being used in John Rocque's 1760 Map of County Armagh:

*''Aghadampe'' - Esch. Co. Map, 5.26, 1609 (Escheated map of County Armagh: Orior);
*''Aghadamph'' - CPR Jas I, 187a, 1611 (Irish patent rolls of King James VI & I);
*''Aghaduffe the backside of'' - Civ. Surv., x $77, 1655c (the Civil or "Down" Survey);
*''Aghadiffe'' - Inq. Arm. (Paterson), 228, 1657(Inquisition as to parishes in County Armagh in 1657);See Paterson, T. G. F.: "Inquisition as to parishes in County Armagh in 1657" in the ''Ulster journal of archaeology'' (1939), Ser. 3, Vol. II, pp. 212-249.
*''Aghaduff'' - Inq. Arm. (Paterson), 225, 1657;
*''Aghadu'' - Hib. Reg., Oryer, 1657c (''Hibernia Regnum'' or ''the Down Survey of the Baronies of Ireland, 1655-58'', Map of The Barony of Oryer in the County of Ardmagh (2 sheets));
*''Aghaduffe'' - BSD, 3, 1661 (the Books of Survey and Distribution);
*''Aghaduffe'' - HMR Murray (1941), 131, 1664 (the Hearth Money Rolls 1664);
*''Agheduffe'' - HMR Orior, 426, 1664 (the Hearth Money Rolls of Orior, 1664);
*''Aghneduffe'' or ''Aughinduffe'' - ASE, 107 b 7, 1666 (the Acts of Settlement and Explanation); and
*''Aghaduffe'' - Hib. Del., 28, 1672c (Sir William Petty's ''Hiberniae Delineatio'' or ''Petty's Atlas''. Based on the Down Survey).

Location and geography

Aughanduff townland sits within the Ring of Gullion geological formation in rural County Armagh, and has been included within the Ring of Gullion Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty on its designation in 1991. It is in large part co-existent with the extent of lower and upper Aughanduff mountains, which form part of the 'outer ring' of the Ring of Gullion system, although its territory extends both east into the valley between the upper and lower mountains and Slievenacappel, and south of the Upper mountain to Cashel Lough Lower.

The small hamlet lies adjacent to Our Lady, Queen of Peace Church on the Silverbridge (Newry-Crossmaglen) Road in the southern portion of the townland. Aughanduff lies north of the village of Mullaghbawn, south of Belleeks and from Silverbridge. Neighbouring townlands are Carricknagavina to the north-east, Tullymacrieve to the east, Cashel to the south-east, Umericam (Ball North) to the south-west, Ummerinvore to the west, and Tullyogallaghan to the north-west.

The geological record of Aughanduff is complex, with bedrock in the area dating at least 500 million years, but with the modern landscape a result of complex interaction between a number of periods of volcanic activity and glacial movements. Aughanduff lies from the border with the Republic of Ireland, with Dundalk a mere 11 miles; however, Newry, at off to the east, is the nearest large town.

The townland comprises , with most fertile part in the valley between Upper and Lower Aughanduff mountains and Slievenacappel. The townland is described as "poor, gravelly and rocky" in a map of 1827 and the area is mostly gravel and rock, with heather and bog but also significant tracts of pasture and some arable ground.

Politics

Aughanduff is part of both the Newry and Armagh UK Parliament and Northern Ireland Assembly Countituencies. At Westminster level it is represented by Conor Murphy (Sinn Féin), and in the Northern Ireland Assembly by C. Boylan, D. Bradley, M. Brady, W. Irwin, Danny Kennedy and C. Murphy. The Townland also forms part of the Slieve Gullion ward of Newry and Mourne District Council where it is represented by Cllrs G. Donnelly, A. Flynn, P.J. Mc Donald, T. Hearty, and C. Burns.

Features

The most obvious feature of the area is Upper and Lower Aughanduff mountains (rising to 234 and 227 meters respectively), although they are perhaps more correctly classed as two prominences of the same rock outcrop. As a result, the townland boasts scenic views of multi-peaked Slievenacappel ("mountain of the horse"), Slieve Gullion, Mullaghbawn, and Dromintee, as well as counties Louth and Monaghan to the south and west.

Forming part of the boundary of the townland, one of the most attractive local features is Lower Cashel Lough, which is described as boasting ''"an extensive fringe of reed swamp and scrub woodland with alder and willow"'' and the area surrounding the lake has been designated an Area of Special Scientific Interest owing to its importance as a wetland habitat. The lake is used for trout fishing, for which a permit is required, and stocked twice annually.

A brook known locally as the 'roaring stream' forms part of the boundary of both Aughanduff and Parish of Forkhill with its neighbors to the west and marks the border between the ancient territories of Orior and Fews. In addition, historically an important local feature was the 'lone bush' which stood on top the mountain.

In terms of manmade features, at least one pre-historic site is known to have existed in the townland, with what is considered as having been an ancient fortified enclosure listed on the Northern Ireland Environment Agency's ''Monuments and Buildings Record''.See Monuments and Buildings Record SMR Number ARM 028:034 available a
Northern Ireland Environment Agency's Website
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Today most recognisable man-made feature in the area is ''Our Lady Queen of Peace Church'' on the Silverbridge Road (Newry-Crossmaglen), opened on 16 June 1957, and built with donations coming from families in the locality and beyond, most notably from the United States, and New York City and Philadelphia in particular. The church is in the New Romanesque style and boasts a 50 ft bell tower. It was designed by Simon Aloysius Leonard of the Dublin firm W. H. Byrne & Son.

Otherwise, most of the prehistoric remains in the area appear to have been lost and the only other man-made features of note include the former school-house, and a small holy well near the church. The townland is traversed by the Aughanduff and Glenmore roads while the Polkone, Cashel, and main Newry to Crossmaglen roads run through the south eastern portion of the townland.

Economic activity

A map from 1827 shows two lime kilns in the area, however these seem to have fallen out of use by the turn of the 20th century and despite the rocky nature of the townland no commercial quarrying activities take place today. Many people in Aughanduff work in services in nearby towns such as Newry or Dundalk and return to the area in the evening, although some commute as far as Belfast (45 miles) and Dublin (62 miles). While the primary economic activity carried out within the townland remains farming (and specifically grazing), revenue is largely generated in services carried out outside the townland such as building, government and retail with most farmers engaging on the activity on a part-time basis. In 2007 Aughanduff saw its first electricity generating wind turbine erected, and the area also has access to broadband internet via satellite.

Climate

Aughanduff, lying a mere from the sea enjoys a typical Oceanic climate generated by the Gulf Stream with damp mild winters, temperatures rarely dropping below freezing during daylight hours and though frost is not infrequent in the months November - February, snow rarely lies for longer than a few hours. Summers are also mild and somewhat damp with sunshine often interspersed with showers during summer months.

People

The population of the townland is currently in excess of two hundred persons, with those of indigenous descent comprising almost all inhabitants bar a few residents of English and American extraction. In terms of religion most inhabitants are Roman Catholic or non-religious with ''Our Lady Queen of Peace'' being the sole house of worship in the area.

As indicated by the adjacent table, the population of the townland has fallen significantly since the Irish Famine, with decline continuing from the 1840s until the 1980s. Recent years have seen a halt brought to this trend with something of a mild resurgence in terms of numbers resident in the townland.

English is by and large the sole language of communication used in the area today with Irish being spoken as a native tongue among a minority as late as the early 20th century - the last native Irish speaker in the townland, Molly Kavanagh, died in 1940. While the last monoglot Irish speakers appear to have died out in the mid-19th century, neighbouring Carricknagavina saw its last native Irish speaker, Annie Quinn, die at age 105 in 1997.

Demographics

On Census night, 27 March 2011, it was revealed that of the population of the Aughanduff-Carricknagavina-Cashel-Tullymacreeve output area;
* 27.0% were under 16 years old and 10.5% were aged 60 and above;
* 50.75% of the population were male and 49.25% were female;
* 94.96% were from a Catholic Community Background;
* 3.64% were from a Protestant or Other Christian Community Background;
* The Average age of residents as 33;
* Population density was approximately 0.39 persons per hectare;
* 27.21% had degree level or higher qualifications;
* 64.29% were economically active, 41.0% were economically inactive;
* 5.7% were unemployed;
* 16.7% of people had a limiting long-term illness, health problem or disability;
* 11.6% of the population provided unpaid care to family, friends, neighbours or others;
* 84% of people stated that their general health was good;
* 86.79% of dwellings were owner occupied and 10.3% were rented;
* 44.54% of dwellings were owned outright;
* 8.48 of households were lone pensioner households;
* 8.97% of households were lone parent households with dependent children; and
* The average household size was 3.14.

More recent statistical surveys of the area have revealed that among the townland's inhabitants:
* 10.7% of persons aged 18–59 were claiming Income Support;
* 11.4% of persons aged 16–59/64 were claiming Incapacity Benefit; and
* 2.8% of persons aged 16+ were claiming Housing Benefit.

History

Early history

Aughanduff was probably first settled in the Bronze Age. No prehistoric remains of note appear to survive in the area, however, bar an undated site listed on the Northern Ireland Environment Agency's ''Monuments and Buildings'' Record. This is thought to have been an enclosure 60m in diameter, set on a localised height within the townland at Irish Grid Reference ''H9736023370''. Photographic records show a series of earthworks and although a field inspection in 2004 failed to locate upstanding remains, it is noted that the site would have been an excellent position for a settlement. The townland lies just over a mile (2 km) from An Aughnaclough mullion, where in 1815 the first, and reportedly most remarkable, megalith tomb in Ireland (subsequently destroyed) was discovered by Mr. John Bell of Newry. Several prehistoric stone structures have been found and documented in the area but many have been lost over the years. An example of such a structure was a ring fort named 'the Lis' which appears on the map of 1827 as being in the field adjacent to where the Church now stands, however this structure is no longer visible and must be presumed to have been destroyed.

The Middle Ages & Early Modern Period

Formed into the See of Armagh in the Early Christian period, Aughanduff and indeed the South Armagh region in which it lies acted as a buffer zone between the Gaelic Irish and expanding English pale throughout the Middle Ages into the early modern period with Roche and Moyry Castles lying in its immediate hinterland.

Despite its proximity to English settlement, the area remained under native control until the 17th century as part of the historic territory of Orior (from Irish 'Airthir' meaning 'Easterns') and was controlled by the O'Hanlon Sept chiefs from their stronghold at Loughgilly (the "lough of whiteness"). That Territory neighbored the Fews (from Irish 'An Fiodh' or 'the wood'), to the west, the Pale to the South, and the territories of the O'Neills of Tyrone to the North; and Aughanduff mountains formed part of the western boundary with the Fews.

The Tudor Reconquest and Plantation

The 16th century saw the Tudor Dublin Castle administration seek to expand the area under its direct control beyond the borders of the medieval Pale and reduce the power and influence of the native Gaelic Lords, in an effort which later became known as the Tudor conquest of Ireland. This strategy was to put the Crown in conflict with native chiefs as the former attempted to increase its influence at the expense of the latter, which lead to Shane O'Neill's rebellion in Ulster in the 1560s. Following the defeat of this effort, in 1569 the Dublin Parliament passed a statute confiscating the territories of a range of defeated Ulster chiefs and declared them forfeit to the Crown.

Included amongst these were "the countrey of Orry, called O’Hanlons country". Following this Act, the Dublin Castle administration pursued its first attempt at planting colonists in Ulster and on 5 October 1572, Queen Elizabeth I granted Captain Thomas Chatterton control of the territory of "Orior, the Fews and the Gllowglasses country", on condition that settlement be completed with various conditions attached by March 1579. Chatteron is said to have travelled from to Dundalk to take possession of his grant but failed to settle it and forfeit his grant to the crown, killed at the hands of the local O’Hanlon Chiefs soon after his grant was revoked in 1576. With no effective Dublin overlordship, Orior remained under the control of the O'Hanlons in 1594 at the beginning of the Nine Years' War.

Although it caused much destruction and upheaval in the area, and they changed sides during the war's course, the O’Hanlons retained control of Orior through the Nine Years' War and in the immediate aftermath of O'Neill's conditional capitulation and the signing of the articles of peace at Mellifont, Orior remained O’Hanlon territory. Increased control from Dublin Castle was a direct result of the war, however, and 1607 saw the flight of the earls and removal of the pinnacle of the native Gaelic power structure in the North. Ulster, in the immediate aftermath, was a tinderbox, with both the Dublin administration and native magnates wary and unsure of the strength andintentions of each other. Into this uneasy situation came the Lord of Innisowen's (Sir Cahir O’Doherty) rebellion of 1608, and although this began as a result of a local dispute with the Crown Governor of Derry it would prove to have wide-scale repercussions for Ulster. O’Doherty was brother-in-law of Oghy Óg O’Hanlon, son of Sir Eochaidh "Oghy" O’Hanlon, then chief of Orior, and the latter lead his followers in Orior to join the revolt. The Dublin Castle administration quickly succeeded in quelling the rebellion, and Orior was subject to much violence in "mopping up" operations. Although the Dublin Castle administration had been considering some form of plantation following the Nine Years' War, O’Doherty's rebellion seems to have convinced the Crown authorities, and indeed King James I himself, of the need for a much more large-scale plantation than had been envisaged previously so as to quell native power in Ulster for good.

It was against this backdrop that the plantation of Ulster was planned and carried out, and Aughanduff first enters the historical record in its own right. In October 1608, the first arrangements were made for Orior's plantation with Sir Oghy O’Hanlon selling his interests to Orior to the Crown in return for an annuity of £80 for life, and payment of his debts of £300. The Lord Deputy, Sir Arthur Chichester wrote that he had made "a good bargin for the king and a fair way for the plantation". In 1608, 1609, and then 1610, three "Commissions of Plantation" sat throughout the county and investigated the extent of existing land holdings and divisions in the area. From these, the commission's cartographer, Sir Josias Bodley drew the Barony Maps of County Armagh (which formed part of the ''Maps of the Escheated Counties in Ireland'', 1609), and it is on this map that Aughanduff is first recorded as a distinct district then existing in the county, although with the anachronistic name "Aghadamph."
As with the rest of Orior, Aughanduff was considered for allocation in the plantation but rather than being planted with English or Scotch servitors, Aughanduff (as well as nearby Maphoner) was awarded to Owen McHugh Mor O'Neill, a native of the County who was to be displaced from his family's ancestral territory of Toaghie, just outside modern day Tynan

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