The Commissioners of Irish Lights ( ga, Coimisinéirí Soilse na hÉireann), often shortened to Irish Lights or CIL, is the body that serves as the
general lighthouse authority
A general lighthouse authority (GLA) is one of three agencies primarily responsible for aids to navigation in the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland. They are divided into regions as follows:
*Trinity House: England & Wales, Channel Island ...
for
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
and the
Republic of Ireland
Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island. A ...
and their adjacent seas and
island
An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...
s. As the
lighthouse
A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid, for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways.
Lighthouses mar ...
authority for the island of
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
it oversees the coastal lights and navigation marks provided by the local lighthouse authorities, the county councils and port authorities.
It is funded by
light dues
Light dues are the charges levied on ships for the maintenance of lighthouses and other aids to navigation.
British Isles
Light dues are levied on commercial vessels and larger pleasure boats calling at ports in the British Isles and paid into the ...
paid by ships calling at ports in the
Republic of Ireland
Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island. A ...
, pooled with dues raised similarly in the United Kingdom. This recognizes that a large volume of shipping, typically
transatlantic
Transatlantic, Trans-Atlantic or TransAtlantic may refer to:
Film
* Transatlantic Pictures, a film production company from 1948 to 1950
* Transatlantic Enterprises, an American production company in the late 1970s
* ''Transatlantic'' (1931 film), ...
, relies on the lights provided by Irish Lights.
History
![Hook Head Lighthouse](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/32/Hook_Head_Lighthouse.jpg)
Signal fires to guide shipping have long existed.
Hook Head
Hook Head (), historically called Rindowan, is a headland in County Wexford, Ireland, on the east side of the estuary of The Three Sisters (Rivers Nore, Suir and Barrow). It is part of the Hook peninsula and is adjacent to the historic townla ...
has the oldest nearly continuous light in Ireland, originally a signal fire or beacon tended by the monk
Dubhán
Dubhán was a 5th-century Brittonic priest and pilgrim, for whom Hook Head (originally ''Rinn Dubháin'') is named.
Hagiography
According to tradition, Dubhán came from Wales to Ireland in 452 AD along with a group of his followers. Numerous ...
in the fifth century. Monks continued to maintain the light until the
Cromwellian conquest of Ireland
The Cromwellian conquest of Ireland or Cromwellian war in Ireland (1649–1653) was the re-conquest of Ireland by the forces of the English Parliament, led by Oliver Cromwell, during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. Cromwell invaded Ireland wi ...
in 1641.
King Charles II re-established the lighthouse in 1667. He granted a patent for the erection of six lighthouses to
Robert Reading
Sir Robert Reading, first and last Baronet Reading, (c. 1640 – c. March 1689) built several privately owned lighthouses in Ireland under letters patent from Charles II of England.
He was educated at Christ Church, Oxford, receiving a BA i ...
, some replacing older lighthouses, at
Hook Head
Hook Head (), historically called Rindowan, is a headland in County Wexford, Ireland, on the east side of the estuary of The Three Sisters (Rivers Nore, Suir and Barrow). It is part of the Hook peninsula and is adjacent to the historic townla ...
,
Baily Lighthouse at
Howth Head
Howth Head ( ; ''Ceann Bhinn Éadair'' in Irish) is a peninsula northeast of the city of Dublin in Ireland, within the governance of Fingal County Council. Entry to the headland is at Sutton while the village of Howth and the harbour are on t ...
, Howth sand-bar, Old Head of Kinsale, Barry Oge's castle (now
Charlesfort
The Charlesfort-Santa Elena Site is an important early colonial archaeological site on Parris Island, South Carolina. It contains the archaeological remains of a French settlement called Charlesfort, settled in 1562 and abandoned the following y ...
, near
Kinsale
Kinsale ( ; ) is a historic port and fishing town in County Cork, Ireland. Located approximately south of Cork City on the southeast coast near the Old Head of Kinsale, it sits at the mouth of the River Bandon, and has a population of 5,281 (a ...
), and the Isle of Magee.
In 1704
Queen Anne transferred the lighthouses around the Irish coast to the Revenue Commissioners.
The Commissioners of Irish Lights were established under an Act of the
Parliament of Ireland
The Parliament of Ireland ( ga, Parlaimint na hÉireann) was the legislature of the Lordship of Ireland, and later the Kingdom of Ireland, from 1297 until 1800. It was modelled on the Parliament of England and from 1537 comprised two chamb ...
passed in 1786 and entitled ''An Act for Promoting the Trade of Dublin, by rendering its Port and Harbour more commodious'' (26 Geo. III, c. xix). Lighthouses were not included until an 1810 Act of the Parliament of the
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was a sovereign state in the British Isles that existed between 1801 and 1922, when it included all of Ireland. It was established by the Acts of Union 1800, which merged the Kingdom of Great B ...
. These Acts, modified by the Irish Lights Commissioners (Adaptation) Order, 1935, remain the legislative basis for the CIL.
Irish Lights has moved its headquarters from
Dublin
Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...
to a purpose-built new building in Harbour Road,
Dún Laoghaire
Dún Laoghaire ( , ) is a suburban coastal town in Dublin in Ireland. It is the administrative centre of Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown.
The town was built following the 1816 legislation that allowed the building of a major port to serve Dubli ...
.
Ships
''Granuaile III''
The commissioners currently have only one light tender in service named . The hull was built at
Galați shipyard __NOTOC__
The Galați shipyard ( ro, Șantierul naval Galați), formally Damen Shipyards Galați, is a shipyard located on the Danube in Galați, a city located in the Moldavia region of Romania.
History Origins through communism
Shipbuilding is a ...
, Romania, in 2000 and fitted out at
Damen Shipyards
The Damen Group is a Dutch defence, shipbuilding, and engineering conglomerate company based in Gorinchem, Netherlands.
Though it is a major international group doing business in 120 countries, it remains a private family-owned company.
Dame ...
in the Netherlands. She is registered in
Dublin
Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...
and has a , has a length overall of 79.6 metres (261') and a beam of 15.99 metres (52'6"). She is the third vessel named Granuaile to have served the Commissioners. ''Granuaile II'' was in service between 1970 and 2000, and she was preceded by the first ''Granuaile'' from 1948 to 1970.
Because of the automation of lighthouses, and the extensive use of helicopters by the Commissioners, CIL now need only one tender in service. The ship has diesel-electric propulsion and is extremely manoeuvrable, and is therefore ideal for her role in maintaining the automatic navigation buoys in Irish waters. In 2003 she was involved in the recovery of the fishing boat ''Pisces'', which sank off
Fethard, County Wexford, in July 2002.
Other vessels
*''Princess Alexandra'' (1863–1904)
*''Tearaght'' (1892–1928) – see
Kingstown Lifeboat Disaster
The Kingstown lifeboat disaster occurred on Christmas Eve 1895 off Kingstown (now Dún Laoghaire), Ireland, when the Kingstown lifeboat was capsized while attempting to rescue the crew of the stricken SS ''Palme''. The crew of fifteen were lost. ...
*''Moya'' (1893–1905)
*''Ierne'' (1898–1954)
*''Alexandra'' (1904–1955)
*''Deirdre'' (1919–1927)
*''Nabro'' (1926–1949)
*''Isolda'' (1928–1940) (Sunk off the Saltee Islands
County Wexford
County Wexford ( ga, Contae Loch Garman) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Leinster and is part of the Southern Region. Named after the town of Wexford, it was based on the historic Gaelic territory of Hy Kinsella (''Uí Ceinns ...
by German aircraft)
*''Discovery II'' (1947–1948)
*''Valonia'' (1947–1962)
*''Granuaile'' (1948–1970)
*''Blaskbeg'' (1953–1955)
*''Isolda'' (1953–1976)
*''Ierne II'' (1955–1971)
*''Atlanta'' (1959–1988)
*''Granuaile II'' (1970–2000)
*''Gray Seal'' (1988–1994)
Flags
The Commissioners of Irish Lights is a cross-border body, with its headquarters in Dublin. The current flag of the Irish Lights features lightships and lighthouses between the arms of the
St. Patrick's Cross.
The
St. George's Cross was used until 1970.
CIL vessels in
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
fly the
Blue Ensign
The Blue Ensign is a flag, one of several British ensigns, used by certain organisations or territories associated or formerly associated with the United Kingdom. It is used either plain or Defacement (flag), defaced with a Heraldic badge, ...
defaced with the Commissioner's badge and those in the Republic fly the
Irish tricolour
The national flag of Ireland ( ga, bratach na hÉireann), frequently referred to in Ireland as 'the tricolour' () and elsewhere as the Irish tricolour is a vertical tricolour of green (at the hoist), white and orange. The proportions of the ...
.
Infrastructure
The CIL operate and maintain the majority of the
aids to navigation
Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual m ...
around the
Irish coastline. This includes 66 lighthouses, 20 beacons and over 100 buoys. It also operates more than 100
automatic identification system transmitters, and 24
radar beacon
Radar beacon (short: racon) is – according to ''article 1.103'' of the International Telecommunication Union's (ITU) ITU Radio Regulations (RR) – defined as "A transmitter-receiver associated with a fixed navigational mark which, when trig ...
s.
See also
*
Lighthouses in Ireland
This is a list of lighthouses in Ireland. The Commissioners of Irish Lights are responsible for the majority of marine navigation aids around the island though a small number are maintained by local harbour authorities. The main list identifie ...
*
Lightvessels in Ireland
References
External links
Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Commissioners Of Irish Lights
1786 establishments in Ireland
*
*
Lighthouse organizations
Dún Laoghaire
Water transport in Ireland
All-Ireland organisations
Department for Transport