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Ballycraigy () is a
Ballycraigy () is a townland
A townland ( ga, baile fearainn; Ulster-Scots: ''toonlann'') is a small geographical division of land, historically and currently used in Ireland and in the Western Isles in Scotland, typically covering . The townland system is of Gaelic orig ...
and housing estate
A housing estate (or sometimes housing complex or housing development) is a group of homes and other buildings built together as a single development. The exact form may vary from country to country.
Popular throughout the United States ...
in Antrim town, 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 ...
. According to the census for Ballycraigy ward the estate has approximately 865 residents.
The Ballycraigy estate is almost wholly Protestant
Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...
, and the estate is associated with Ulster loyalism
Ulster loyalism is a strand of Ulster unionism associated with working class Ulster Protestants in Northern Ireland. Like other unionists, loyalists support the continued existence of Northern Ireland within the United Kingdom, and oppose a u ...
. Ballycraigy has its own loyalist marching band, "Ballycraigy Sons of Ulster
Ulster (; ga, Ulaidh or ''Cúige Uladh'' ; sco, label= Ulster Scots, Ulstèr or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional Irish provinces. It is made up of nine counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United Kin ...
", with purple/lilac attire for their uniform. Every Eleventh of July, many Protestants celebrate by lighting a bonfire in the centre of the estate. In 2007 there was a legal threat over the inclusion of hundreds of tyres in the bonfire with the fear that excessive toxic fumes would be emitted; however it was not possible to establish who had been involved in placing them there, and the bonfire was allowed to go ahead.
On the Ballycraigy estate is a memorial garden dedicated to Billy Wright, leader of the Loyalist Volunteer Force
The Loyalist Volunteer Force (LVF) is a small Ulster loyalist paramilitary group in Northern Ireland. It was formed by Billy Wright in 1996 when he and his unit split from the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) after breaking its ceasefire. Most of ...
paramilitary organisation.
There are two other townlands named Ballycraigy in County Antrim. One is in Larne
Larne (, , the name of a Gaelic territory) is a town on the east coast of County Antrim, Northern Ireland, with a population of 18,755 at the 2011 Census. It is a major passenger and freight roll-on roll-off port. Larne is administered by Mid ...
and is the site of Ballycraigy Manor, a country house with a tower and battlements built in 1869, the residence of James Chaine
James Chaine (1841 – 4 May 1885) was an Irish shipping businessman and a Conservative PartyWalker, p. 249. politician from County Antrim in Ulster.
The son of James Chaine of Ballycraigy and his wife, Maria (née Whittle), from Antrim, he was ...
, a businessman involved in shipping and a Conservative Party politician. The other is in the parish of Carnmoney
Carnmoney () is the name of a townland (of 456 acres), electoral ward and a civil parish in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. Carnmoney is within the urban area of Newtownabbey, in the Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council area. It lies from B ...
.
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