Belvelly () is a small village on the northern end of the
Great Island
Great Island () is an island in Cork Harbour, at the mouth of the River Lee and close to the city of Cork, Ireland. The largest town on the island is Cobh (called Queenstown from 1849 to 1922). The island's economic and social history has hist ...
of
Cork Harbour
Cork Harbour () is a natural harbour and river estuary at the mouth of the River Lee in County Cork, Ireland. It is one of several which lay claim to the title of "second largest natural harbour in the world by navigational area" (after Port Ja ...
, about four miles north of the town of
Cobh,
County Cork
County Cork ( ga, Contae Chorcaí) is the largest and the southernmost county of Ireland, named after the city of Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. Its largest market towns a ...
,
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 ...
. Belvelly is situated at the shortest crossing point between Great Island and the neighbouring
Fota Island
Fota (statutory spelling Foaty; ga, Fóite) is an island in Cork Harbour, Ireland, just north of the larger island of Great Island. Fota Island is host to Ireland's only wildlife park – as well as the historical Fota House and gardens and go ...
. Belvelly Bridge (built in 1803) connects Great Island to Fota Island, which is in turn connected to the mainland near
Carrigtwohill
Carrigtwohill, officially Carrigtohill (), is a town in County Cork, Ireland with a population of 5,080 (2016). It is 12 kilometres east of Cork city. It is connected to Cork Suburban Rail and is bypassed by the N25 road. Carrigtwohill is on ...
.
The village has a number of historic buildings;
Belvelly Castle, Belvelly
Martello Tower
Martello towers, sometimes known simply as Martellos, are small defensive forts that were built across the British Empire during the 19th century, from the time of the French Revolutionary Wars onwards. Most were coastal forts.
They stand u ...
and a nineteenth century red-brick school house. The castle was built by the Hodnett family around the 15th century to the annoyance of the more powerful
de Barry family
The de Barry family is a noble family of Cambro-Norman origins which held extensive land holdings in Wales and Ireland. The founder of the family was a Norman Knight, Odo, who assisted in the Norman Conquest of England during the 11th century. ...
, who later seized the castle.
The three primary buildings at Belvelly have now been converted into dwellings. The schoolhouse at Belvelly was converted into a dwelling in 1990s, while the castle and the Martello tower were converted into family homes during the early 21st century.
Because of the walls and its status as a historical monument, limited structural changes could be made to the Martello tower, with most light coming from the roof area. The restoration of Belvelly castle included the construction of new perimeter walls and a separate garage.
See also
*
List of towns and villages in Ireland
References
External links
*
{{coord, 51, 53, N, 8, 18, W, display=title, region:IE_type:city_source:GNS-enwiki
Towns and villages in County Cork