County Armagh in the context of Provinces of Ireland

Northern Ireland is divided into six counties, namely Antrim, Armagh, Down, Fermanagh, Londonderry and Tyrone. Six largely rural administrative counties based on these were among the eight primary local government areas of Northern Ireland from its 1921 creation until 1973. The other two local government areas were the urban county boroughs of Derry (geographically part of the County of Londonderry) and Belfast (geographically split between the counties of Antrim and Down).

The six counties date from the Kingdom of Ireland; five were created between 1570 and 1591 in the Tudor conquest of Ireland, while county Londonderry dates from 1613 and the Plantation of Ulster. The total number of counties in the island of Ireland is 32, with Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland often respectively called "the Six Counties" and "the Twenty-Six Counties", especially by Irish nationalists opposed to the partition of Ireland. The 1898–1973 administrative counties were subdivided into county districts. The two-tier county/district system was replaced with a single-tier of "districts", numbering 26 in 1973 and rationalised into 11 in 2015. The areas corresponding to the six counties and two county boroughs remain in use for some administrative purposes, and the six historic counties retain a popular identity.

The Plantation of Ulster (Irish: Plandáil Uladh; Ulster Scots: Plantin o Ulstèr) was the organised colonisation (plantation) of Ulster – a province of Ireland – by people from Great Britain during the reign of King James VI and I.

Small privately funded plantations by wealthy landowners began in 1606, while the official plantation began in 1609. Most of the land had been confiscated from the native Gaelic chiefs, several of whom had fled Ireland for mainland Europe in 1607 following the Nine Years' War against English rule. The official plantation comprised an estimated half a million acres (2,000 km) of arable land in counties Armagh, Cavan, Fermanagh, Tyrone, Donegal, and Londonderry. Land in counties Antrim, Down, and Monaghan was privately colonised with the king's support.

Newry (/ˈnjʊəri/; from Irish An Iúraigh) is a city in Northern Ireland, standing on the Clanrye river in counties Down and Armagh. It is near the border with the Republic of Ireland, on the main route between Belfast (34 miles/55 km away) and Dublin (67 miles/108 km away). The population was 27,913 in 2021.

Newry was founded in 1144 as a settlement around a Cistercian abbey. In the 16th century the English dissolved the abbey and built Bagenal's Castle on the site. Newry grew as a market town and a garrison, and became a port in 1742 when the Newry Canal was opened, the first summit-level canal in Ireland. A cathedral city, it is the episcopal seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Dromore. In 2002, as part of the Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II, Newry was granted city status along with Lisburn.

County Down (Irish: Contae an Dúin) is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. It covers an area of 961 sq mi (2,490 km) and has a population of 552,261. It borders County Antrim to the north, the Irish Sea to the east, County Armagh to the west, and County Louth across Carlingford Lough to the southwest.

In the east of the county is Strangford Lough and the Ards Peninsula. The largest settlement is Bangor, a city on the northeast coast. Three other large towns and cities are on its border: Newry lies on the western border with County Armagh. Lisburn and Belfast lie on the northern border with County Antrim. Down contains the southernmost point of Northern Ireland (Cranfield Point) and the easternmost point of Ireland (Burr Point).

The Loyal Orange Institution, commonly known as the Orange Order, is an international Protestant fraternal order based in Northern Ireland and primarily associated with Ulster Protestants. It also has lodges in England, Scotland, Wales and the Republic of Ireland, as well as in parts of the Commonwealth of Nations and the United States. Queen Elizabeth II disapproved of Orange marches, calling it "silly marching business".

The Orange Order was founded by Ulster Protestants in County Armagh in 1795, during a period of Protestant–Catholic sectarian conflict, as a fraternity sworn to maintain the Protestant Ascendancy in Ireland. The all-island Grand Orange Lodge of Ireland was established in 1798. Its name is a tribute to the Dutch-born Protestant king William of Orange, who defeated the Catholic English king James II in the Williamite–Jacobite War (1689–1691). The Order is best known for its yearly marches, the biggest of which are held on or around 12 July (The Twelfth), a public holiday in Northern Ireland.

The Armagh disturbances was a period of intense sectarian fighting in the 1780s and 1790s between the Ulster Protestant Peep o' Day Boys and the Roman Catholic Defenders, in County Armagh, Kingdom of Ireland, culminating in the Battle of the Diamond in 1795.

Armagh (/ɑːrˈmɑː/ ar-MAH; Irish: Ard Mhacha, IPA: [ˌaːɾˠd̪ˠ ˈwaxə], "Macha's height") is a city and the county town of County Armagh, in Northern Ireland, as well as a civil parish. It is the ecclesiastical capital of Ireland – the seat of the Archbishops of Armagh, the Primates of All Ireland for both the Roman Catholic Church and the Church of Ireland. In ancient times, nearby Navan Fort (Eamhain Mhacha) was a pagan ceremonial site and one of the great royal capitals of Gaelic Ireland. Today, Armagh is home to two cathedrals (both named after Saint Patrick) and the Armagh Observatory, and is known for its Georgian architecture.

Statistically classed as a medium-sized town by NISRA, Armagh was given city status in 1994 and Lord Mayoralty status in 2012. It had a population of 16,310 people in the 2021 Census.

The River Blackwater (Irish: An Abhainn Mhór) or Ulster Blackwater is a river mainly in County Armagh and County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. Its source is to the north of Fivemiletown, County Tyrone. The river divides County Armagh from County Tyrone and also divides County Tyrone from County Monaghan, making it part of the border between the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland.

54°31′01″N 6°33′04″W / 54.517°N 6.551°W / 54.517; -6.551

Coney Island is an island in Lough Neagh, Northern Ireland. It is about 1 km offshore from Maghery in County Armagh, is thickly wooded and of nearly 9 acres (36,000 m) in area. It lies between the mouths of the River Blackwater and the River Bann in the south-west corner of Lough Neagh. Boat trips to the island are available at weekends from Maghery Country Park or Kinnego Marina. The island is owned by the National Trust and managed on their behalf by Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council. Coney Island Flat is a rocky outcrop adjacent to the island. Although Samuel Lewis called Coney Island the only island in County Armagh, Armagh's section of Lough Neagh also includes Croaghan Island, as well as the marginal cases of Padian and Derrywarragh Island.

Derrywarragh Island is a boulder clay island on Lough Neagh, Northern Ireland. It is linked by a bridge to Maghery, County Armagh. The island is approximately 13 kilometres (8 mi) northwest of Portadown. Most of the island is wet grassland. There are also areas of wet woodland, marshes and swamps. The island is also regularly the home of wintering and breeding birds.

Irish traditional music (also known as Irish trad, Irish folk music, and other variants) is a genre of folk music that developed in Ireland.

In A History of Irish Music (1905), W. H. Grattan Flood wrote that, in Gaelic Ireland, there were at least ten instruments in general use. These were the crwth (a small rubbed strings harp) and cláirseach (a bigger harp with typically 30 strings), the tiompán (a small string instrument played with a bow or plectrum), the feadán (a fife), the buinne (an oboe or flute), the guthbuinne (a bassoon-type horn), the beannbhuabhal and corn (hornpipes), the cuislenna (bagpipes – see Great Irish warpipes), the stoc and storgán (clarions or trumpets), and the cnámha (bones). Within the tradition, there is poetic reference to the use of a fiddle as far back as the 7th century, which predates the development of the modern violin by around 900 years.

County Louth (/laʊð/ LOWDH; Irish: Contae Lú) is a coastal county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Ireland, within the province of Leinster. Louth is bordered by the counties of Meath to the south, Monaghan to the west, Armagh to the north and Down to the north-east, across Carlingford Lough. It is the smallest county in Ireland by land area and the 17th most populous, with just over 139,100 residents as of 2022. The county is named after the village of Louth. Louth County Council is the local authority for the county.

Lurgan (from Irish An Lorgain, meaning 'the long low ridge') is a town in County Armagh, Northern Ireland, near the southern shore of Lough Neagh and roughly 18 miles (29 km) southwest of Belfast. The town is linked to Belfast by both the M1 motorway and the Belfast–Dublin railway line. Lurgan had a population of 38,198 at the 2021 UK census, and falls within the Armagh, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough. For certain purposes, Lurgan is treated as part of the "Craigavon Urban Area", along with neighbouring Craigavon and Portadown.

Lurgan is typical of many Plantation of Ulster settlements, with its straight and wide, planned streets, and is the home of a number of historic listed buildings, such as Brownlow House and Lurgan Town Hall. Lurgan Park is the largest urban park in Northern Ireland.

Portadown (from Irish Port an Dúnáin 'landing place of the little fort' pronounced [pɔɾˠt̪ˠ ə ˈd̪ˠuːnˠaːnʲ]) is a town in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. The town is based on the River Bann in the north of the county, about 24 miles (39 km) southwest of Belfast. It is in the Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council area and had a population of about 32,000 at the 2021 Census. For some purposes, Portadown is treated as part of the "Craigavon Urban Area", alongside Craigavon and Lurgan.

Although Portadown was founded during the early 17th century English Plantation of Ulster, it was not until the Victorian era and the arrival of the railway that it developed as a major town. It earned the nickname "hub of the North" because it was a major railway junction; here the Great Northern Railway's line diverged for Belfast, Dublin, Armagh and Derry. In the 19th and 20th centuries, Portadown was also a major centre for the production of textiles (mainly linen).

Craigavon (/kreɪˈɡævən/ kray-GAV-ən) is a town in north County Armagh, Northern Ireland. It was a planned settlement, begun in 1965, and named after the first Prime Minister of Northern Ireland: James Craig, 1st Viscount Craigavon. It was intended to be the heart of a new linear city incorporating Lurgan and Portadown, but this plan was mostly abandoned and later described as having been flawed. Locally, "Craigavon" refers to the urban area between the two towns. It is built beside a pair of artificial lakes and is made up of a large residential area (Brownlow), a second smaller one (Mandeville), plus a central area (Highfield) that includes a substantial shopping centre, a courthouse and the district council headquarters. The area around the lakes is a public park and wildlife haven made up of woodland with walking trails. There is also a watersports centre, golf course and ski slope in the area. In most of Craigavon, motor vehicles are completely separated from pedestrians, and roundabouts are used extensively. It hosted the headquarters of the former Craigavon Borough Council.

Craigavon sometimes refers to the much larger Craigavon Urban Area, a name used by the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency, which includes Craigavon, Lurgan, Portadown and Aghacommon.

Tír Eoghain (meaning Land of Eoghan), also known as Tyrone, was a kingdom and later earldom of Gaelic Ireland, comprising parts of present-day County Tyrone, County Armagh, County Londonderry and County Donegal (Raphoe). The kingdom represented the core homeland of the Cenél nEógain people of the Northern Uí Néill and although they ruled, there were smaller groups of other Gaels in the area. One part of the realm to the north-east broke away and expanded, becoming Clandeboye, ruled by a scion branch of the O'Neill dynasty. In one form or another, Tyrone existed for over a millennium. Its main capital was Dungannon, though kings were inaugurated at Tullyhogue Fort.

Upon its foundation in the 5th century, Tyrone was a sub-kingdom of the larger Aileach, which represented the powerbase of the Uí Néill (descendants of Niall of the Nine Hostages) in the north of Ireland. The territory of Eoghan mac Néill was initially based in Inishowen and expanded out from there under his descendants. Periodically, during the time of Aileach, the leaders of Tyrone established themselves as High Kings of Ireland, providing in total of thirteen High Kings from the 6th to the 10th centuries. The first was Muirchertach mac Muiredaig and the last from this period was Domnall ua Néill. Three later Tyrone claimants to the High Kingship were Domnall Ua Lochlainn and Muirchertach Mac Lochlainn in 12th century and finally Brian Chatha an Dúna O'Neill in the 13th century.

The Peep o' Day Boys was an agrarian sectarian Protestant association in 18th-century Ireland. Originally noted as being an agrarian society around 1779–80, from 1785 it became the Protestant component of the sectarian conflict that emerged in County Armagh, their rivals being the Catholic Defenders. After the Battle of the Diamond in 1795, where an offshoot of the Peep o' Day Boys known as the Orange Boys defeated a force of Defenders, the Orange Order was instituted, and whilst repudiating the activities of the Peep o' Day Boys, they quickly superseded them. The Orange Order would blame the Peep o' Day Boys for "the Armagh outrages" that followed the battle.