History Of Moira

A comprehensive history of a small village in County Down with a tremendous heritage. It includes articles, historic and recent photographs and a simplified version adapted for school children. Learn about the Rawdons and nobles associated with Moira. .

I am David McFarland and have an interest in most aspects of the history of Moira.

In Moira, we are at the heart of some of the most amazing history. This small village has had an enormous impact on social, political, religious and military life in Ireland, the United Kingdom and across the world. Where we live, play and work was once a place where Kings and warriors fought, where Knights and Earls had their magnificent homes; where the children of nobility played. Moira has important links to the Siege of Derry and the Battle of the Boyne and other violent events in Ireland’s history. A lad who ran in these meadows was a hero in the American war of Independence and another was largely responsible for the establishing of Central India as part of the British Empire.

But Moira is also a place where a host of ordinary folk, just like us, lived and worked and died. Here were hard-working people who toiled in their homes and in the fields and quarries of the district to raise their families. Some battled through the most extreme poverty and endured terribly difficult times, religiously, politically and socially. They have left a legacy of a special village for us to experience and enjoy and preserve.