Not long ago, we had the pleasure of taking a British Isles cruise aboard Princess Cruise line’s Caribbean Princess. One of its many stops was the Northern Ireland city of Londonderry, or simply, “Derry,” as it’s called by many of the locals. The plan for our day’s adventure was a tour of the Walls of Derry.
The city as we see it today dates back to the early 1600s’, when the walls were constructed by a consortium of livery companies from London called The Honourable The Irish Society (nope, not a typo here. That’s what it’s called), or more simply, the Irish Society. The purpose of the walls was to protect Scottish and English settlers during what was a turbulent time for northern Ireland. Londonderry actually dates back much further than the construction of the walls, to the 6th century when a monastery was established by St. Columba. He is credited for spreading Christianity throughout much of Ireland and Scotland.
Today, you can walk the city’s wall and get a great overview on much of the rich history this town has to offer. Clearly, in a European city that has been continuously inhabited since the early 7th century, there’s a lot to see and do here.
Our ship docked in Belfast which is about an hour and twenty minutes by bus away from Derry. It took much of the day to see this city because of the travel times, but we were treated with some great views of the countryside of Northern Ireland along the way. Since we had only a day, a walk along the wall and a knowledgeable tour guide was just what we needed.
Here are a few images of our day at the Derry Wall.
