I have been wondering if there is anyone who could enlighten me on a subject about which I have been curious for some time.

A few years ago I read an article which stated that until the year 1896 the coronation stone of the Irish chieftains, the O'Neills, was situated on the highest point of the Cavehill. The hill which is in north Belfast and overlooks Belfast Lough, across County Down to the Mourne mountains is, at its highest point, 1,142 feet above sea level. This would seem to be an ideal place to crown someone as chief of all he surveys.

The fact that there was once a private residence, which was named "The Throne" by its owner/builder and which later became the Throne hospital, built at the bottom of the hill seems to bear out the above claim.

My query is if this is a true story where is the stone now?

Do you know? if so please reply.

Responses

Green Eyes writes:

The inaugural throne of the O'Neills stood on Cavehill until 1896 when it was rolled over the summit by anti-Irish protesters and smashed to smithereens at the base. The residence named after it belonged to a Sir Samuel Ferguson and was subsequently a hospital/convalescent home. I got this info from an old book of anecdotes about Belfast 'As I Roved Out' by Cathal O'Byrne.

Colin Mc Kernon sent the following e-mail:

My mother in law remembers a german aircraft crashing into the Cave Hill overlooking Belfast in 1941. Do any others have a memory of this?
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