Carrickfergus Castle is a
Norman castle in
Northern Ireland, situated in the town of
Carrickfergus in
County Antrim, on the northern shore of
Belfast Lough. Besieged in turn by the
Scottish, Irish, English and French, the castle played an important military role until 1928 and remains one of the best preserved medieval structures in Northern Ireland. It was strategically useful, with 3/4 of the castle perimeter surrounded by water (although in modern times only 1/3 is surrounded by water due to
land reclamation). Today it is maintained by the
Northern Ireland Environment Agency as a state care historic monument, at grid ref: J4143 8725.