Enniskillen

Time was, every British schoolchild was taught (though swiftly forgot) about the Battle of Herrings (1429) and War of Jenkins' Ear (from 1739). They never heard of the Battle of the Ford of the Biscuits (1594) though in a sense it continues to affect British and Irish identities. The northwest of Ireland was the last part to come under London control, and the Nine Years War was a Gaelic resurgence. An English column were marching to lift the siege of Enniskillen Castle, but were ambushed. They lost 56 killed, 69 wounded, wagonloads of biscuits, and their military reputation. Their losses would have been greater had the Irish pursued, instead of gorging themselves on the biscuits.

The castle fell to the besiegers and the garrison were massacred, but England in the long term prevailed. In the 17th century the Gaelic chieftains fled into exile, Derry was walled against future uprisings, and Ulster was colonised with loyal Protestant settlers. Enniskillen became a garrison town, guarding the land route between the two Erne lakes. Its castle was kept in good repair against future troubles, including Napoleonic France. By 1921 the land east of the River Erne was majority Protestant, the west was mixed. At Partition all of County Fermanagh became part of Northern Ireland, while Donegal, Cavan and Monaghan joined the nascent Republic. Enniskillen brooded over a divided community, and during "The Troubles" lay near the porous border. There were 11 deaths from the Troubles up to 1987, then a bomb at a Remembrance Day Parade killed 12; the last victim lay in a coma until 2000.

Industry and investment fled and has been slow to return with the peace accord. The silver lining is that there has been little industry or modern development, and the town retains its pleasant 19th-century appearance.

You'll see signage in Irish, but English is the universal language here.

Visitor information is based in the castle.

By road from Belfast take M1 onto A4, maybe 1 hour 40 min.

By road from Dublin take M3 / N3 through Cavan, becoming A509 at the border, and reckon just over two hours.

Goldline Express 261 runs from Belfast Grand Central via Lurgan and Dungannon, taking 2 hr 20 min. It's hourly M-F and every two hours Sa Su.

Bus Éireann 30 / X30 runs from Dublin Busaras and airport via Virginia and Cavan, taking 2 hr 40 min to Enniskillen, and continuing to Belleek, Ballyshannon and Donegal Town. It runs daily every couple of hours. Some buses run via Belturbet.

Bus Éireann 458 runs every couple of hours daily from Ballina to Enniscrone, Sligo, Glencar, Manorhamilton, Belcoo and Enniskillen.

Ulsterbus 94 takes just over an hour from Omagh. There are six M-F, two Sa and one Sunday.

Ulsterbus 95 takes an hour from Clones via Lisnaskea. There are five M-F and three Saturday.

Ulsterbus 194 (a-j) runs north 3-4 times M-Sa to the hospital, Ballinamallard, Irvinestown, Lisnarick and Kesh, with one bus a day continuing to Pettigo and Ballyshannon.

1 Enniskillen bus station is on Wellington Road in town centre.

Enniskillen is on the navigable River Erne, linked by waterways to the rest of Ireland. With your own boat you could even get here from Dublin, Waterford, Limerick and Athlone, but there are limits on how far you may take a hired boat.