Diocesan News
Donaghadee Parish Church to celebrate 400th Anniversary
On Sunday 1 March 2026, Donaghadee Parish Church will embark on a year of celebrations with a 400th Anniversary Thanksgiving Service at which Archbishop John McDowell will be the guest preacher. All are welcome at the service which begins at 10.30am.
Monday 2 March 2026 will also be a very special occasion with the launch of a specially commissioned history of the church which stands sentinel over the town of Donaghadee. The town is famed for its historic harbour, its lighthouse and its views across the waves to Scotland and beyond to the Hills of Galloway.
With contributions from its present rector the Revd Ian Gamble, Tom Neill’s book recounts the history of the Parish Church up to the present against the background of some fifteen centuries since the first Christian settlement in Donaghadee.
You are warmly invited to the book launch in Donaghadee Parish Church Monday 2 March 2026 at 7.30pm with refreshments afterwards.
The church
Looking at Donaghadee from the sea, it is the imposing tower of Donaghadee Parish Church which immediately catches your eye. The town is marked by three towers: one on the Moat, the imposing “tower” of Donaghadee Light House and the Church tower.
Each tells a different story – from the Norman invasion to the development of the harbour as the commercial gateway to Ulster. The building we know today as Donaghadee Parish Church has stood as a witness to these events, its history stretching all the way back to the time of the evangelization of Ireland.
The parish church stands on a hill, on what is thought to be an ancient site of worship. Without doubt, the church building has ancient foundations.
The Donaghadee Parish Church was rebuilt in 1626 by Viscount Montgomery and extended in 1881. In 2011 a major building restoration and internal liturgical renewal took place. The parish church has through the centuries provided a place were Almighty God is worshipped and his name proclaimed.
You are warmly invited to the book launch in Donaghadee Parish Church Monday 2 March 2026 at 7.30pm with refreshments afterwards.
For further information please contact:
Diocesan Communications Officer, Down & Dromore
07840 006899
Mrs Annette McGrath
[email protected]