Knockagh Monument

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The Knockagh Monument is a War memorial in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is located top of Knockagh Hill, above the village of Greenisland with a panoramic view of the city of Belfast.

The site is 935 feet (300m) above sea level^[1] and is the largest war memorial in Ulster.^[1] The monument is a 110 foot high obelisk and is a replica of the Wellington Monument in Phoenix Park, Dublin although is exactly half the height.^[1]

A committee was set up with Mr Henry Barton, the High Sheriff of County Antrim, as secretary to raise £25,000 to erect an obelisk in local basalt, with bronze panels listing the names of all those from Co. Antrim who had died in the Great War.^[2] The foundation stone was laid on Saturday, 7th October, 1922, but financial difficulties delayed work for a decade. Following Mr Barton's death in 1935, Antrim Rural District Council were asked to adopt the monument and oversee its completion.^[2]. It was eventually completed in 1936.

The Monument's inscription was adapted from the hymn “0 Valiant Hearts" by John S. Arkwright. It reads:

“NOBLY YOU FOUGHT, YOUR KNIGHTLY VIRTUE PROVED
YOUR MEMORY HALLOWED IN THE LAND YOU LOVED.”

Following the Second World War the memorial was dedicated to the fallen of both wars. It was refurbished in 1985 and again in 2006 with all the Local Councils in County Antrim contributing £1,500 to the total cost of £50,000 of work.^[2] On Sunday 5th November 2006, the refurbished memorial was unveiled by the Lord Lieutenant of County Antrim, Lord O’Neill and rededicated by Rev. Canon E. J. Moore, T.D., M.A.