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INTRODUCTION

How to get there

The Isle of Man Steam Packet Company has regular sailings from Heysham, Liverpool and Birkenhead to Douglas, and from Belfast and Dublin to Douglas (summer service and the Christmas holiday period only). Car parking is available at the dock.

For details of timetables and fares consult the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company (tel: 08705 523 523 www.steam-packet.com).

 All boats are drive on/off car ferries

 Bicycles are transported free

 Dogs are allowed, and a dedicated area of the lounge is set aside

 Trailer caravans are not permitted on the island without a permit. Self-propelled motor caravans are welcome, as are tenting campers.

By air there is a daily service to Ronaldsway from the following airports: Belfast, Birmingham, Dublin, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Liverpool, London City, London Gat­wick, London Luton, Manchester and Newcastle. Note: there is no service into London Heathrow.

The coastal footpath is within a mile of the island’s airport (tel: 01624 821600; www.iomguide.com).

The Sea Cat arrives at Douglas harbour

The best time to walk

Everyone hopes for good weather, and you can increase your chances to some extent by looking at the past meteorological reports (see also ‘Climate’, below). May and June stand out as the months with a good sunshine average and little rainfall. The holiday season begins in June and is virtually over by mid-September, yet in the middle of the season I met very few people on the footpath, except around the Sound Cafe where tourists were taking the air within sight of the car park. Most walkers that I met were Manx and were pleased to see a ‘foreigner’ enjoying their coastline.

Spring brings flowers to the glens and migrant birds to the beaches. Late summer glows with the dwarf gorse in flower, heather in bloom and sunsets on the west coast that make an extra amble around in the twilight worthwhile.

If there is a time of year to avoid it is late May, early June and early September: the weeks of the motorcycle and car rallies. At these times the ferries, accommodation and campsites are fully booked. The closure of roads for these and other events does not inconvenience the Raad ny Foillan walker, but the Millennium Way and the Herring Way will be affected.

A provisional list of events for the year is published by the Isle of Man Department of Tourism and Leisure (tel: 01624 686766; www.visitisleofman.com; IOM Met Office Weather Check: 0900 624 320).

Accommodation

Current lists of hotels, bed and breakfast, hostel accommodation and campsites are available from the Department of Tourism and Leisure. They have prepared a list of accommodation near Raad ny Foillan specially for the walker (see Appendix D: IOM Coastal Footpath accommodation list).

There are commercial walking companies that will arrange your accommodation and transfer luggage for a self-guided walking tour. Visit www.macsadventure.com; www.celtictrailswalkingholidays.co.uk or www.isleofmanwalkingholidays.co.uk.

Campervans and motorhomes are welcome all year round but caravans require a valid permit from the Department of Infrastructure. To obtain one submit an e-mail to caravan@gov.im including dates of arrival and departure, purpose of visit and where the caravan will be sited. Permits are issued only for events, staying up to three weeks on an approved campsite.

Parking

If you have a vehicle obtain a free parking disc from the Welcome Centre at the Sea Terminal, or on the Steam Packet ferry. These are also available from Post Offices throughout the island.

Public transport

Tel: 01624 662525; www.visitisleofman.com; www.gov.im/categories/travel-traffic-and-motoring/bus-and-rail/. Journey planner and timetables tel: 01624 662525.

The Isle of Man is well served with public transport. Bus routes, an electric railway and a steam railway cover the island.

The Isle of Man Passenger Transport publishes a booklet of official timetables that is available from the Information Bureau at the Douglas Sea Terminal, at any bus terminal, and at local Tourist or Commissioners’ Information Offices. It is useful to obtain this timetable before planning your trip as, for example, the circular routes from Ramsey via Jurby, Bride, Smeale, Andreas and Jurby may influence your choice of accommodation.

The Manx Electric Railway is a familiar sight

Tickets described as ‘inter-available’ can be purchased for bus, train and tram travel. These can be bought from retail transport shops in Douglas, Peel, Port Erin and Ramsey, or you can pay on the bus in the usual manner. Explorer tickets may be purchased on the island or in advance for unlimited travel by bus or train for one, three, five or seven consecutive days.

The steam train runs from Douglas (Bank Hill Station is at the southern end of the harbour) to Port Erin. The whole line is within easy reach of Raad ny Foillan. Stations along the line are: Port Soderick, Santon (by request), Ballasalla, Ronaldsway (by request), Castletown, Port St Mary, Port Erin. Trains run from March until November.

The electric railway runs from Douglas (Derby Castle Terminus is at the northern end of the promenade) to Ramsey. There are numerous request halts along the way, the main ones being Groudle, Baldrine, South Cape, Laxey, Dhoon, Ballaglass, Ballajora and Ramsey. The electric railway runs from March to November.

From Laxey Station the Snaefell Mountain Railway makes the journey to the summit from March until November.

Bus services are more frequent in summer, May–September, when numerous routes criss-cross the island. All the towns and large villages are on a bus route, and special services run in the summer to Cregneash and The Sound from Port Erin.

There is another form of public transport which you may find irresistible if you have blisters on the last lap – the horse-drawn trams clip-clopping their way along Douglas promenade!

Horse-drawn tram on Douglas promenade

Climate

The climate of the Isle of Man can be summed up as being milder than that of its UK neighbours. The influence of the surrounding relatively warm sea is the major factor. In winter the temperatures seldom fall below freezing. The 42 degrees isotherm, after passing through the Isle of Wight, swings northward to capture the Isle of Man. In summer the sea exerts a cooling influence and the island enjoys the pleasant gap between the 58 degrees and 60 degrees isotherms. The annual amount of rainfall on the coastline is 30–40ins per year, most of this falling in the winter months. As can be expected, it is heavier on the mountains. The wind often lifts the clouds over the coastline, leaving it dry, while inland the hills are swathed in cloud. The prevailing wind is south-west. This is a consideration in planning your route. If you tackle the walk clockwise the length of the west coast will put any breeze at your back, then as you turn the Point of Ayre to come south the cliffs and mountains will provide shelter.

Another facet of the weather is the sea mist. The air over the sea can be saturated with water vapour. A drop of only one degree in temperature can result in the condensation of suspended vapour causing mist in the surrounding air. Thus mist can roll in from the sea with little warning. Douglas can be covered in mist while the rest of the island is bathed in sunshine.

The Isle of Man has an excellent bonus to offer. The clean air of the island supports 500 varieties of lichens to testify to its purity.

Tides and times

Isle of Man Coastguard, tel: 01624 661664

The sea makes such a major contribution to Raad ny Foillan that it is to your advantage to learn a little about its ways. Things that seem obvious and familiar to those fortunate enough to live near the sea may be amusing, but could soon become alarming to those who make the odd visit to the sea and are not familiar with its various moods.

The tide flows up the Irish Sea in a northerly direction, bending round the Point of Ayre to take an easterly direction along the Galloway coast. The ebb flows at 2½ knots from Galloway south back down the Irish Sea.

The tidal flow reaches Liverpool at roughly the same time as the Isle of Man, the tidal differences in time and height on Liverpool being shown in the table on the folowing page.

The times and heights of the tides for Standard Port – Liverpool can be found easily in the national daily newspapers or by studying one of the nautical almanacs.

Ballaugh Beach and Jurby Head

The tidal stream changes direction every six hours. The ebb usually runs longer than six hours, while the flood runs slightly less than six hours, low tide being 6hr 10mins after high tide. This results in advancing the time of high water and low water by ¾hr every 24 hours.

At Point of Ayre: beyond the foghorn the tide race is in full ebb

The strength of the tidal stream varies daily because of the position of the moon. The tide height and range is greatest at spring tides. Spring tides occur two days after new and full moons; neap tides fortnightly halfway between spring tides, two days after the first and last quarters of the moon. Spring tide height at Liverpool (MHWS 9.3m) is considered high at 9 metres but twice a year makes 10 metres. This is a result of the influence of the sun and the moon, and occurs at the vernal equinox (21 March) and the autumnal equinox (21 September). The tide races at The Sound and Point of Ayre run at 3–3.5 knots.

Another feature of interest to walkers on Raad ny Foillan is the influence the wind has on the height of the waves. I had heard of freak waves arriving from nowhere, but had never fully appreciated the extra wave height generated even by a modest breeze. The following chart will help you gauge the height of the waves on the sea and the extra amount of water they may throw at you above the normal high tide. I cannot resist the fascination of waves dashing over the rocks and exploding against the cliffs, a real bonus to be enjoyed in bad weather – from a safe distance, of course.

Maps and compasses

The maps in this guide are sufficient to enable you to walk Raad ny Foillan, but you will need to step off the route from time to time. A map of the island will help you to obtain the maximum enjoyment, replenish your supplies and be sure of your nearest point of help in an emergency. Along with the map you may need to take a compass (and know how to use it).

The Isle of Man Outdoor Leisure Maps North and South (3rd digital edition) show Raad ny Foillan and the shorter footpaths, the Millennium Way, Bayr ny Skeddan and the the Heritage Trail (10½ miles from Douglas to Peel along the route of the old railway), at a scale of 1:25,000. They are wonderful maps for detail that you can enjoy in your armchair afterwards. Almost every cove and headland is named, every field drawn and places of historical interest identified. The contour lines, imaginary lines passing through all places of equal height, are at 100ft intervals. For copies email mapping@dlge.gov.im or write to Cartographic Section, DLGE, Murray House, Mount Havelock, Douglas, Isle of Man IM1 2SF.

By roughly orientating the map you will be able to identify the mountains and surrounding countryside. The top of the map is north. Place your compass on one of the vertical grid lines on your map and rotate the map until the grid line is parallel with the compass needle.

This method is approximate and is not good enough if you are enveloped suddenly by a thick mist. In this case:

 Place your compass on the map with the rotating capsule turned so that the north arrow on the dial is in its correct position at 0 (or 360 degrees), with the whole compass pointing north to the top of the map. The grid lines will help you to do this.

 Slowly rotate the map keeping the compass firmly in place, still pointing to the top of the map (north), until the compass needle swings and points to the magnetic north which is 3 deg. 10 mins. west of true north (2003). Your map is now set and you should be able to follow the desired direction.

The Ordnance Survey map of the Isle of Man – Landranger 1:50,000 sheet No.95 – is a revised issue 2016, but the marking of the three long-distance footpaths lacks detail.

The miners’ packhorse bridge over the infant Sulby river

Geology

If you have no interest in geology when you begin Raad ny Foillan you are sure to have your interest aroused in the first few miles. If you have a general basic knowledge, you will become excited at the strata on view. If you are a geologist you will be continually left behind and will have to restrain yourself from loading yourself and your companions with samples! As you progress from Douglas clockwise round the island you will be introduced to rocks from the very oldest to the most recent at the Point of Ayre, then as you move down the east coast you will be able to recognise them again as old friends.

Contorted strata in an isolated bay below the Marine Drive at The Whing

The Isle of Man has few crags inland, but the stone used in the old local walls and buildings, and the vegetation cover, will give you clues to the nature of the underlying rocks. At the coast, however, the rock strata is exposed, washed and ready for inspection.

The Isle of Man is part of the Irish Sea horst. In layman’s terms a horst is a ridge pushed up between two great faults (cracks in the earth). In Cambro-Ordovician times, layers of muds and silts known as the Manx or Barrule slates were deposited. Movements in the earth’s crust caused subsidence, which was followed by marine deposition, when the carboniferous limestones were deposited. Next was a period of uplift and folding. The movement produced the Irish Sea horst, the plateau-like area. This horst extends from Ireland to the English Lake District, the Isle of Man being the central part protruding above the waters of the Irish Sea. The folded Barrule slates can be seen from the Marine Drive, where they give rise to magnificent coastal scenery. In the Tertiary period dykes (vertical cracks filled from below with molten basalt) occurred in profusion, cutting through the strata and resulting in sudden changes of colour and texture.

During the Ice Ages glaciers covered the island. As they moved south they carried with them large boulders from Scotland, which were subsequently deposited as erratics. Many of these have been used in buildings. As the glaciers crossed the sea they scooped up and carried marine deposits from the sea bed. As the ice melted, sands, gravels and boulder clays were abandoned. During its passage the ice planed away some areas of the Manx slates to expose the underlying granite.

Fine examples of slates, flags and dykes are found on the coast north of Peel

In recent geological times raised beaches were formed in the north of the island. Accumulations of peat and blown sand are still in the process of settling, completing the geological picture of the island for you to examine at close quarters from the footpath.

The visible geological strata in evidence are shown in the table below.

Nature along the footpaths

One of the delights of Raad ny Foillan is the contrast of the vast expanse of sea and sky with the intimate environment of the plants at your feet and birds skimming over your head.

The mild, damp climate is without extremes of temperature, but the continually changing base rocks and the soil they support must be the main factor contributing to the variety of plant and animal life you are likely to see on the way.

Plants

The book The Flowering Plants of the Isle of Man counts 38 varieties of fern and fern allies, 853 flowering plants and nine types of conifer to be found on the island. Some are very rare and best left to prosper in their secret havens. Others show off their flowers, generously lining the footpath, and a limited description of what to expect, and where, is given below.

The mountains and headlands are mainly of Barrule slate. The highest mountain is Snaefell (2036ft) and is rather low for mountain species, although a few can be seen. The peaty soil supports a mixture of gorse and heather. The common gorse was introduced for fodder, fuel and reinforcing the banked hedgerows. The dwarf gorse, which flowers in the late summer, is native to the island. Bracken and cotton grass take no finding, but the tiny asphodel, white and yellow bedstraw, sundew, and the violet and vetches that seem to grow everywhere need a little more careful attention if you are to enjoy them.

Heather and dwarf gorse adorn the moors

The glens, sheltered from the winds, are veritable greenhouses, and the common trees and plants which grow there appear more vibrant. The stems are taller, the colours brighter, scents unrecognised hang in the air, ferns and mosses take on an artistic grace previously unnoticed. Palm trees and fuchsia grow with the abandoned air of a native plant, and it is often difficult to know where cultivation ends and nature takes over. The lanes encountered are often between high stone and sod walls. Overgrown, the stones are often hidden by a cascade of flowers best seen in the spring – bluebells, celandine, primroses, yellow poppies and violets intermingled with buds of ramsons, red campion, and greater stitchwort, with the wild rose and sweet briar patiently waiting for the summer. Where the stone is on view, ground ivy, stonecrop and pennywort do their best to clothe it, with the rue-leaved saxifrage and herb Robert adding their own distinctive colours.

Orchid on Spanish Head

The limestone of Scarlett Point has its own nature trail and visitor centre, where a small yet comprehensive booklet is available. Flowers of the limestone and those loving the proximity of the sea abound. Sea thrift, white sea campion, buttercup and bird’s-foot trefoil cannot be missed, but just beyond the coastguard station, the minute mauve and white flowers of the sand spurrey and the purple thyme can be easily overlooked. The spring squill abounds among the short turf, and on the basalt dykes lichens can be examined.

The lichen is a dual plant – a fungus, determining the shape, living with an alga, its chlorophyll making the food. The two varieties on the basalt are as different as chalk and cheese. Romalina Siliquosa is the tall grey spiky one; Lecanora Atra is the flat, frill-like orange one. These are only two of the many varieties on the island.

The sand and gravels of the north are still mobile and settling according to the whim of the weather. This is an area of unique scientific interest, and as you would expect its welfare is guarded by the Ayres Nature Reserve. Marram grass is the first plant to stabilize the sand, with its network of strong roots forming a rampart along the dunes. Behind its protection, sea holly, pink-flowered sea bindweed and the green-flowered sea spurge are found. A little further inland where there is a sandy soil, hawkweeds, brambles and restharrow grow.

Where the sand is captured in the fixed dunes, burnet rose, orchids, ferns and lichens thrive, together with the Manx cabbage. The Manx cabbage, Brassica Monensis, was first discovered in 1662 by the botanist John Ray. It has a tall stem topped by a crown of yellow flowers, which turn to spreading seed pods as the summer progresses. Rare flowers flourish among the sand dunes, uncommon orchids, lichens and ferns. Do not disturb them or gather their seeds. Some orchids do not produce seeds until about 14 years old. How tragic to trample on one that was 13½!

Sea holly at Rue Point

For a while the footpath uses an old railway trackbed, now colonized by flowers – lady’s smock, red campion and various grasses. Many butterflies visit the area, the meadow brown, wall brown and orange tip. The bird’s-foot trefoil is host to the common blue; the small copper likes to stay with the dock or sorrel; while the tall stinging nettles attract the peacock, tortoiseshell and red admiral. Other butterflies such as the large, small and grey-veined whites have moved in, so you are likely to see many caterpillars about. As you pass take care not to tread on them.

Birds

The island has its share of resident birds, but its position, roughly in the centre of the Irish Sea, also makes it an important staging post for many migrants. Binoculars are rewarding, and the footpaths give a grandstand view. An excellent comprehensive book, Birds of the Isle of Man, by JP Cullen & PP Jennings and beautifully illustrated by Alan Harris, will tell you every detail of the Manx birdlife. However, the following short summary may also be useful.

In the woodlands and glens the bigger birds, rooks, tree-nesting ravens and sparrowhawks, are easy to spot if they are about. The conifer plantations through which the Millennium Way and Bayr ny Skeddan pass have a population of tits, goldcrest, woodcock and the long-eared owl. I spent time by a plantation expecting to see these birds. I heard them, they were in good voice at about four o’clock in the morning, yet I saw only a black-headed gull and an owl.

Seagull

On the upland moors and slopes of the mountains the curlew, snipe, skylark and meadow pipit try to steal the show, the red grouse and wheatear being less bold. I didn’t see the hen harrier or the hooded crow, but a kestrel was having a dispute with a few herring gulls.

The thick stone and turf walls of the farmland, often crowned with gorse, ash or hawthorn, provide secret nesting sites for the robin, wren, pied wagtail, whitethroat and yellow hammer. As you walk through the fields in winter the visitors include fieldfare and redwing. In summer lapwing, golden plover and grey partridge are about. I got a nasty shock when a pheasant rose up under my nose with a frantic cry. These birds are very well camouflaged, as are the nests of ground-nesting birds, and appeals for care are often sited on the footpaths.

The Manx rivers are bright, busy streams, with grey wagtail, moorhens and mallard. Sad to tell, the dipper population has declined due to the pollution of some rivers by mining, but the good news is that the fish are returning, so perhaps the dippers will follow.

The coast provides two very different kinds of habitat. Where there are high cliffs the rocky ledges are occupied by colonies of seabirds. The dominant seabird is the herring gull, as the footpath waymark verifies, but there are other gulls and auks. Fulmar, kittiwake, guillemot, cormorant and shag all have their favourite ledges. Razorbill and puffin like to be close to the water, but the black-headed gull turns up everywhere.

The strip of land between the field edge and the cliff not only holds the footpath but is the territory of dunnock, robin, wren and stonechat. I had never seen the stonechat before I camped on Raad ny Foillan. I heard a call, ‘Tea, Jack, Jack’, and on a gorse bush not a metre away was this lovely little bird. It has a black head, a white collar and a chestnut breast.

The sandy heaths of the Ayres are the nesting place of the little tern, the common tern, oystercatcher, ringed plover and curlew.

The greatest gathering of birds is on the intertidal mud flats, where each tide invites the waders to a banquet – oystercatchers, curlew, lapwing, golden plover, ringed plover, dunlin, sanderling, redshank – and the choughs, ducks and gulls join in too. Summer visitors can be seen resting and feeding. Sandwich terns, the red-breasted merganser and the Arctic skua have been recorded breeding on the island recently.

As you enjoy watching the birds, just appreciate that it is their habitat we are visiting and it has been our pleasure.

Grey Atlantic seal

Mammals

The Isle of Man has few native wild mammals, yet they well represent the different habitats to be found on or around the island.

Common and grey seals frequent the rocky inlets of the coast. The grey seal is often to be seen basking on the rocks. It is an inquisitive creature and is likely to follow you along the coast. I have been under its scrutiny many times as I walked Raad ny Foillan. Basking sharks, huge but gentle, plankton-eating creatures, often play in the clear waters off Port Erin and the surrounding coast.

The pygmy shrew frequents the fields and hedgerows. Its Manx name, Thollog Faiyr, literally translated means ‘the grass louse’. The stoat is common both in number and legend. If anyone kills a stoat it is said that revenge will soon follow.

There are three kinds of bat native to the island – the long eared, the natterers and the pipistrelle.

On the moors and mountains brown and mountain hares are often seen. The Manx name for the hare is mwaagh.

The largest native wild mammal was the Irish ‘elk’, a giant deer now extinct. It was a formidable creature standing 6 feet high with a 12-foot span of antlers. Skeletons of the elk found on the island are on exhibition in the Manx and Leeds museums. It is said that the animal’s ghost can still be seen roaming the eastern glens.

The other animals on the island have been introduced, some so long ago that they have earned the right to be called Manx. The Loaghtan sheep was introduced from Scandinavia, its wool producing warm clothing in the times of the Vikings. The word loaghtan is a combination of two Manx words – lugh, meaning ‘mouse’ or ‘sheep’, and dhone, meaning ‘brown’. It is a small, agile breed, and a flock owned by the Manx National Heritage roam free on the clifftop pastures of Maughold Head. The Manx cat possesses only a tuft of hair where other cats have a tail. It was probably introduced from the mainland of Europe, where other tailless cats are known to occur.

The four-horned Loaghtan sheep

The rabbit was introduced, but hedgehogs, mice and rats arrived by accident.

Of passing interest are the mainland animals which did not arrive. There are no badgers, foxes, moles or water rats. There are no snakes. Only the common and sand lizards represent the reptiles. No toads or newts are to be found, and it is only recently that frogs have become established.

The Isle of Man sadly has no squirrels, but perhaps, as the red squirrel is being so hard-pressed in the UK, a sanctuary may be offered one day.

History

Today the lives of the Islanders are closely tied to the influence of their forefathers. Their way of life makes the Isle of Man unique, and its people justly proud of their rich heritage.

As I walked Raad ny Foillan I was very much aware that I was walking hand in glove with history – seeing the same scenes Celtic eyes had seen, treading the same paths Pictish hunters had trod, resting on the same stones where Palaeolithic man once sat, and gazing out to sea as they had gazed. Raad ny Foillan continually passes sites where much of Manx history occurred. There are remains of dwellings, magnificent castles, places of worship and graves of Manx forefathers. Many excellent books and booklets, written by notable authorities (see Appendix B for the Select Bibliography), recount the history of the island in detail. Below is a brief historical summary to enable the walker to recognise and appreciate the features along the coastline in the context of the island’s history.

Neolithic stone circle, Mull Hill

The earliest archaeological remains are of Palaeolithic (Old Stone Age) peoples dating from 2000BC. They were hunters and gatherers using flint tools. Although many such tools have been found in Britain, only one has been found on Man, discovered in the soil of Rushen Abbey.

The next arrivals were the Neolithic Picts. They were a small, swarthy-skinned people, bold seafarers whose dwellings have been found on most coasts of Western Europe. Some settled in the Isle of Man, where they followed a prosperous lifestyle as herdsmen and farmers, exercising their bold spirits by raiding Roman Britain and earning the title of the dreaded ‘Painted Men’.

The Picts lived in pit dwellings. A circular hole was dug in the ground and the earth from the pit piled around it. Suitable poles were anchored in the earth wall and sloped inwards to form a roof. Branches were woven between the poles and covered with a thatch of reeds, leaving a smoke hole in the centre.

During the construction of Ronaldsway Airport a fine Pictish dwelling was discovered. Many artefacts, now in the Manx museum, led to the opinion that the family were ‘farmers, happy, prosperous and well settled’. A stone axe found in the Ronaldsway dwelling was made at the Pike o’ Stickle axe ‘factory’ in Langdale, in the English Lake District. Five stone plaques were also found at Ronaldsway, the like of which have not been discovered elsewhere in the British Isles. The largest one is oval, 3 inches long, as thin as a penny, and contains chevron and diamond patterns. Its use remains a mystery.

The Picts lived in groups or clans, the bala being the clan or family territory. The many place names beginning with Balla merely mean ‘the farm of’, followed by the owner’s name or the name descriptive of the territory. As time passed the island became divided into a north and south territory – the north comprising the sheadings of Glenfaba, Michael and Ayre; the south those of Garff, Middle and Rushen. These Pictish names are still in use today.

The arrival of the Celts around 200BC was a most important event in the island’s history. The Celts arrived in Britain during the Bronze Age and, being driven westward by other invaders from the continent of Europe, established themselves in Wales, Scotland, Ireland and the Isle of Man. In the Isle of Man they founded the language and the nation. The Manx language is closely related to Gaelic and is still spoken fluently by a few dedicated students. It is, however, in daily use in place names, family names, ceremony and song.

The Celts brought with them the skills and techniques of smelting iron. They built many forts on hills and promontories, which suggest that times were unsettled; the hill fort on South Barrule was the most important. The Celts drove the Picts into the more barren areas of the island, but in time they mingled to become one people.

Around the fifth century Christianity arrived with monks from Ireland. On the footpath the sites of many ancient keeills (churches) tell of the conversion of the island. One of these early saints was St Machud or Maughold who, it was said, died in AD533 and was buried in Maughold churchyard. Scriptural scenes are depicted on some of the Celtic crosses in the collection at Maughold churchyard.

The Viking raiders first attacked Man in 798. The island became a ‘Viking lair’ from which attacks were launched on the neighbouring coasts. In 880 Harold Haarfager included Man in his Kingdom of the Southern Isles or Sudry, and united the Isle of Man politically.

King Orry, or Gorry, namely Godred Croven, after fighting against Harold at Stamford Bridge, conquered the Isle of Man. He established the Norse system of government as the national system, the Tynwald or Thingwald becoming the National Assembly (thing – an assembly; vollr – a field). The Millennium of Tynwald was celebrated in 1979 by the introduction of the long-distance footpath across the island named the Millennium Way.

The history of the Manx nation continued to be troubled. In 1266 the island was sold to Scotland for 4000 marks, Alexander II becoming Lord of Man. In 1313 Bruce attacked and captured the Scandinavian stronghold on the site where Castle Rushen now stands. It was sold yet again in 1392 to William le Scrope. He was executed by Henry IV and the island was given to Henry Percy, Duke of Northumberland. There were changes still to come as the Percy’s rebelled against Henry and in 1403 the island was given to John Stanley, ‘in perpetuity’, on the payment of homage and two falcons to him, and every future King of England, on his coronation day.

Celtic wheel cross at Maughold church

The Stanleys ruled as kings of Man for 350 years and a settled period of history began. Sir John Stanley, who was an absentee landlord and never visited the island, appointed a governor, who in turn appointed commissioners. On Lady Day 1423 a Tynwald court was summoned and the first Tynwald Manx ‘Magna Carta’ with written laws was recorded. So Tynwald and the House of Keys (the Scandinavian word keise meaning ‘elected’), presided over by the Governor, dealt with the legislation of the island.

Queen Elizabeth II became Lord of Man in I952. The island is still governed by its own parliament which meets, according to tradition, outdoors on 5 July, the Old Midsummer Day, on the Tynwald Hill at St John’s. The foundation laid by the early settlers has moulded the island’s way of life as you see it today and provided the means of legislation for the 1961 Rights of Way Act, the act which has completed Raad ny Foillan for us to enjoy.