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Ballytrustan is a medieval church and graveyard situated in the Ards Peninsula of County Down, Northern Ireland. The site occupies land underlain by Hawick Group wacke, a hard sedimentary rock of Wenlock age that would have provided a stable foundation for the ecclesiastical structures. The monument is protected by the Historic Environment Division under reference 7650.
Medieval churches in the Ards typically served both spiritual and social functions within their surrounding communities, with graveyards extending the site's importance as a place of burial and commemoration. The bedrock geology of the locality, whilst unyielding to excavate, would have offered durable stone for construction had quarrying taken place.
The survival of both church and graveyard remains at Ballytrustan testifies to the continuity of this location as a sacred space through the medieval period. The site's landscape setting within the Ards reflects the typical placement of such ecclesiastical sites, integrated into the local topography whilst serving the spiritual needs of the medieval population in the region.
Ballytrustan. medieval church & graveyard is a scheduled monument protected by Department for Communities NI under reference 7650. View the official record →
Ballytrustan is a medieval church and graveyard situated in the Ards Peninsula of County Down, Northern Ireland. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR) under reference 7650.
Ballytrustan. medieval church & graveyard dates from the medieval period, and is classified as a ecclesiastical site. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Ballytrustan. medieval church & graveyard is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, legally protected by DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR) — the body responsible for designating and safeguarding heritage sites in Ni. The official designation reference is 7650.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Platform rath (0.9 km), Tara fort. bivallate rath (2 km), Stone quay (3.7 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Ballytrustan. medieval church & graveyard's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
Ballytrustan. medieval church & graveyard stands on Hawick Group, bedrock that formed in the Wenlock. The rock here is wacke.