The origins and development of an Ulster Plantation town: Belturbet, County Cavan, 1610–1714

Abstract

Belturbet has since the twelfth century been the location of some form of settlement, due to its location as a fording point on the River Erne. But it was not until the early seventeenth century, when, under the aegis of the Ulster Plantation, Stephen Butler, an English undertaker, settled and developed the town as we know it today. This essay investigates the origins of the town but also how it developed along the classic Ulster Plantation lines, and continue to grow until the disasters of the 1640s. The article describes the building work which took place in the town during the period under examination and how the corporation and the townspeople contributed to this.