n.
District (pop., 1999 est.: 63,800), Northern Ireland.
Formerly part of County Down, it was established as a district in 1973. It fronts Strangford Lough and the Irish Sea . Extreme southern and western Down is mountainous; the dome-shaped Mourne Mountains reach an elevation of 2,789 ft (850 m). Down is a rich agricultural district; livestock raising is important. Down was settled in prehistoric times. It was where St. Patrick began his mission in Ireland (AD 432), and his well and bathhouses are preserved near the district seat, Downpatrick . In Tudor times, parts of Down were colonized by English and Scottish adventurers.