LARNE

Irish Latharna town, seat, and district (established 1973), formerly in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, bordering the Irish Sea north of Belfast. The Scot Edward Bruce landed near the present town site in 1315 when he attempted to free Ireland from English rule. His death three years later ended all hopes of an independent Scots-Irish kingdom. Larne town developed as a holiday resort after 1900. In 1914 Ulster Unionists opposed to a Roman Catholic-dominated independent Ireland unloaded large numbers of German-made rifles in Larne harbour. Contemporary Larne town is an important port equipped with modern loading facilities. Passenger and commercial services operate regularly between Larne and Stranraer and Cairnryan in Scotland, and commercial ships also transit to ports in England. Local manufactures include electrical equipment and textiles. Larne district, extending from the village of Ballynure in the south to the headland of Garron Point in the north and from the peninsula of Island Magee in the east to the peaks of the Antrim Mountains in the west, covers an area of 131 sq mi (340 sq km). Northern Larne is composed of high rolling moorlands, dissected near the coast by scenic wooded glens, while in the southern part of the district the high moors descend more gradually into hills and lowlands and then to the flat shores of Larne Lough (inlet of the sea). Tourism and harbour services at Larne town are the main industries. The Antrim Coast Road, one of the greatest tourist attractions in Northern Ireland with its many miles of bays, headlands, and cliffs, begins at Larne town. Sheep, dairy cattle, and pigs are raised where possible in the pastoral countryside. Limestone is quarried for cement at Magheramorne. Pop. (1971) town, 18,291; (1981 prelim.) district, 29,475.