Royal Avenue, Belfast facts for kids
Royal Avenue is a famous street right in the middle of Belfast city centre, Northern Ireland. It stretches for about 500 metres, connecting different parts of the city. Since 1881, it has been Belfast's main street for shopping. Today, Royal Avenue is still a busy place for businesses and is home to the big Westfield CastleCourt shopping centre.
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Exploring Royal Avenue's Location
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Royal Avenue starts at the busy meeting point of Castle Place and Donegall Place. This area is like the heart of Belfast city centre. The street then goes north towards North Street. Here, you can see where the old Bank of Ireland building used to be. After that, Royal Avenue turns a bit northeast and continues as York Street.
If you look south down Royal Avenue, you get a great view of Belfast City Hall and Donegall Square. At the northern end of Royal Avenue, you'll find St. Anne's Cathedral. The street has many beautiful old buildings from the Victorian and Edwardian times. These include the Belfast Central Library. There are also many new, modern buildings and shopping areas. Like the rest of Belfast city centre, Royal Avenue has been updated a lot since 1998.
A Look Back at Royal Avenue's History
Royal Avenue was officially created in 1881. Before that, its upper part was called John Street, and the lower part was named Hercules Street. Since it was built, Royal Avenue has been the main shopping street in Belfast. Today, it still has many well-known department stores and popular shops.
The Grand Central Hotel
The city's most important and fancy hotel, the Grand Central Hotel, used to be on this street. It was taken down in the late 1980s to make way for the big Westfield CastleCourt shopping centre. The hotel first opened on 1 June 1893. It became a very popular place for social events in Belfast. Many famous guests stayed there, like King Leopold III of Belgium, Sir Winston Churchill, Gene Autry, Bob Hope, The Beatles, and the Rolling Stones. When the Rolling Stones stayed there in the mid-1960s, hundreds of fans gathered outside. The band members watched the excited crowd from the hotel's windows.
After the hotel closed in 1971, it was turned into a strong army base for the British Army for over ten years. The hotel's special Bridal Suite even became the Army's main work area.
Events on the Street
A film was made of Royal Avenue on 27 May 1901, from a tram pulled by horses. The film shows the street full of shoppers, workers, trams, and bicycles. During the 1907 Belfast Dock strike, Royal Avenue was used by drivers who worked during the strike to deliver goods from the docks. These drivers had to be protected by the police to stop them from being attacked by striking workers.
On 29 October 1935, thousands of people filled Royal Avenue for the funeral procession of Edward Carson. The street was also hit by bombs during the Belfast Blitz on 15/16 April 1941. The German air force bombed the city, causing a lot of damage to buildings on Royal Avenue. However, the damage was not as bad as in nearby streets. Royal Avenue is also one of the traditional routes for the Orange Order's yearly 12 July parade.
Royal Avenue During the Troubles
During a difficult time in Northern Ireland known as The Troubles, Royal Avenue was often targeted. This was because it was an important shopping area and had a British Army base. The army base itself was bombed many times in the mid-1970s. Security gates were put up at the end of Royal Avenue and Donegall Place. These gates were closed every evening, creating a secure area known as a "ring of steel."
On 24 February 1988, two soldiers were killed when a bomb exploded near a security gate on Royal Avenue. The explosion caused a lot of damage to the area. On 1 January 1993, another bomb was found in a hairdresser's salon on Royal Avenue, but it was safely removed before it could explode.
Royal Avenue Today
Royal Avenue is still one of Belfast's main shopping areas. You can find popular shops like Primark, H&M, and Schuh here. There are also major banks like Santander UK and HSBC. The large Westfield CastleCourt shopping centre is on Royal Avenue. As of 2023, it has over 100 stores, including New Look and Superdrug. This shopping centre is built where the old Grand Central Hotel used to be.
The fancy building at 2 Royal Avenue used to be a bank called the Provincial Bank of Ireland. After it closed in 1989, it was a Tesco store until 2021. Now, Belfast City Council has fixed it up to be a community space. Next door, at 4 Royal Avenue, is the Ulster Reform Club.
The Art Deco building at the corner of North Street and Royal Avenue was once the main office for the Bank of Ireland. After it was left empty, a group called the Occupy movement took it over in 2012. They started calling it the "People's Bank." The group left the building ten months later.
Around 2008, some people, including former Lord Mayor of Belfast Jim Rodgers, suggested making Royal Avenue a street just for people walking. This idea came after some traffic accidents on the street. Since then, parts of the street have been made pedestrian-friendly. Also, some scenes for the 2011 comedy film Killing Bono were filmed on Royal Avenue. They used the street to make it look like Dublin in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
