The island was cut off from the surrounding islands around 8000 BC, but was colonised by sea some time before 6500 BC. The first residents were hunter-gatherers and fishermen. Examples of their tools are kept at the Manx Museum.
The Neolithic Period marked the beginning of farming, and megalithic monuments began to appear, such as Cashtal yn Ard near Maughold, King Orry‘s Grave at Laxey, Meayll Circle near Cregneash, and Ballaharra Stones at St John’s. There were also the local Ronaldsway and Bann cultures.
During the Bronze Age, burial mounds became smaller. Bodies were put in stone-lined graves with ornamental containers. The Bronze Age burial mounds created long-lasting markers around the countryside.
The ancient Romans knew of the island and called it Insula Manavia although it is uncertain whether they conquered the island. Around the 5th century AD, large-scale migration from Ireland precipitated a process of Gaelicisation evidenced by Ogham inscriptions, giving rise to the Manx language, which is a Goidelic language closely related to Irish and Scottish Gaelic.
Vikings arrived at the end of the 8th century. They established Tynwald and introduced many land divisions that still exist. In 1266 King Magnus VI of Norway ceded the islands to Scotland in the Treaty of Perth; but Scotland’s rule over Mann did not become firmly established until 1275, when the Manx were defeated in the Battle of Ronaldsway, near Castletown.
In 1290 King Edward I of England sent Walter de Huntercombe to take possession of Mann. It remained in English hands until 1313, when Robert Bruce took it after besieging Castle Rushen for five weeks. A confused period followed when Mann was sometimes under English rule and sometimes Scottish, until 1346, when the Battle of Neville’s Cross decided the long struggle between England and Scotland in England’s favour.
English rule was delegated to a series of lords and magnates. The Tynwald passed laws concerning the government of the island in all respects and had control over its finances, but was subject to the approval of the Lord of Mann.
In 1866, the Isle of Man obtained limited home rule, with partly democratic elections to the House of Keys, but an appointed Legislative Council. Since then, democratic government has been gradually extended.
The Isle of Man has designated more than 250 historic sites as registered buildings.
Sachin Beniwal 