THE BONDS IN DROICHEAD ÁTHA, CONTAE LÚ

The Bonds in Proleek Dolmen, Contae Lú

The Bonds are still in Ireland. They arrived last month and they are preparing their Cambridge Exams in the Irish capital. Ireland is a catholic nation and this week is Easter, a very important festivity for the Catholic community. This is the reason because of the family has decided to take some free days and enjoy this festivity visiting some of the most beautiful places of the green island. They are going to enjoy holidays during four days and after they are going to continue their exams preparations. Today, they are visiting Contae Lú. 

Contae Lú or County Louth is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Leinster and is part of the Border Region. It is named after the village of Louth. Louth County Council is the local authority for the county.

County Louth is colloquially known as the Wee County as it is Ireland's smallest county by area. It is the 18th-largest in terms of population. It is the smallest of Leinster’s 12 counties by size and the sixth-largest by population.

More information: Comhairle Contae Lú

Despite its fairly average total population, Louth is the second most densely populated county in Ireland behind Dublin, and the fourth on the island of Ireland, due to its small size.

County Louth is named after the village of Louth, which in turn is named after Lugh, a god of the ancient Irish. Historically, the placename has had various spellings; Lugmad, Lughmhaigh, and Lughmhadh. Lú is the modern simplified spelling.

The Bonds in Mellifont Abbey, Contae Lú

The county is steeped in myth, legend and history, and is a setting in the Táin Bó Cúailnge. Later it saw the influence of the Vikings as seen in the name of Carlingford Lough. They also established a longphort at Annagassan in the ninth century. At this time Louth consisted of three sub-kingdoms each subject to separate over-kingdoms: Conaille (Ulaidh); Fir Rois (Airgialla); and, the Fir Arda Ciannachta (Midhe). The whole area became part of the O'Carroll Kingdom of Airgialla (Oriel) early in the 12th century.

A number of historic sites are in the county, including religious sites at Monasterboice, Mellifont Abbey and the St Mary Magdalene Dominican Friary.

More information: Ireland.com

The Normans occupied the Louth area in the 1180s, and it became known as English Oriel, to distinguish it from the remainder, Irish Oriel, which remained in Irish hands. The latter became the McMahon lordship of Oriel of Monaghan.

In the early 14th century, the Scottish army of Edward Bruce was repulsed from Drogheda. Edward was finally defeated, losing his claim to the High Kingship of Ireland along with his life, in the Battle of Faughart near Dundalk, by a chiefly local force led by John de Bermingham.

In 1189 AD, a royal charter was granted to Dundalk after a Norman nobleman named Bertram de Verdun erected a manor house at Castletown Mount. Later in 1412 , a royal charter was granted to Drogheda. This charter unified the towns of Drogheda-in-Meath and Drogheda-in-Uriel, Louth as a County in its own right, styled as the County of the town of Drogheda. 

The Bonds in Round Tower, Dromiskin, Contae Lú

Drogheda continued as a County Borough until the setting up of County Councils, through the enactment of the Local Government, Ireland Act 1898, which saw all of Drogheda, including a large area south of the River Boyne, become part of an extended County Louth.

Until the late 16th century, Louth had been a part of Ulster, before being included as part of Leinster after a conference held at Faughart, in 1596, between the Chiefs of Ulster, O'Nial, O'Niel and O'Donel, McDonnel, on the Irish side, and the Archbishop of Cashel and the Earl of Ormonde on that of the English.

More information: Irish Central

The 16th and 17th centuries featured many skirmishes and battles involving Irish and English forces, as it was on the main route to the Moiry Pass and the Ulster areas often in rebellion and as yet uncolonised. Oliver Cromwell attacked Drogheda in 1649 slaughtering the Royalist garrison and hundreds of the town's citizens. Towards the end of the same century, the armies of the warring Kings, James and William, faced off in South Louth during the build-up to the Battle of the Boyne the battle was fought 3 km west Drogheda. Drogheda held for James II under Lord Iveagh, but surrendered to King William III of Orange the day after the battle of the Boyne.

The area of Omeath was Irish-speaking until the early 20th century. A native dialect of Louth Irish existed there until about 1930, but is now extinct, although recordings have been made. Within the county 1,587 people use Irish on a daily basis outside of the education system.

More information: Wikiwand (Gaelic Version)

 The Ireland I now inhabit is one that these Irish 

contemporaries have helped to imagine.  

Seamus Heaney