The history of rail transport in Ireland began only a decade later than that of Great Britain. By its peak in 1920, Ireland had 3,500 route miles (5,630 km). The current status is less than half that amount, with a large unserviced area around the border area between Northern Ireland and The Republic of Ireland.
The Kingdom of Desmond was a historic kingdom in southwestern Ireland. It was founded in 1118 by Tadhg Mac Cárthaigh, King of Munster when the Treaty of Glanmire formally divided the Kingdom of Munster into Desmond and Thomond. It comprised all of what is now County Cork and most of County Kerry. Desmond was ruled by the Mac Cárthaigh (MacCarthy) dynasty. Other clans within the kingdom included the O'Sullivans and O'Donovans. Following the Norman invasion of Ireland in the late 12th century, the eastern half of Desmond was conquered by the Anglo-Normans and became the Earldom of Desmond, ruled by the Fitzmaurices and FitzGeralds—the famous Irish family known as the Geraldines. The king of Desmond, Diarmaid Mac Cárthaigh submitted to Henry II of England, but the western half of Desmond lived on as a semi-independent Gaelic kingdom. It was often at war with the Anglo-Normans. Fínghin Mac Carthaigh's victory over the Anglo-Normans at the Battle of Callann (1261) helped preserve Desmond's independence. The kings of Desmond founded sites such as Blarney Castle, Ballycarbery Castle, Muckross Abbey and Kilcrea Friary. Following the Nine Years' War of the 1590s, Desmond became part of the Kingdom of Ireland.
Blarney Castle is a medieval stronghold in Blarney, near Cork, Ireland. Though earlier fortifications were built on the same spot, the current keep was built by the MacCarthy of Muskerry dynasty, a cadet branch of the Kings of Desmond, and dates from 1446. The Blarney Stone is among the machicolations of the castle.
Blarney is a suburban town within the administrative area of Cork City in Ireland. It is located approximately 8 kilometres (5 mi) north-west of the city centre. It is the site of Blarney Castle, home of the legendary Blarney Stone. Blarney is part of the Dáil constituency of Cork North-Central. It is surrounded by the suburban villages of Tower, Cloghroe and Kerry Pike, all on the outskirts of Cork City.
The battle of Knocknaclashy, took place in County Cork in southern Ireland in 1651. In it, an Irish Confederate force led by Viscount Muskerry was defeated by an English Parliamentarian force under Lord Broghill. It was the final pitched battle of the Irish Confederate Wars and one of the last of the Wars of the Three Kingdoms.
Sir Donough MacCarty, 1st Earl of Clancarty (1594–1665), was an Irish soldier and politician. He succeeded his father as 2nd Viscount Muskerry in 1641. He rebelled against the government and joined the Irish Catholic Confederation, demanding religious freedom as a Catholic and defending the rights of the Gaelic nobility. Later, he supported the King against his Parliamentarian enemies during the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland.
Tower, Ordnance Survey Ireland name Model Village, is a village within the administrative area of Cork city in Ireland. It is located to the northwest of the city, approximately 3 km from the town of Blarney on the R617 road. Together with Blarney, Tower is a satellite or dormitory town of Cork city. Tower is part of the Dáil constituency of Cork North-Central. As of the 2022 census of Ireland, the village had a population of 3,300.
The Carrigrohane Straight is a straight segment of road that stretches for 2.75 miles (4.43 km), from the edge of Cork west to Carrigrohane in County Cork, Ireland. It is just over 140 years old, and now forms part of the N22 National Primary route between Cork and Tralee.
The Schull and Skibbereen Railway was a minor narrow gauge railway in County Cork, Ireland. It opened in 1886 and closed in 1947. The track gauge was a 3 ft narrow gauge. The formal name of the company was The West Carberry Tramways and Light Railways Company Ltd.
The Cork, Blackrock and Passage Railway (CB&PR) was a 3 ft narrow gauge railway in County Cork, Ireland. The line originally opened in 1850 as a 5 ft 3 in Irish standard gauge railway between Cork and Passage West and operated steam feeder ferries to other locations round Cork Harbour. The company was heavily dependent on summer tourist traffic for a considerable proportion of its revenue. The railway was converted to 3 ft narrow gauge in 1900 in conjunction with extensions southwards to Crosshaven which were completed in 1904. The railway closed in 1932 and has since been replaced by a public pathway and nature area.
The Cork and Muskerry Light Railway was a 3 ft narrow gauge railway in County Cork, Ireland. The first part of the railway opened in 1887 and closed in 1934. A major reason for building the railway was to exploit tourist traffic to Blarney Castle.
Muskerry is a central region of County Cork, Ireland which incorporates the baronies of Muskerry West and Muskerry East. It is located along the valley of the River Lee and is bounded by the Boggeragh Mountains to the north and the Shehy Mountains to the south. The region is named after the Múscraige, who were an important Érainn people of Munster. It is also the name of an official Gaeltacht region in which Munster Irish is spoken. Gaeltacht villages include Béal Átha an Ghaorthaidh, Baile Bhuirne, Cúil Aodha and Cill na Martra. Major population centres include Ballincollig, Blarney and Macroom.
The Cork City Railways were constructed in 1911 and opened in 1912 to connect the Irish standard gauge systems north and south of the River Lee in Cork, Ireland.
Coachford Junction railway station was on the Cork and Muskerry Light Railway (CMLR) in County Cork, Ireland. The station marked the junction in the CMLR lines eastwards to the Blarney terminus station, and westwards to the Coachford terminus station.
St Anne's railway station, also known as St Ann's Hill station, was on the Cork and Muskerry Light Railway in County Cork, Ireland.
Carrignamuck Tower House, located in Carrignamuck townland, is a 15th century tower house located 2.8 km (1.7 mi) north of Coachford village and 2 km (1.2 mi) north-west of Dripsey village. It is also sometimes known as 'Dripsey Castle', a name latterly attributed to the 18th century house, Dripsey Castle, built nearby.
The Cork and Youghal Railway (C&YR) was a company that built and operated a short 27 miles (43 km) railway built in the early 1860s in Ireland linking Cork with Youghal, a small resort with harbour at the mouth of the Munster Blackwater. There was an additional 6-mile (9.7 km) branch to Cobh (Queenstown), a deepwater port in Cork Harbour associated with transatlantic liners. The railway was forced into administration within a few short years due to the bankruptcy of major shareholder David Leopold Lewis and was taken over by the much larger Great Southern and Western Railway (GS&WR). The branch to Cobh became the main line and by the late 1980s was the only part of the previously extensive rail network around Cork City to remain operational apart from the main line to Dublin. 2009 saw the Midleton branch re-open to Cork while the remainder of the route is being converted to a greenway in the 2020s.
The Tramways and Public Companies (Ireland) Act 1883 was a development of several earlier acts that was designed to facilitate the construction of economical railway infrastructure in rural Ireland.
Cormac MacDermot MacCarthy, 16th Lord of Muskerry (1552–1616) was an Irish magnate and soldier. He fought at the Siege of Kinsale during Tyrone's Rebellion.
The River Shournagh, a left tributary of the River Lee, rises some 25 km (16 mi) northwest of the city of Cork in Ireland.
