Sleady Castle | |
---|---|
General information | |
Architectural style | Jacobian |
Location | County Waterford, Ireland |
Country | Ireland |
Coordinates | 52°10′06.6″N7°43′31.2″W / 52.168500°N 7.725333°W |
Completed | 1628 |
Sleady Castle was built in 1628 by Philip McGrath. [1] It is located in County Waterford, Ireland, approximately 10 miles (16 kilometers) from Lismore and Dungarvan. Both Lismore and Dungarvan have ancestral connections to the Clan McGrath. They were patrons to the Augustinian Abbey, at Abbeyside, Dungarvan, and have ancestral graves within its walls. Philip McGrath is a 4th generation decedent of Dónal McGrath who was buried in 1548, in the Church of Ireland Cathedral in Lismore. [2]
Around 1640 the McGraths were expelled from Sleady and the lands associated with it were given to Sir Richard Osbourne by the English Crown. John O'Keeffe is referenced as an owner in a June 16, 1876, Landed Estates Court Notice. [3] In 1957 Sleady was sold at auction to a Mr. Doocey. [4] Sleady is currently owned by John Hickey who bought it in 1970. His daughter Joanne Hickey manages the property. Her family has a long history with Sleady Castle as workers for previous landowners. Joanne's grandparents Jack and Brigid Hickey rented Sleady Lodge from 1938. [5]
Sleady Castle has hundreds of visitors in a typical year. Joanne is often there to welcome them and talk about the history of the Castle. It has become a destination for McGrath Clan members. The attached photo was taken in 2019 during a McGrath Clan Gathering tour of the Castle, where Joanne gave a tour and a talked about the Castle's history. [6] She has also undertaken a refurbishment of the grounds surrounding the ruins to enhance the visitor experience. This initiative is called Sleady 400 to mark the 400th anniversary of the Castle in 2028. The project is supported by The United States McCraw Family Association. [7] [8]
"Sledy Castle and Its Tragedy" is an article originally published in the Dublin University Magazine, March 1848, author unknown but it is initialed M. E. M. [9] However, in an August 31, 1888 Waterford News article, William Desmond O'Brian "an accomplished Irish Scholar and gentleman, well versed in the history and traditions of his native country" is attributed to having "contributed an interesting story on 'Sleady Castle and Its Tragedy,' to the Dublin University Magazine somewhat over forty years ago. The story was founded in fact, for, in its main features, it is corroborated by the traditions of the neighborhood." [10]
The article tells the story of the origins of the Castle, its original owners and their demise. The article was republished in 1888 by the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland in the Journal of the Royal Historical and Archaeological Association under the title "Sleady Castle and Its Tragedy", contributed by Gabriel O'C Redmond, Hon. Local Secretary, Co Waterford. This publication includes a short endorsement of the validity of the article by Gabrial O'C Redmond, "The different localities mentioned in the narrative", the "localities" can still be found today. [11]
A similar version of the story can be found in The School's Collection of the National Folklore Collection. [12]
Waterford Crystal is a manufacturer of lead glass or "crystal", especially in cut glass, named after the city of Waterford, Ireland. In January 2009, the main Waterford Crystal manufacturing base on the edge of Waterford was closed due to the insolvency of Waterford Wedgwood PLC, and in June 2010, Waterford Crystal relocated almost back to the roots of glass-making in the city centre. The Mall location holds both a manufacturing facility that melts over 750 tonnes of crystal a year – although most Waterford Crystal is now produced outside Ireland – and a visitor centre with the world's largest collection of Waterford Crystal. As of 2015, the brand is owned by the Fiskars Corporation.
Dungarvan is a coastal town and harbour in County Waterford, on the south-east coast of Ireland. Prior to the merger of Waterford County Council with Waterford City Council in 2014, Dungarvan was the county town and administrative centre of County Waterford. Waterford City and County Council retains administrative offices in the town. The town is in a townland and civil parish of the same name.
Ballyporeen is a village in County Tipperary, Ireland. The 2016 census recorded a village population of 318.
Lismore is a historic town in County Waterford, in the province of Munster, Ireland. Originally associated with Saint Mochuda of Lismore, who founded Lismore Abbey in the 7th century, the town developed around the medieval Lismore Castle. As of the 21st century, Lismore supports a rural catchment area, and was designated as a "district service centre" in Waterford County Council's 2011–2017 development plan. As of 2022, the town had a population of 1,347 people.
The Most Rev. Miler Magrath was a senior-ranking Irish prelate born in the Gaelic túath of Fermanagh in Ulster, the northern province in Ireland. He came from a family of hereditary historians to the O'Brien clan. He entered the Franciscan Order and was ordained to the Catholic priesthood. The Vatican later appointed him the Bishop of Down and Connor in Ireland, but he converted to the Anglican Church of Ireland, becoming the Protestant Archbishop of Cashel. Magrath is viewed with contempt by both Protestant and Catholic historians, owing to his ambiguous and corrupt activities during the Reformation. He also served as a member of the Parliament of Ireland.
The Battle of Affane was fought in County Waterford, in south-eastern Ireland, in 1565, between the forces of the Fitzgerald Earl of Desmond and the Butler Earl of Ormond. The battle ended in the rout of the Desmond forces. It was one of the last private battles fought in Britain or Ireland.
The Camogie All Star Awards are awarded each November to 15 players who have made outstanding contributions to the Irish stick and ball team sport of camogie in the 15 traditional positions on the field: goalkeeper, three full backs, three half-backs, two midfields, three half-forwards and three full-forwards. They were awarded for the first time in 2003 as an independent initiative sponsored by a hotel group and accorded official status by the Camogie Association in 2004.
Chevalier William Henry Grattan Flood was a noted Irish author, composer, musicologist and historian. As a writer and ecclesiastical composer, his personal contributions to Irish music produced enduring works, although he is regarded today as controversial due to the inaccuracy of some of his work. As a historian, his output was prolific on topics of local and national historical or biographical interest.
Tallow is a town, civil parish and townland in County Waterford, Ireland. Tallow is in the province of Munster near the border between County Cork and County Waterford and situated on a small hill just south of the River Bride.
Bishop Thomas Hussey was a diplomat, chaplain and Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Waterford and Lismore from 1797 to his death. He is best known for taking part in talks with Richard Cumberland in an attempt to arrange a peace treaty between Spain and Britain during the American War of Independence.
George Lennon was an Irish Republican Army leader during the Irish War of Independence and the Irish Civil War.
Sir William Robinson PC(I) was a British architect, military engineer and politician. He held several posts in the Dublin Castle administration, including as Surveyor General of Ireland from 1671 until 1700. He was an influential figure in the development of classical architecture in Ireland, designing many buildings in the English Baroque-style, particularly in Dublin.
Water Colour Society of Ireland (WCSI) is a watercolour society in Ireland, founded in 1870. The Society held its first exhibition in the Courthouse, Lismore, County Waterford in May 1871.
The McGrath family is an Irish clan. The name is derived from the Gaelic Mac Craith, recorded in other written texts as Mag Craith, Mag Raith and Macraith, including the Annals of the Four Masters and the Annals of Ulster. McGrath is a surname of ancient Irish origin, and is borne by the descendants of a number of septs, each with a common origin in the Kingdom of Thomond, a kingdom that existed before the Norman invasion and was located in north Munster.
Tybroughney, statutory spelling Tibberaghny, is a civil parish in the barony of Iverk, County Kilkenny in Ireland. The parish comprises a single townland, also called Tibberaghny. It lies on the north bank of the River Suir facing County Waterford, while the Lingaun river separates it from County Tipperary to the west.
The Waterford–Mallow railway line ran from Waterford to Mallow and allowed for trains to run directly from Waterford to Cork City.
Redmond Roche was an Irish politician who sat for County Cork in the Parliament of 1640–1649. He was a Protestant during his earlier life but joined the Confederateses in 1642.
The Lismore Crozier is an Irish Insular-type crozier dated to between 1100 and 1113 AD. It consists of a wooden tubular staff lined with copper-alloy plates; embellished with silver, gold, niello and glass; and capped by a crook with a decorative openwork crest. The inscriptions on the upper knope record that it was built by "Nechtain the craftsman" and commissioned by Niall mac Meic Aeducain, bishop of Lismore. This makes it the only extant insular crozier to be inscribed, and the only one whose date of origin can be closely approximated. It was rediscovered in 1814, along with the 15th-century Book of Lismore, in a walled-up doorway in Lismore Castle, County Waterford, where it was probably hidden in the late Middle Ages during a period of either religious persecution or raids.
Lismore railway station, County Waterford is a former train station which served the town of Lismore in County Waterford, Ireland.
Bernard HackettCSSR was an Irish Roman Catholic clergyman who served as the Bishop of Waterford and Lismore from 1916 until his death.
Michael E Duffy 19:46, 3 June 2021 (UTC)