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Ardfert () is a village in
County Kerry County Kerry ( gle, Contae Chiarraí) is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and forms part of the province of Munster. It is named after the Ciarraige who lived in part of the present county. The population of the co ...
, Ireland. Historically a religious centre, the economy of the locality is driven by agriculture and its position as a dormitory town, being only from
Tralee Tralee ( ; ga, Trá Lí, ; formerly , meaning 'strand of the Lee River') is the county town of County Kerry in the south-west of Ireland. The town is on the northern side of the neck of the Dingle Peninsula, and is the largest town in County ...
. The population of the village was 749 at the 2016 census.


Origin

The village's name signifies, according to Sir James Ware, "a wonderful place on an eminence", or as some interpret it, ''"the hill of miracles."'' Ardfert has also been considered a corruption of Ard Ert, ''"the high place of Ert or Erc"'', so called after the fifth century Irish Bishop
Saint Erc Erc mac Dega ( la, Ercus; kw, Erth), also known (incorrectly) as Herygh, was an Irish saint. He was active in Cornwall. Tradition ascribes the foundation of the original monastery on the Hill of Slane to him. Early life Erc, son of Dago, is bel ...
, who made the place a bishop's seat. Ardfert was written by the Four Masters as ''Ard-ferta'', the height of the grave.


History

Ardfert is a
parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...
in the
Barony of Clanmaurice {{Use Irish English, date=May 2021 Clanmaurice (''Clann Mhuiris'') is a barony in County Kerry, Ireland. It contains 16 Parishes and it is roughly 485 km2. Parishes *Ardfert * Ballyheigue * Duagh *Dysert (Partly in Trughanacmy) *Finuge *Kilcar ...
, County Kerry, Ireland, anciently in the territory of Ui Fearba/Hy Ferba, of which the O'Laeghain (O'Leyne, Leen or Lane) were once the Gaelic Lords, until
Norman invasion of Ireland The Anglo-Norman invasion of Ireland took place during the late 12th century, when Anglo-Normans gradually conquered and acquired large swathes of land from the Irish, over which the kings of England then claimed sovereignty, all allegedly sanc ...
. Ardfert is the home of St. Brendan's
Ardfert Cathedral The Ardfert Cathedral ( ga, Ardeaglais Ard Fhearta) is a ruined cathedral in Ardfert, County Kerry, Ireland. Dedicated to Saint Brendan, it was the seat of the Diocese of Ardfert from 1117. It is now a heritage tourism site. History Ardfert ...
, which was destroyed in the
Irish Rebellion of 1641 The Irish Rebellion of 1641 ( ga, Éirí Amach 1641) was an uprising by Irish Catholics in the Kingdom of Ireland, who wanted an end to anti-Catholic discrimination, greater Irish self-governance, and to partially or fully reverse the plantatio ...
, and the birthplace of St. Brendan the Navigator, who was educated about the year 500 AD. He founded a
monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which ...
there in the sixth century, but both town and monastery were destroyed by fire in 1089, and again in 1151. The
Norman Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries ** People or things connected with the Norm ...
influence can still be seen not only in the
architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing building ...
, but also in local family surnames such as the Cantillons (Barons de
Ballyheigue Ballyheigue ( ), officially Ballyheige ( - meaning ''Settlement of Tadhg'') is a coastal village in County Kerry, Ireland. It is approximately north of Tralee on the R551. It is a scenic locale which forms part of the Wild Atlantic Way and h ...
), and Fitzmaurices, and in place names, such as Ballintobeenig, a nearby townland below Mt. Crusline called after St. Aubin.
Thomas FitzMaurice, 1st Baron Kerry Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the A ...
founded a
Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related Mendicant orders, mendicant Christianity, Christian Catholic religious order, religious orders within the Catholic Church. Founded in 1209 by Italian Catholic friar Francis of Assisi, these orders include t ...
friary there in 1253, and Nicholas, the 2nd Lord Kerry, built a
leper Leprosy, also known as Hansen's disease (HD), is a long-term infection by the bacteria ''Mycobacterium leprae'' or ''Mycobacterium lepromatosis''. Infection can lead to damage of the nerves, respiratory tract, skin, and eyes. This nerve damage ...
house there in 1312. It was the seat of a
bishopric In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associate ...
until 1660. The
Crusade The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these Crusades are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were i ...
r
Knights Hospitaller The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem ( la, Ordo Fratrum Hospitalis Sancti Ioannis Hierosolymitani), commonly known as the Knights Hospitaller (), was a medieval and early modern Catholic Church, Catholic Military ord ...
of the Order of Saint John of
Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...
(later known as Knights of Malta), also had some rights in Ardfert, although there is a record of a dispute between them and the Franciscans in 1325 about the market cross and
pillory The pillory is a device made of a wooden or metal framework erected on a post, with holes for securing the head and hands, formerly used for punishment by public humiliation and often further physical abuse. The pillory is related to the stocks ...
. They had already been established in the area in c. 1200 when
Meiler FitzHenry Meiler FitzHenry (sometimes spelled Meilyr; died 1220) was a Cambro-Norman nobleman and Lord Chief Justice of Ireland during the Lordship of Ireland. Background and early life Meilyr FitzHenry was the son of Henry FitzHenry, an illegitimate son ...
, grandson of King
Henry I of England Henry I (c. 1068 – 1 December 1135), also known as Henry Beauclerc, was King of England from 1100 to his death in 1135. He was the fourth son of William the Conqueror and was educated in Latin and the liberal arts. On William's death in ...
, and Justiciar of Ireland under King John, established a preceptory at Rattoo under a Fra' William from Dublin. Under the terms of a royal grant in
letters patent Letters patent ( la, litterae patentes) ( always in the plural) are a type of legal instrument in the form of a published written order issued by a monarch, president or other head of state, generally granting an office, right, monopoly, titl ...
of
James I of England James VI and I (James Charles Stuart; 19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and King of Ireland, Ireland as James I from the Union of the Crowns, union of the Scottish and Eng ...
on 6 July 1612, the
Lord of Kerry Baron Kerry is an ancient title in the Peerage of Ireland named after County Kerry. It was created circa 1223 for Thomas FitzMaurice, Lord OConnello. In 1325, Maurice FitzMaurice, 4th Baron Kerry, murdered Diarmaid Óg MacCarthy (son of Cormac ...
(FitzMaurice) could hold courts
baron Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knig ...
and leet. The
Annals of the Kingdom of Ireland The ''Annals of the Kingdom of Ireland'' ( ga, Annála Ríoghachta Éireann) or the ''Annals of the Four Masters'' (''Annála na gCeithre Máistrí'') are chronicles of medieval Irish history. The entries span from the Deluge, dated as 2,24 ...
, recount how in 1601, Prince
Hugh Roe O'Donnell Hugh Roe O'Donnell (Irish: ''Aodh Ruadh Ó Domhnaill''), also known as Red Hugh O'Donnell (30 October 1572 – 10 September 1602), was a sixteenth-century leader of the Gaelic nobility of Ireland. He became Chief of the Name of Clan O'Donne ...
, on his way to the
Battle of Kinsale The siege of Kinsale, or Battle of Kinsale ( ga, Léigear/Cath Chionn tSáile), was the ultimate battle in England's conquest of Gaelic Ireland, commencing in October 1601, near the end of the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, and at the climax of t ...
, sent some of his kinsmen troops there to reconquer Ardfert,
Lixnaw Lixnaw () is a village in North County Kerry, Ireland. It is located near the River Brick SW of Listowel and NE of Tralee. History Lixnaw was once the seat of the Fitzmaurice family, the Earls of Kerry. In 1320 Nicolas, the third baron of ...
, and Ballykeally for his ally FitzMaurice. En route, he visited and venerated a relic of the
True Cross The True Cross is the cross upon which Jesus was said to have been crucified, particularly as an object of religious veneration. There are no early accounts that the apostles or early Christians preserved the physical cross themselves, althoug ...
(
Holy rood Holyrood may refer to: Religion *Holyrood (cross), a Christian relic alleged to be part of the True Cross on which Jesus died *Feast of the Cross, or Holy Rood day, in the Christian liturgical calendar Places United Kingdom * Holyrood, Edinburgh ...
) on the Feast of St. Andrew, on 30 November 1601, at
Holy Cross Abbey Holy Cross Abbey ''(Mainistir na Croise Naofa)'' was a Cistercian monastery in Holycross near Thurles, County Tipperary, Ireland, situated on the River Suir. It takes its name from a relic of the True Cross or Holy Rood. History A supposed fra ...
, near
Thurles Thurles (; ''Durlas Éile'') is a town in County Tipperary, Ireland. It is located in the civil parish of the same name in the barony of Eliogarty and in the ecclesiastical parish of Thurles (Roman Catholic parish), Thurles. The cathedral ch ...
,
County Tipperary County Tipperary ( ga, Contae Thiobraid Árann) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. The county is named after the town of Tipperary, and was established in the early 13th century, shortly after th ...
, which was a rallying point for the defence of religious freedom and for Irish sovereignty. From there he sent an expedition to Ardfert, to win a quick victory and recover the territory of his ally, Fitzmaurice, Lord of Kerry, who had lost it and his 9-year-old son, to Sir Charles Wilmot. The expedition captured Caislean Gearr (Short Castle, of which no trace remains), adjacent to the Cathedral in Ardfert. An
O'Donnell The O'Donnell dynasty ( ga, Ó Dónaill or ''Ó Domhnaill,'' ''Ó Doṁnaill'' ''or Ua Domaill;'' meaning "descendant of Dónal") were the dominant Irish clan of the kingdom of Tyrconnell, Ulster, in medieval Ireland. Naming conventions Or ...
from
Tyrconnell Tyrconnell (), also spelled Tirconnell, was a kingdom of Gaelic Ireland, associated geographically with present-day County Donegal, which has sometimes been called ''County Tyrconnell''. At times it also included parts of County Fermanagh, Cou ...
remained behind in stewardship to hold it, according to "''The Life of Hugh Roe O'Donnell, Prince of Tyrconnell''"written by Lughaidh O'Cléirigh, circa 1603 in Gaelic. A large tomb in the grounds of the cathedral was built much later by John O'Donnell (1803–1879), the most prominent descendant two centuries later, and whose own direct male descendant was the late
Patrick Denis O'Donnell Patrick Denis O'Donnell (9 January 1922 – 1 January 2005) was an Irish Military history, military historian, writer, former UN peace-keeper, and Commandant of the Irish Defence Forces. Background He was born in the Kerries Tralee, County Kerry ...
(1922–2005), the Irish military historian. He owned the summit overlooking Ardfert (Mt. Crusline, Ballintobeenig, from where his ancestral
O'Donnell of Tyrconnell The O'Donnell dynasty ( ga, Ó Dónaill or ''Ó Domhnaill,'' ''Ó Doṁnaill'' ''or Ua Domaill;'' meaning "descendant of Dónal") were the dominant Irish clan of the kingdom of Tyrconnell, Ulster, in medieval Ireland. Naming conventions Or ...
, under authority of Prince
Hugh Roe O'Donnell Hugh Roe O'Donnell (Irish: ''Aodh Ruadh Ó Domhnaill''), also known as Red Hugh O'Donnell (30 October 1572 – 10 September 1602), was a sixteenth-century leader of the Gaelic nobility of Ireland. He became Chief of the Name of Clan O'Donne ...
would have launched the battle to regain Ardfert for Lord Kerry in 1601). The family seat of John O'Donnell, at Tubrid mentioned by Samuel Lewis in his 1837 ''Topographical Dictionary of Ireland'', passed through a female line to the O'Carrolls. The house expanded by John O'Donnell in Tubridmore was listed as an intended "protected structure" in the archaeological monuments section of the draft Kerry County Development Plan 2015–2021. In the early 19th century, the
Earl of Listowel Earl of Listowel (pronounced "Lish-''toe''-ell") is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1822 for William Hare, 1st Viscount Ennismore and Listowel, who had earlier represented Cork City and Athy in the Irish House of Commons. ...
(Hare) was
Lord of the Manor Lord of the Manor is a title that, in Anglo-Saxon England, referred to the landholder of a rural estate. The lord enjoyed manorial rights (the rights to establish and occupy a residence, known as the manor house and demesne) as well as seig ...
and held court every three weeks in Ardfert, through an appointed
Seneschal The word ''seneschal'' () can have several different meanings, all of which reflect certain types of supervising or administering in a historic context. Most commonly, a seneschal was a senior position filled by a court appointment within a royal, ...
, having bought those rights from the Earl of Kerry, Fitzmaurice. The area's archaeological heritage includes the medieval cathedral, St. Brendan's, and associated churches, Temple na Hoe (Church of the young Virgin) and Temple na Griffin. Several have these have become
heritage tourism Cultural heritage tourism (or just heritage tourism) is a branch of tourism oriented towards the cultural heritage of the location where tourism is occurring. The National Trust for Historic Preservation in the United States defines heritage t ...
attractions in the Kerry area due to their central location. The 13th century Franciscan Friary, to the north east of the village, was once an integral part of Ardfert Abbey - not an abbey at all but the name of the Talbot-Crosbie mansion destroyed by fire in 1922 by the IRA. Five other structures included on the
Record of Protected Structures Conservation in the Republic of Ireland is overseen by a number of statutory and non-governmental agencies, including those with responsibility for conservation of the built environment and conservation of the natural environment in Ireland. Con ...
(RPS) are located in Ardfert; St Brendan's Catholic Church (consecrated in 1855), the Old Gates of the Earl of
Glandore Glandore (, meaning ''harbour of the oak trees'') is the name of both a harbour and village in County Cork, Ireland. Glandore is located about an hour's drive south-west of Cork city. The village has several pubs, with traditional music. It i ...
's Demesne, the Talbot-Crosbie Memorial, the Ardfert Parish Room (now a site registered as derelict by Kerry County Council) and Brandon House. There are also many other structures within the village which are not included in the RPS, but are considered to be of considerable architectural and heritage value, such as the Ardfert Retreat Center. Also nearby are the surviving estate walls which contribute to the character and identity of the village.


Geography and development

From the 17th century (possibly 1639) until 1800 the area was a
borough constituency In the United Kingdom (UK), each of the electoral areas or divisions called constituencies elects one member to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons. Within the United Kingdom there are five bodies with members elected by ...
. The borough
corporation A corporation is an organization—usually a group of people or a company—authorized by the state to act as a single entity (a legal entity recognized by private and public law "born out of statute"; a legal person in legal context) and r ...
(its local council) elected two members of the
Irish House of Commons The Irish House of Commons was the lower house of the Parliament of Ireland that existed from 1297 until 1800. The upper house was the House of Lords. The membership of the House of Commons was directly elected, but on a highly restrictive fra ...
. The borough was disenfranchised by the
Act of Union 1800 The Acts of Union 1800 (sometimes incorrectly referred to as a single 'Act of Union 1801') were parallel acts of the Parliament of Great Britain and the Parliament of Ireland which united the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Irela ...
, and from 1801 the area was represented as part of the
county constituency In the United Kingdom (UK), each of the electoral areas or divisions called constituencies elects one member to the House of Commons. Within the United Kingdom there are five bodies with members elected by electoral districts called "constituenc ...
of Kerry. Ardfert lost
borough A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History In the Middle Ag ...
status under section 13 of the
Municipal Corporations (Ireland) Act 1840 The Municipal Corporations Act (Ireland) 1840 (3 & 4 Vict. c. 108), ''An Act for the Regulation of Municipal Corporations in Ireland'', was passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom on 10 August 1840. It was one of the Municipal Corporati ...
. It was one of fifty-eight borough corporations dissolved on 25 October 1840. At this time, about a half-mile east of the cathedral, Ardfert Abbey was the home of the Crosbies,
Baron Brandon Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knigh ...
, and contained the ruins of the old Franciscan Abbey. They also maintained a well-stocked deer-park and gardens. In the 20 years between the 1996 and
2016 census of Ireland ''Census 2016'' in the Republic of Ireland was held on Sunday, 24 April 2016, to administer a national census. It was organised by the Central Statistics Office (CSO) and reported a total population of 4,761,865, or a 3.8% increase since the pri ...
, the population of Ardfert village increased from 648 to 749 inhabitants. It is located within an agricultural area, surrounded by flat and low-lying land. The main Tralee-
Ballyheigue Ballyheigue ( ), officially Ballyheige ( - meaning ''Settlement of Tadhg'') is a coastal village in County Kerry, Ireland. It is approximately north of Tralee on the R551. It is a scenic locale which forms part of the Wild Atlantic Way and h ...
road bisects the village in an east–west axis, with road width restrictions on the western side of the village. To the north of the village, the Tyshe River traverses the village road network. The village settlement pattern is radial and dispersed and consists of a mixture of single site depth development along radial roads interspersed with
housing estate A housing estate (or sometimes housing complex or housing development) is a group of homes and other buildings built together as a single development. The exact form may vary from country to country. Popular throughout the United States a ...
s. Within the core of the village there is a mix of dwelling types of various traditional designs. More modern design predominates in the
one-off housing One-off housing is a term used to refer to the building of individual rural houses, outside of towns and villages. The term is used to contrast with housing developments where multiple units are constructed as part of a housing estate or city st ...
on the radial routes. The development of a central
retail Retail is the sale of goods and services to consumers, in contrast to wholesaling, which is sale to business or institutional customers. A retailer purchases goods in large quantities from manufacturers, directly or through a wholesaler, and t ...
and social node has been constrained to some extent by need to protect historic buildings and
monuments A monument is a type of structure that was explicitly created to commemorate a person or event, or which has become relevant to a social group as a part of their remembrance of historic times or cultural heritage, due to its artistic, hist ...
within the village.


Economy and amenities

The village provides a number of
goods and services Goods are items that are usually (but not always) tangible, such as pens, physical books, salt, apples, and hats. Services are activities provided by other people, who include architects, suppliers, contractors, technologists, teachers, doctor ...
to the local area and surrounding agricultural hinterland. Other developments have increased its role as a
dormitory suburb A commuter town is a populated area that is primarily residential rather than commercial or industrial. Routine travel from home to work and back is called commuting, which is where the term comes from. A commuter town may be called by many o ...
for
Tralee Tralee ( ; ga, Trá Lí, ; formerly , meaning 'strand of the Lee River') is the county town of County Kerry in the south-west of Ireland. The town is on the northern side of the neck of the Dingle Peninsula, and is the largest town in County ...
. The village also acts as a convenience stop for tourist and local through traffic. The village is served by social and
retail Retail is the sale of goods and services to consumers, in contrast to wholesaling, which is sale to business or institutional customers. A retailer purchases goods in large quantities from manufacturers, directly or through a wholesaler, and t ...
services, including a Garda station, ''
An Post (; literally 'The Post') is the state-owned provider of postal services in Ireland. An Post provides a "universal postal service" to all parts of the country as a member of the Universal Postal Union. Services provided include letter post, p ...
''
post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letters and parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post offices may offer additional serv ...
, health centre, garage, petrol station and a number of retail outlets and
public house A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...
s. In addition there is a
Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
Church, a school and a
community centre Community centres, community centers, or community halls are public locations where members of a community tend to gather for group activities, social support, public information, and other purposes. They may sometimes be open for the whole co ...
with gym and launderette.
Planning permission Planning permission or developmental approval refers to the approval needed for construction or expansion (including significant renovation), and sometimes for demolition, in some jurisdictions. It is usually given in the form of a building perm ...
for residential development has recently been permitted on the existing
Gaelic Athletic Association The Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA; ga, Cumann Lúthchleas Gael ; CLG) is an Irish international amateur sporting and cultural organisation, focused primarily on promoting indigenous Gaelic games and pastimes, which include the traditional ...
(GAA) grounds, with replacement facilities planned elsewhere on the periphery of the village.


Transport

Ardfert is located on the R551 regional road from
Tralee Tralee ( ; ga, Trá Lí, ; formerly , meaning 'strand of the Lee River') is the county town of County Kerry in the south-west of Ireland. The town is on the northern side of the neck of the Dingle Peninsula, and is the largest town in County ...
to
Ballyheigue Ballyheigue ( ), officially Ballyheige ( - meaning ''Settlement of Tadhg'') is a coastal village in County Kerry, Ireland. It is approximately north of Tralee on the R551. It is a scenic locale which forms part of the Wild Atlantic Way and h ...
. The village centre is located at a crossroads between the R551 and several local roads. The traffic is increased by the quarry to the north east of the village which generates HGV traffic movements through the village. During the summer months, the situation is exacerbated by tourist traffic to coastal locations. The
Tralee Tralee ( ; ga, Trá Lí, ; formerly , meaning 'strand of the Lee River') is the county town of County Kerry in the south-west of Ireland. The town is on the northern side of the neck of the Dingle Peninsula, and is the largest town in County ...
-
Ballyheigue Ballyheigue ( ), officially Ballyheige ( - meaning ''Settlement of Tadhg'') is a coastal village in County Kerry, Ireland. It is approximately north of Tralee on the R551. It is a scenic locale which forms part of the Wild Atlantic Way and h ...
road at the northern end of the village sees bottleneck delays in traffic into and out of the village.
Ardfert railway station Ardfert railway station served the village of Ardfert in County Kerry, Ireland. The station opened on 20 December 1880. Passenger services were withdrawn on 4 February 1963, although the route through Ardfert continued to be used by freight t ...
, on the line from
Limerick Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...
to Tralee via
Newcastle West Newcastle West () or simply Newcastle (''An Caisleán Nua'', formerly anglicized Castlenoe) is a town in west County Limerick, Ireland. It is the largest town in the county, excluding Limerick city, It is also the county town, and sits on the ...
, opened on 20 December 1880. The station closed to passengers on 4 February 1963, and to freight on 2 June 1978. The track was lifted in 1988.


Sport


Gaelic games

Ardfert GAA Ardfert are a Gaelic football team in north County Kerry, Ireland. They are one of two clubs in Ardfert, St Brendan's Hurling Club being the local hurling club. They play in the County Senior Football Championship and Div 1 County League. ...
, the local
Gaelic football Gaelic football ( ga, Peil Ghaelach; short name '), commonly known as simply Gaelic, GAA or Football is an Irish team sport. It is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score by kic ...
club, won the
All-Ireland Junior Club Football Championship The All-Ireland Junior Club Football Championship is a Gaelic football competition which began in 2002 and is played by the junior club champions of each county. Prior to that a number of unofficial competitions were held. The winners of each cou ...
in
Croke Park Croke Park ( ga, Páirc an Chrócaigh, ) is a Gaelic games stadium in Dublin, Ireland. Named after Archbishop Thomas Croke, it is referred to as Croker by GAA fans and locals. It serves as both the principal national stadium of Ireland and he ...
on 19 February 2006 beating
Loughrea Loughrea ( ; ) is a town in County Galway, Ireland. The town lies to the north of a range of wooded hills, the Slieve Aughty Mountains, and the lake from which it takes its name. The town's cathedral, St Brendan's, dominates the town's skyline ...
of
Galway Galway ( ; ga, Gaillimh, ) is a City status in Ireland, city in the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht, which is the county town of County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lo ...
. The club's accomplishments also include winning the 2007
All-Ireland Intermediate Club Football Championship The All-Ireland Intermediate Club Football Championship is an annual gaelic football competition which began in 2003. The winners of the Intermediate Club Championship from each county enter the competition. Finals by year Winners by County S ...
, defeating
Derry Derry, officially Londonderry (), is the second-largest city in Northern Ireland and the fifth-largest city on the island of Ireland. The name ''Derry'' is an anglicisation of the Old Irish name (modern Irish: ) meaning 'oak grove'. The ...
and Ulster Champions Eoghan Rua, on 10 March 2007 again in Croke Park. The local
hurling Hurling ( ga, iománaíocht, ') is an outdoor team game of ancient Gaelic Irish origin, played by men. One of Ireland's native Gaelic games, it shares a number of features with Gaelic football, such as the field and goals, the number of p ...
club is St Brendan's, Ardfert. They have won the
Kerry Senior Hurling Championship The Kerry Senior Hurling Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as Garvey's SuperValu Senior Hurling Championship) is an annual hurling competition organised by the Kerry County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association since 1889 for the t ...
on 8 occasions, most recently in 2013.


Other sports

A short lived
greyhound racing Greyhound racing is an organized, competitive sport in which greyhounds are raced around a track. There are two forms of greyhound racing, track racing (normally around an oval track) and coursing; the latter is now banned in most countries. Tra ...
track was opened in the village on 21 August 1929. The venture run by the Kingdom Greyhound Racing Club and only lasted until Wednesday 25 September 1929. The last race was the Ardfert Stake which was won by Captain Off, the even money favourite. The main reason for the closure was the fact that a larger track called Oakview Park (to the south in Oakview Village) was due to open. The eventing horse "Village Gossip", ridden between 1976 and 1985 by British team rider Lucinda Green (née Prior Palmer), was born and bred in Ardfert. He completed Badminton Horse Trials on several occasions, placing second in 1978 and was the fastest competitor at the World Three Day Event in Lexington, Kentucky, the same year.


See also

* Ardfert (constituency) * List of abbeys and priories in Ireland (County Kerry) * List of towns and villages in Ireland


Further reading

* ''Ardfert in Times Past'', Tommy O'Connor, 1999, * ''Ardfert Church 150 : A history of St. Brendan's Church, Ardfert 1855 - 2005'', Tommy O'Connor, 2005 *''Annals of the Kingdom of Ireland (Annála Ríoghachta Éireann) by the Four Masters'', from the earliest period to the year 1616, compiled during the period 1632-1636 by Brother Michael O'Clery, translated and edited by John O'Donovan in 1856, and re-published in 1998 by De Burca, Dublin (Volume VI, page 2279). *''The Life of Hugh Roe O'Donnell, Prince of Tyrconnell (Beatha Aodh Ruadh O Domhnaill)'' by Lughaidh O'Cleirigh. translated with notes by Rev. Denis Murphy, S.J., M.R.I.A., and published by Sealy, Bryers, & Walker, Dublin, 1893 (pages 305–307); also later edition edited by Paul Walsh and Colm Ó Lochlainn. Irish Texts Society, vol. 42. Dublin: Educational Company of Ireland, 1948 (original Gaelic manuscript in the Royal Irish Academy in Dublin). *''A Topographical Dictionary of Ireland'' (Two Volumes), by Samuel Lewis, London, 1837 (see entry on ''Ardfert'' in Volume I, pages 47–50) *''Discovering Kerry; its History, Heritage and Topography'', by T.J. Barrington, Blackwater Press, Dublin, 1976 (pages 252–255). *''Vanishing Kingdoms - The Irish Chiefs and Their Families'', by Walter J. P. Curley (former US Ambassador to Ireland), with foreword by
Charles Lysaght Charles Lysaght (born 23 September 1941) is an Irish lawyer, biographer, and occasional columnist. Legal career Lysaght was born in Dublin on 23 September 1941. He was educated at St Michael's College, Dublin and Gonzaga College. He read law an ...
, published by The Lilliput Press, Dublin, 2004 & (Chapter on O'Donnell of Tyrconnell, page 59).


References


External links


Ardfert.ie website
{{Authority control Towns and villages in County Kerry