![Pirosmani](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/03/Pirosmani._Boar.jpg)
The Black Pig's Dyke ( ga, Claí na Muice Duibhe)
or Worm's Ditch ( ga, Claí na Péiste)
is a series of discontinuous linear earthworks in southwest
Ulster
Ulster (; ga, Ulaidh or ''Cúige Uladh'' ; sco, label= Ulster Scots, Ulstèr or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional Irish provinces. It is made up of nine counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United King ...
and northeast
Connacht
Connacht ( ; ga, Connachta or ), is one of the provinces of Ireland, in the west of Ireland. Until the ninth century it consisted of several independent major Gaelic kingdoms (Uí Fiachrach, Uí Briúin, Uí Maine, Conmhaícne, and Delbhn ...
, Ireland. Remnants can be found in north
County Leitrim
County Leitrim ( ; gle, Contae Liatroma) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Connacht and is part of the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the village of Leitrim. Leitrim County Council is the local authority for the ...
, north
County Longford
County Longford ( gle, Contae an Longfoirt) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Leinster. It is named after the town of Longford. Longford County Council is the local authority for the county. The population of the county was 46,6 ...
,
County Cavan
County Cavan ( ; gle, Contae an Chabháin) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster and is part of the Border Region. It is named after the town of Cavan and is base ...
,
County Monaghan
County Monaghan ( ; ga, Contae Mhuineacháin) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Ulster and is part of Border strategic planning area of the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the town of Monaghan. Monaghan County Cou ...
and
County Fermanagh
County Fermanagh ( ; ) is one of the thirty-two counties of Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the six counties of Northern Ireland.
The county covers an area of 1,691 km2 (653 sq mi) and has a population of 61,805 a ...
(see the map below). Sometimes, the
Dorsey enclosure in
County Armagh
County Armagh (, named after its county town, Armagh) is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. Adjoined to the southern shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of and ha ...
and the Dane's Cast in
County Down
County Down () is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. It covers an area of and has a population of 531,665. It borders County Antrim to the ...
are considered to be part of the dyke.
Similar earthworks can be found throughout Ireland, although the Black Pig's Dyke is the best known. A notable example is the Claidh Dubh ("black ditch"), anglicised Clyduff or Cleeduff, in eastern
County Cork
County Cork ( ga, Contae Chorcaí) is the largest and the southernmost county of Ireland, named after the city of Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. Its largest market towns are ...
. It has three sections, the longest of which runs north–south for from the Ballyhoura Hills to the Nagle Mountains.
__NOTOC__
Name
In Counties Leitrim and Cavan, the earthworks are generally called the Black Pig's Dyke or Dike. In County Longford, it is called the Black Pig's Race, while in the Cavan–Monaghan border area it is called the Black Pig's Dyke or the Worm Ditch. The ditches take their names from
Gaelic
Gaelic is an adjective that means "pertaining to the Gaels". As a noun it refers to the group of languages spoken by the Gaels, or to any one of the languages individually. Gaelic languages are spoken in Ireland, Scotland, the Isle of Man, and Ca ...
folklore. One tale says that a huge black
boar
The wild boar (''Sus scrofa''), also known as the wild swine, common wild pig, Eurasian wild pig, or simply wild pig, is a suid native to much of Eurasia and North Africa, and has been introduced to the Americas and Oceania. The species is ...
tore up the countryside with its large
tusk
Tusks are elongated, continuously growing front teeth that protrude well beyond the mouth of certain mammal species. They are most commonly canine teeth, as with pigs and walruses, or, in the case of elephants, elongated incisors. Tusks share c ...
s. Another says that the ditches were made by a huge worm.
Construction and purpose
![The Image of Irelande - plate02](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/28/The_Image_of_Irelande_-_plate02.jpg)
The earthworks usually consist of a bank with a ditch on either side. The bank is usually about wide and the ditches are usually about deep.
[''Antiquities of the Irish Countryside''] Excavation of a stretch in County Monaghan revealed that the original construction was of a substantial timber
palisade
A palisade, sometimes called a stakewall or a paling, is typically a fence or defensive wall made from iron or wooden stakes, or tree trunks, and used as a defensive structure or enclosure. Palisades can form a stockade.
Etymology
''Palisade' ...
with external ditch. Behind the palisade was a double bank with intervening ditch. The timber structure was radiocarbon-dated to 390–370 BCE, so all of the earthworks may date to that period. Such dates confound the once popular theory that the earthworks were made in imitation of the Roman frontier in northern Britain.
Some have put forward the idea that the earthworks marked the ancient border of
Ulster
Ulster (; ga, Ulaidh or ''Cúige Uladh'' ; sco, label= Ulster Scots, Ulstèr or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional Irish provinces. It is made up of nine counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United King ...
. However, there is no evidence that they "collectively constitute one border for one people" – the earthworks may not be contemporary and there are large gaps between them. Others suggest that their sole purpose was to prevent
cattle raiding
Cattle raiding is the act of stealing cattle. In Australia, such stealing is often referred to as duffing, and the perpetrator as a duffer.Baker, Sidney John (1945) ''The Australian language : an examination of the English language and English ...
, which was very common in ancient Ireland. Two theories have been put forward to explain why there are large gaps between the earthworks. One is that they were simply built across trackways that were often used by cattle raiders, another is that the gaps between them were once heavily wooded and thus no manmade defence was needed.
Locations
The remains of the earthworks can be found in the following places:
*North County Leitrim: running
northwest
The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sep ...
-
southeast
The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sepa ...
, from
Lough Melvin
Lough Melvin ( ; ) is a lake in the northwest of the island of Ireland on the border between County Leitrim (in Ireland) and County Fermanagh (in the United Kingdom). It is internationally renowned for its unique range of plants and animals.
Ec ...
to
Lough MacNean
Lough MacNean () is a large freshwater lake on the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
It is in two parts. Lower Lough MacNean (or Lough Nilly),The English Cyclopedia 1867 Page 498 " ... and is connected by a short st ...
, near the villages of
Rossinver
Rossinver or Rosinver () is a small village in north County Leitrim, Ireland. The village is home to a retired monastery of the same name and is at the southern shore of Lough Melvin, home to two rare species of trout – the '' Gillaroo'' ...
and
Kiltyclogher
Kiltyclogher () is a small village in County Leitrim, Ireland. It is on the border with County Fermanagh, close to the hamlet of Cashelnadrea.
Population
The population of the electoral division in which Kiltyclogher lies was 233 residents a ...
.
*Northeast County Longford: running northwest–southeast for , from
Lough Gowna to
Lough Kinale
Lough Kinale () is a freshwater lake in the north midlands of Ireland. It is located on the borders of Counties Longford, Westmeath and Cavan. Lough Kinale forms part of the River Inny. The lake's inflow is from Lough Sheelin and the outflow is ...
(crossing the
N55), near the villages of Dring and
Granard
Granard () is a town in the north of County Longford, Ireland, and has a traceable history going back to AD 236. It is situated just south of the boundary between the watersheds of the Shannon and the Erne, at the point where the N55 nationa ...
.
*County Cavan–County Monaghan border: running roughly west–east from the
Finn River (near the village of
Redhills) to the townland of Corrinshigo (near the village of
Drum
The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel-Sachs classification system, it is a membranophone. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a she ...
).
*County Cavan: forming a wide semi-circle in the townland of Ardkill More, 3½ miles east of
Bellananagh
Ballinagh, officially Bellananagh (), is a village in County Cavan, Ireland. It lies on the N55 midlands route.
Buildings of note
Ballinagh Market House is a five-bay two-storey building constructed in 1821; it is currently in use as a store h ...
. This is one of the best surviving examples. Cavan Heritage Group have called for the cessation of operations on a nearby quarry which they maintain is damaging part of the dyke at Ardkill More.
*County Fermanagh: part of linear earthwork in the south-east of Fermanagh, in
Lislea
Lislea ( , ) is a small village and townland near Slieve Gullion in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. It is within the civil parish of Killevy and the historic barony of Orior Upper. Today it is within the Newry, Mourne and Down District Council a ...
townland (grid ref: H4836 2706) and in
Mullynavannoge townland, (grid ref: H4838 2631 – H4850 2590) – Scheduled Historic Monuments
See also
*
The Pale
The Pale (Irish: ''An Pháil'') or the English Pale (' or ') was the part of Ireland directly under the control of the English government in the Late Middle Ages. It had been reduced by the late 15th century to an area along the east coast st ...
References
{{coord missing, Ireland
Ancient dikes
Archaeological sites in County Cavan
Archaeological sites in County Monaghan
Archaeological sites in County Leitrim
Archaeological sites in County Longford
Archaeological sites in County Fermanagh
Linear earthworks
Prehistoric sites in Ireland