County Sligo ( , ) is a

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

. It is in the Northern and Western Region and is part of the

province A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

Connacht Connacht or Connaught ( ; or ), is the smallest of the four provinces of Ireland, situated in the west of Ireland. Until the ninth century it consisted of several independent major Gaelic kingdoms (Uí Fiachrach, Uí Briúin, Uí Maine, C ...

Sligo Sligo ( ; , meaning 'abounding in shells') is a coastal seaport and the county town of County Sligo, Ireland, within the western province of Connacht. With a population of 20,608 in 2022, it is the county's largest urban centre (constituting 2 ...

is the administrative capital and largest town in the county. Sligo County Council is the

local authority Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of governance or public administration within a particular sovereign state. Local governments typically constitute a subdivision of a higher-level political or administrative unit, such a ...

for the county. The population of the county was 70,198 at the 2022 census. It is noted for Benbulben Mountain, one of Ireland's most distinctive natural landmarks.

History

The county was officially formed in 1585 by Sir Henry Sidney, Lord Deputy of Ireland, but did not come into effect until the chaos of the

Nine Years' War The Nine Years' War was a European great power conflict from 1688 to 1697 between Kingdom of France, France and the Grand Alliance (League of Augsburg), Grand Alliance. Although largely concentrated in Europe, fighting spread to colonial poss ...

ended, in 1603. Its boundaries reflect the Ó Conchobhair Sligigh

confederation A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...

of Lower Connacht () as it was at the time of the Elizabethan conquest. This confederation consisted of the tuatha, or territories, of Cairbre Drumcliabh, Tír Fhíacrach Múaidhe, Tír Ollíol, Luíghne, Corann and Cúl ó bhFionn. Under the system of

surrender and regrant During the Tudor conquest of Ireland (c.1540–1603), "surrender and regrant" was the legal mechanism by which Irish clans were to be converted from a power structure rooted in clan and kin loyalties, to a late-Feudalism, feudal system under t ...

each tuath was subsequently made into an English barony: Carbury, Tireragh, Tirerril, Leyny, Corran and Coolavin. The capital of the newly shired county was placed at

. A causewayed enclosure discovered in 2003 at Maugheraboy is one of the earliest indications of

Neolithic The Neolithic or New Stone Age (from Ancient Greek, Greek 'new' and 'stone') is an archaeological period, the final division of the Stone Age in Mesopotamia, Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BCE to c. 2,000 BCE). It saw the Neolithic Revo ...

farming activity on the Cúil Irra Peninsula. The nearby megalithic cemetery of

Carrowmore Carrowmore (, 'the great quarter') is a large group of megalithic monuments on the Coolera Peninsula to the west of Sligo, Ireland. They were built in the 4th millennium BC, during the Neolithic (New Stone Age). There are 30 surviving tombs wi ...

forms part of a huge complex of

Stone Age The Stone Age was a broad prehistory, prehistoric period during which Rock (geology), stone was widely used to make stone tools with an edge, a point, or a percussion surface. The period lasted for roughly 3.4 million years and ended b ...

remains connecting Carrowkeel in south Sligo to the Ox Mountains, to the Cuil Irra Peninsula, where the passage tomb named after the legendary Queen Maeve, Miosgán Médhbh, dominates the western skyline from the crest of Knocknarea Mountain. The Caves of Kesh, famous in Irish

mythology Myth is a genre of folklore consisting primarily of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society. For scholars, this is very different from the vernacular usage of the term "myth" that refers to a belief that is not true. Instead, the ...

, are in south County Sligo. A recent decoding of the work of Marinus of Tyre and

Ptolemy Claudius Ptolemy (; , ; ; – 160s/170s AD) was a Greco-Roman mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, and music theorist who wrote about a dozen scientific treatises, three of which were important to later Byzantine science, Byzant ...

shows Sligo as the likely location of Nagnata, an important place of assembly in the Iron Age. Famous medieval manuscripts written in the area include the ''

Book of Ballymote The ''Book of Ballymote'' (, RIA MS 23 P 12, 275 foll.), was written in 1390 or 1391 in or near the town of Ballymote, now in County Sligo, but then in the tuath of Corann. According to David Sellar who was the Lord Lyon King of Arms in ...

'', written in the territory of Corran, the '' Great Book of Lecan'', and the '' Yellow Book of Lecan'', both written in Tir Fhiacrach. The patron of the ''

Annals of the Four Masters The ''Annals of the Kingdom of Ireland'' () or the ''Annals of the Four Masters'' () are chronicles of Middle Ages, medieval Irish history. The entries span from the Genesis flood narrative, Deluge, dated as 2,242 Anno Mundi, years after crea ...

'' was Fearghal Ó Gadhra of Coolavin in south County Sligo.

Local government and politics

Sligo County Council is the local authority for the county. At the 2019 Sligo County Council election, it was divided into three

local electoral area A local electoral area (LEA; ) is an electoral area for elections to Local government in the Republic of Ireland, local authorities in Ireland. All elections in the Republic of Ireland, elections use the single transferable vote. Republic of Ir ...

s (LEAs): Ballymote– Tobercurry (7 seats),

– Strandhill (6 seats), and Sligo–

Drumcliff Drumcliff or Drumcliffe () is a village in County Sligo, Ireland. It is north of Sligo, Sligo town on the N15 road (Ireland), N15 road on a low gravel ridge between the mountain of Ben Bulben and Drumcliff Bay. It is on the Drumcliff River, o ...

(5 seats). Each of these form a municipal district, with the containing Sligo–Strandhill known as the borough district of Sligo.

Former districts

Under the

Local Government (Ireland) Act 1898 The Local Government (Ireland) Act 1898 ( 61 & 62 Vict. c. 37) was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland that established a system of local government in Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots diale ...

, County Sligo was divided into the rural districts of Boyle No. 2, Dromore West, Sligo, and Tobercurry, and the urban district of

. Unlike most urban districts, Sligo had retained its borough corporation. The rural districts were abolished in 1925. Sligo Borough Corporation became a borough council in 2002, before being abolished in 2014 in common with all borough and town councils in Ireland.

National politics

County Sligo is part of the Dáil constituency of Sligo–Leitrim (4 TDs). At the 2020 election, Martin Kenny (

Sinn Féin Sinn Féin ( ; ; ) is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active in both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The History of Sinn Féin, original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffit ...

), Frank Feighan (

Fine Gael Fine Gael ( ; ; ) is a centre-right, liberal-conservative, Christian democratic political party in Ireland. Fine Gael is currently the third-largest party in the Republic of Ireland in terms of members of Dáil Éireann. The party had a member ...

), Marc MacSharry (

Fianna Fáil Fianna Fáil ( ; ; meaning "Soldiers of Destiny" or "Warriors of Fál"), officially Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party (), is a centre to centre-right political party in Ireland. Founded as a republican party in 1926 by Éamon de ...

) and Marian Harkin (

Ind Ind or IND may refer to: General * Independent (politician), a politician not affiliated to any political party * Independent station, used within television program listings and the television industry for a station that is not affiliated with ...

) were elected.

Coat of arms

This coat of arms was adopted by Sligo County Council in 1980. The design on the black shield, which shows an open book on which there is a Celtic Cross and a red rose, represents collectively the literary and cultural history of Sligo. These refer to such early works as the Books of Ballymote and Lecan, while the rose was a significant theme in the poetry of W. B. Yeats. The escallop shells sprinkled on the shield refer to the origin of the word Sligeach – "a place abounding in shells". The boar's head refers to the "wild boar of Benbulben" in the Diarmuid and Gráinne myth. The colour scheme of the crest incorporates the Sligo GAA colours of black and white.

Culture

County Sligo is the setting for a large number of the texts in the Mythological Cycles. The story of Diarmad and Grainne has its final act played out on Ben Bulben. The Second Battle of Moytirra is associated with Moytirra in South County Sligo. Other texts include Bruidean Ceise Corann, set on Keash Mountain. The rich array of megalithic monuments in the area has been an inspiration to artists and writers such as Sir Samuel Ferguson. The poet and

Nobel laureate The Nobel Prizes (, ) are awarded annually by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, the Swedish Academy, the Karolinska Institutet, and the Norwegian Nobel Committee to individuals and organizations who make outstanding contributions in th ...

W. B. Yeats (1865–1939) spent much of his childhood in northern Sligo and the county's landscapes (particularly the Isle of Innisfree, in Lough Gill) were the inspiration for much of his poetry. Yeats said, "the place that has really influenced my life most is Sligo". He is buried in North County Sligo, " Under Ben Bulben", in

. W. B. Yeats's brother Jack, a painter, also was inspired by the Sligo landscape.

Music

County Sligo has a long history of

traditional music Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has b ...

. The south of the county is particularly noted with such musical luminaries as James Morrison, Michael Coleman, Paddy Killoran, Fred Finn, Peter Horan, Joe O'Dowd, Jim Donoghue, Martin Wynne, Oisín Mac Diarmada (of Téada), tin-whistle player Carmel Gunning and the band Dervish. The county has many traditional music festivals and one of the most well-known is the Queen Maeve International Summer School, a traditional Irish Music summer school of music and dance which is held annually in August in Sligo Town. On the more contemporary music scene there are

Westlife Westlife are an Irish pop group formed in Dublin in 1998. The group consists of members Nicky Byrne, Shane Filan, Kian Egan and Mark Feehily. Brian McFadden was a member before leaving in March 2004. The group disbanded in 2012 and later reun ...

, Tabby Callaghan and The Conway Sisters who are from Sligo. Strandhill, about 9 km west of Sligo, hosts the Strandhill Guitar Festival each year, featuring a wide variety of guitar music and musicians.

Sport

The county is home to League of Ireland Premier Division club Sligo Rovers, who have played home matches at The Showgrounds since they were founded in 1928 and won the league on 3 occasions. Their colours are red and white, hence their nickname the Bit 'O' Red. Brother Walfrid, the founder of Celtic Football Club, was born in Ballymote, in the south of the county. The county is represented in

Gaelic Games Gaelic games () are a set of sports played worldwide, though they are particularly popular in Ireland, where they originated. They include Gaelic football, hurling, Gaelic handball and rounders. Football and hurling, the most popular of the s ...

by Sligo GAA. Their colours are black and white. Sligo has won the Connacht Championship 3 times.

Geography and subdivisions

Sligo is the 22nd largest of Ireland's 32 counties in area and the 27th largest in terms of population. It is the fourth largest of Connacht's 5 counties in size and third largest in terms of population. The County borders

County Mayo County Mayo (; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. In the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht, it is named after the village of Mayo, County Mayo, Mayo, now ge ...

to the west,

County Roscommon County Roscommon () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is part of the province of Connacht and the Northern and Western Region. It is the List of Irish counties by area, 11th largest Irish county by area and Li ...

to the south and south-east and

County Leitrim County Leitrim ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht and is part of the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the village of Leitrim, County Leitr ...

to the northeast.

Largest towns in County Sligo (2016 Census)

, 19,452 # Tubbercurry, 1,986 # Strandhill, 1,753 # Collooney, 1,610 # Ballymote, 1,549 # Ballisodare, 1,350 # Enniscrone, 1,223 # Coolaney, 990 # Rosses Point, 883 # Grange, 586

Towns and villages

* Achonry *

Aclare Aclare () is a village in County Sligo, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, and the main village in the parish of Kilmactigue. Formerly, the village of Aclare was not part of the same-named townland, but straddled the border of the adjacent townlands ...

* Ballaghnatrillick * Ballinafad * Ballygawley * Ballintogher * Ballymote * Ballynacarrow *

Ballysadare Ballysadare (), locally also Ballisodare, is a town in County Sligo, Ireland. It is about south of Sligo town. The town developed on an important crossing of the Owenmore River. Ballysadare is in a townland and civil parish of the same name. ...

* Beltra *

Bunninadden Bunnanadden, Bunnanaddan or Bunninadden () is a small village in south County Sligo, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is on the R296_road_(Ireland), R296 road, 9 km from Tubbercurry and 8 km from Ballymote. The village contains the p ...

* Carney * Castlebaldwin *

Cliffony Cliffoney, officially Cliffony (), is a village in the north of County Sligo in the west of Ireland. It lies on the N15 road (Ireland), N15 national route at its junction with the R279 road (Ireland), R279. It is only three kilometres away from M ...

* Cloonacool * Collooney * Coolaney * Dromore West *

* Easky * Enniscrone * Geevagh * Grange * Gorteen * Kilglass *

Monasteraden Monasteraden () is a village in County Sligo, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The village is located on the shores of Lough Gara. St. Aiden's church is the village's church. Other sites include Lough Gara Lodge, Slí na Croí's Roundhouse Ecolodge ...

* Mullaghmore *

Riverstown Riverstown, historically called ''Ballyederdaowen'' (), is a village in County Sligo, Ireland. Known for its musical tradition it is located at a bridging point of the River Unshin (Arrow), 17.2 km (10 miles) south of Sligo town and 4 ...

* Rosses Point * Skreen * Strandhill * Toorlestraun * Tubbercurry

Places of interest

* Benbulbin *

Carrowkeel Megalithic Cemetery Carrowkeel is a cluster of passage tombs in south County Sligo, Ireland. They were built in the 4th millennium BC, during the Neolithic era. The monuments are on the Bricklieve Hills (''An Bricshliabh'', 'the speckled hills'), overlooking Lo ...

* Carrowmore Megalithic Cemetery * Caves of Kesh *

Coolera Peninsula The Coolera Peninsula () is a peninsula in Sligo Bay, County Sligo, Ireland. It is the most populous of County Sligo's peninsulas, and the second-largest by land area. The primary population centres on Coolera are the coastal town of Strandhil ...

* Curlew Mountains *

Dartry Mountains The Dartry Mountains () are a mountain range in the north west of Ireland, in the north of counties Sligo and Leitrim. They lie between Lough Melvin, Lough Gill and Lough MacNean. The highest point is Truskmore at . Other notable mountains i ...

* Easkey Bog *

Glencar Lough Glencar Lough (), locally known as Glencar Lake, is a freshwater lake in the northwest of Ireland. It covers an area of and lies mostly in County Leitrim with a smaller part in County Sligo. Glencar Waterfall is located near the lake's north sh ...

Knocknarea Knocknarea (; ) is a large prominent hill west of Sligo town in County Sligo, Ireland, with a height of . Knocknarea is visually striking as it has steep limestone cliffs and stands on the Coolera Peninsula overlooking the Atlantic coast. At th ...

* Lough Arrow *

Lough Gill Lough Gill () is a freshwater lough (lake) mainly situated in County Sligo, but partly in County Leitrim, in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Lough Gill provides the setting for William Butler Yeats' poem "The Lake Isle of Innisfree". Location a ...

Maugherow Peninsula The Maugherow Peninsula () is the largest and westernmost peninsula of County Sligo, Ireland. It is also less commonly referred to as the Raghly Peninsula, after Raghly Point (), which is itself a headland A headland, also known as a head, is ...

* Mullaghmore Peninsula * Ox Mountains * Rosses Point Peninsula * Sligo Abbey *

Sruth in Aghaidh an Aird ''Sruth in Aghaidh an Aird'' ( Irish for "stream against the height"), is Ireland’s highest waterfall, with a height of . It is in the Dartry Mountains in the north-west of Ireland, marking part of the border between County Sligo and County ...

Notable people

* '' Feldmarschall'' The 3rd Earl of Carlingford (1639-1704) - senior military commander for the

Habsburg monarchy The Habsburg monarchy, also known as Habsburg Empire, or Habsburg Realm (), was the collection of empires, kingdoms, duchies, counties and other polities (composite monarchy) that were ruled by the House of Habsburg. From the 18th century it is ...

in the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...

. Lord Carlingford was born in Ballymote, and he later served as the

chief minister A chief minister is an elected or appointed head of government of – in most instances – a sub-national entity, for instance an administrative subdivision or federal constituent entity. Examples include a state (and sometimes a union ter ...

of the

Duchy of Lorraine The Duchy of Lorraine was a principality of the Holy Roman Empire which existed from the 10th century until 1766 when it was annexed by the kingdom of France. It gave its name to the larger present-day region of Lorraine in northeastern France ...

. * Michael Coleman (1891–1945) – traditional musician * Owen Connellan (1797–1871) – Irish Scholar, translated the ''

'' in 1846 * Michael Corcoran (1827–1863) – Union Army general in the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

* Adrienne Cullen (1960–2018) – journalist, editor and healthcare campaigner * Kian Egan (born 1980) – member of the pop band

* Mark Feehily (born 1980) – member of Westlife * Shane Filan (born 1979) – member of Westlife * Tommy Fleming (born 1971) – singer * Scott Fredericks (1943–2017) – actor * Marian Harkin (born 1953) –

Teachta Dála A Teachta Dála ( ; ; plural ), abbreviated as TD (plural ''TDanna'' in Irish language, Irish, TDs in English), is a member of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas, the parliament of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The official Engli ...

(TD) for the Sligo–Leitrim constituency; previously a

Member of the European Parliament A member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been Election, elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament. When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the European Coal and S ...

(MEP) from 2004 to 2019 *

Neil Jordan Neil Patrick Jordan (born 25 February 1950) is an Irish filmmaker and writer. He first achieved recognition for his short story collection, ''Night in Tunisia (short story collection), Night in Tunisia,'' which won the Guardian Fiction Prize in ...

(born 1950) – film director, screenwriter, novelist and short-story writer * Constance Markievicz (1868–1927) – revolutionary Irish nationalist, the first woman elected to the British Parliament * Pauline McLynn (born 1962) – actress; Mrs Doyle in the sitcom ''

Father Ted ''Father Ted'' is a sitcom created by Irish writers Graham Linehan and Arthur Mathews (writer), Arthur Mathews and produced by British production company Hat Trick Productions for British television channel Channel 4. It aired over three seri ...

'' * Ray McSharry (born 1938) –

(TD) for the Sligo–Leitrim constituency from 1969 to 1988;

Tánaiste The Tánaiste ( , ) is the second-ranking member of the government of Ireland and the holder of its second-most senior office. It is the equivalent of the deputy prime minister in other parliamentary systems. The Tánaiste is appointed by the P ...

. He also served as

(MEP) for the Connacht–Ulster constituency *

Martin Moffat Martin Joseph Moffat Victoria Cross, VC (15 April 1882 – 5 January 1946) was an Irish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to United Kingdom, Bri ...

(1882–1946) – soldier, recipient of the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious decoration of the Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, British decorations system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British ...

* Lola Montez (1821–1861) – dancer, actress * James Morrison (1893–1947) – traditional musician * Christopher O'Donnell (born 1998) – Olympic track and field athlete * Nace O'Dowd (1931–1987) –

Gaelic football Gaelic football (; short name '')'', commonly known as simply Gaelic, GAA, or football, is an Irish team sport. A form of football, it is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score ...

captain for the Sligo county team * Mary O'Hara (born 1935) – singer * Ambrosio O'Higgins, 1st Marquis of Osorno (1720–1801) – Spanish colonial administrator * Martin Savage (1897–1917) – Irish Republican * Sir George Stokes (1819–1903) – mathematician, physicist * Brother Walfrid (1840–1915) – founder of Celtic FC * Jack Butler Yeats (1871–1957) – artist * W. B. Yeats (1865–1939) – poet

Railways

The Dublin–Sligo railway line is operated by

Iarnród Éireann Iarnród Éireann, () or Irish Rail, is the operator of the national Rail transport in Ireland, railway network of Ireland. Established on 2 February 1987, it is a subsidiary of CIÉ, Córas Iompair Éireann (CIÉ). It operates all internal I ...

in Ireland. It starts in Dublin Connolly station, terminating at Sligo Mac Diarmada railway station in

. In the county there are stations at Ballymote and Collooney.

References

External links

Collection of Sligo Landscape PhotographsSligo County CouncilSligo Borough CouncilMap of SligoSligoheritage.comHistory of Sligo, County and Town By William Gregory Wood-Martin Song, "Beautiful Sligo" sung by Michael McGloin,YouTube Video, with images.
* {{coord, 54, 15, N, 8, 40, W, region:IE_type:adm1st_source:GNS-enwiki, display=title