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 () is the county town of County Longford in Ireland. It has a population of 10,008 according to the 2016 census. It is the biggest town in the county and about one third of the county's population lives there. Longford lies at the meet ...

. Longford County Council is the local authority for the county. The population of the county was 46,634 at the 2022 census. The county is based on the historic Gaelic territory of

Annaly Annaly is an Irish lordship and former principality, named for its conqueror Angaile, or An Uillin, ancestor of the Ó Fearghail. The territory of Annaly coincides with modern County Longford and was conquered in the 10th century by An Uillin, ...

(''Anghaile''), formerly known as

Teffia Tethbae (; also spelled ''Tethba'', often anglicised ''Teffia'') was a confederation of túatha in central Ireland in the Middle Ages. It was divided into two distinct kingdoms, north Tethba, ruled by the Cenél Coirpri, and south Tethba, ruled ...

(''Teathbha'').

Geography

Most of Longford lies in the basin of the

River Shannon The River Shannon ( ga, Abhainn na Sionainne, ', '), at in length, is the longest river in the British Isles. It drains the Shannon River Basin, which has an area of , – approximately one fifth of the area of the island of Ireland. The Shan ...

with Lough Ree forming much of the county's western boundary. The north-eastern part of the county, however, drains towards the River Erne and

Lough Gowna Lough Gowna () is a fresh water lake which is the uppermost lake on the River Erne. It is located on the border between County Longford and County Cavan, with the largest part of the lake being in County Longford. Lough Gowna is a moraine-damme ...

. Lakeland, bogland, pastureland, and wetland typify Longford's generally low-lying landscapes: the highest point of the county is in the north-west -

Carn Clonhugh Corn Hill, also called Cairn Hill or Carn Clonhugh ( ga, Carn Clainne Aodha or '), is a hill in County Longford, Republic of Ireland. It lies north of Longford, between Drumlish and Ballinalee, in the parish of Killoe. At 278 metres above ...

(also known as Cairn Hill or Corn Hill) between

Drumlish Drumlish () is a village in County Longford, Ireland on the R198 regional road north of Longford Town. History Evidence of ancient settlement in the area includes a number of ringfort sites in Drumlish and its surrounding townlands. The rema ...

and Ballinalee in the parish of Killoe, at . Cairn Hill is the site of a television transmitter broadcasting to much of the Irish midlands. In the list of Irish counties by highest point, Longford ranks third lowest. Only

Meath Meath may refer to: General * County Meath, Republic of Ireland **Kingdom of Meath, medieval precursor of the county ** List of kings of Meath ** Meath GAA, including the intercounty football and hurling teams ** Diocese of Meath, in the Roman Cath ...

and Westmeath have lower maxima. In general, the northern third of the county is hilly, forming part of the drumlin belt and Esker Riada stretching across the northern midlands of Ireland. The southern parts of the county are low-lying, with extensive areas of raised bogland and the land being of better quality for grazing and tillage. The

marks the county's border with Roscommon while the Rivers Inny and Tang form much of the boundary with Westmeath. The

Royal Canal The Royal Canal ( ga, An Chanáil Ríoga) is a canal originally built for freight and passenger transportation from Dublin to Longford in Ireland. It is one of two canals from Dublin to the River Shannon and was built in direct competition ...

flows through the south of the county terminating at Cloondara at the Shannon. The canal was refurbished and reopened in 2010. Notable lakes include Kinale Lough and

on the Cavan border, Lough Forbes on the Roscommon border and of course Lough Ree in the south where Longford, Westmeath and Roscommon meet.

Subdivisions

There are six historical baronies: * Ardagh * Granard *

Moydow Moydow () is a village on the outskirts of Longford Town in County Longford, Ireland. Moydow contains an old disused post office, a disused schoolhouse used as a community centre, two pubs, a Roman Catholic church and a disused Church of Ireland ...

* Rathcline * Shrule or Abbeyshrule

Towns and villages

* Abbeylara * Abbeyshrule * Ardagh * Aughnacliffe *

Ballinamuck Ballinamuck () is a village in north County Longford, Ireland. It was the scene of the Battle of Ballinamuck, where a French army aiding the United Irishmen rebellion of 1798 was defeated. The French soldiers were eventually repatriated. The Iri ...

Ballymahon Ballymahon () on the River Inny is a town in the southern part of County Longford, Ireland. It is located at the junction of the N55 National secondary road and the R392 regional road. History Ballymahon derives its name from the Irish lan ...

* Ballinalee *

Cloondara Cloondara () is a small village in County Longford, Ireland. It is situated just off the N5 road near Termonbarry, where the Royal Canal terminates at the River Shannon. It lies west of Longford Town. The Royal Canal is being upgraded so tha ...

Colehill Colehill is a parish, neighbouring Wimborne Minster, in Dorset, England, with a population of 7,000 (2001), reducing slightly to 6,927 at the 2011 census. History The name Colehill originated in 1431 as Colhulle, becoming Colhill in 1518 a ...

* Edgeworthstown * Granard * Kenagh * Killashee * Killoe * Lanesborough * Legan *

Lisryan Lisryan () is a village in County Longford, Ireland. Transport Lisryan is located on the Regional Road the R395 road. The nearest towns are Granard and Edgeworthstown. Granard is served by the Bus Éireann number 111 bus service. Twice on a Fr ...

Mullinalaghta Mullinalaghta (; Irish language, Irish ''Mullach na Leachta''), also officially referred to as Mullanalaghta, is a half-parish in the north-eastern part of County Longford, Ireland, located about eight kilometres north of Granard. Name and to ...

* Newtowncashel *

Newtownforbes Newtownforbes () is a village in County Longford, Ireland. It was historically called ''Lisbrack'', an anglicisation of the Irish name. The N4 National primary route passes through the Main Street of the village, which is situated 6 km ( ...

* Taghshinny With a population of 10,008, Longford Town is the largest town in the county followed by Edgeworthstown (2,072),

(1,877), Lanesborough (1,454) and Granard (816). Townlands are the smallest officially defined geographical divisions in Ireland, with 944 townlands in the county.

Governance and politics

The county is part of the Dáil constituency of Longford–Westmeath.

History

The territory corresponding to County Longford was presumably a frontier colony of the

Kingdom of Meath Meath (; Old Irish: ''Mide'' ; spelt ''Mí'' in Modern Irish) was a kingdom in Ireland from the 1st to the 12th century AD. Its name means "middle," denoting its location in the middle of the island. At its greatest extent, it included all of ...

in the first millennium. Between the fifth and twelfth centuries, the territory was called the kingdom of

Tethbae Tethbae (; also spelled ''Tethba'', often anglicised ''Teffia'') was a confederation of túatha in central Ireland in the Middle Ages. It was divided into two distinct kingdoms, north Tethba, ruled by the Cenél Coirpri, and south Tethba, ruled ...

ruled by various tuath such as the

Cairpre Gabra Between the 5th and 12th centuries, an Irish sept claiming descent from Coirpre mac Néill ruled a barony of north Tethbae,) originally referred to an area north of the River Inny approximating to present day County Longford. County Longford was ...

in the north. Tethbae ( la, Teffia) originally referred to an area north of the River Inny approximating to present-day County Longford. In the year AD 1070, Tethbae was conquered by the Ó Cuinns, Ó Fearghails, and other Conmhaícne tribes, henceforth being known as Muintir

, so named after "Anghaile" the great-grandfather of Fearghail O'Farrell. Furthermore, County Longford was often called Upper Conmaicne, to distinguish it from south Leitrim, then called Lower Conmaicne, because both districts were ruled by the descendants of Conmac, son of Fergus and Queen Meadbh of Connacht. Following the Norman invasion of the 12th century, Annaly was granted to Hugh de Lacy as part of the Liberty of Meath. An English settlement was established at Granard, with Norman

Cistercian The Cistercians, () officially the Order of Cistercians ( la, (Sacer) Ordo Cisterciensis, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint ...

monasteries being established at Abbeylara and Abbeyshrule, and Augustinian monasteries being established at Abbeyderg and at Saints' Island on the shore of Lough Ree. Monastic remains at Ardagh, Abbeylara, Abbeyderg, Abbeyshrule,

Inchcleraun Inchcleraun (), also called Quaker Island, is an island situated in Lough Ree on the River Shannon, in central Ireland. The island is home to the ruins of St. Diarmaid's Monastery, a monastery founded by Diarmaid the Just in AD 560. These build ...

Island in Lough Ree, and Inchmore Island in

are reminders of the county's long Christian history. However, by the 14th century, English influence in Ireland was on the wane. The town of Granard was sacked by Edward Bruce's army in 1315, and the O'Farrells soon recovered complete control over the territory. Annaly later became Longphoirt, now Longford, after O'Farrell's fortress of this name. The county was officially shired in 1586 in the reign of Elizabeth I from the northern portion of Westmeath, but English control was not fully established until the aftermath of the

Nine Years' War The Nine Years' War (1688–1697), often called the War of the Grand Alliance or the War of the League of Augsburg, was a conflict between France and a European coalition which mainly included the Holy Roman Empire (led by the Habsburg monarch ...

. County Longford was added to Leinster by James I in 1608 (it had previously been considered part of Connacht), with the county being divided into six

baronies Barony may refer to: * Barony, the peerage, office of, or territory held by a baron * Barony, the title and land held in fealty by a feudal baron * Barony (county division), a type of administrative or geographical division in parts of the British ...

and its boundaries being officially defined. The county was planted by English and Scottish landowners in 1620, with much of the O'Farrell lands being confiscated and granted to new owners. The change in control was completed during the Cromwellian plantations of the 1650s. On these lands in County Longford, are the historic ruins of the Coolamber Hall House, which was besieged by one of the Cromwells. The county was a centre of the

1798 rebellion The Irish Rebellion of 1798 ( ga, Éirí Amach 1798; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ''The Hurries'') was a major uprising against British rule in Ireland. The main organising force was the Society of United Irishmen, a Irish republicanism, ...

, when the French expeditionary force led by Humbert which had landed at Killala were defeated outside the village of

on 8 September by a British army led by Cornwallis. General Humbert had hoped to amalgamate his forces with other rebels located in Granard but Cornwallis aware of the danger had defeated these forces in the second battle of Granard prior to defeating General Humbert in Ballinamuck. Considerable reprisals were inflicted by the British on the civilian inhabitants of the county in the aftermath of the battle. A revolutionary spirit was again woken in the county during the

Irish War of Independence The Irish War of Independence () or Anglo-Irish War was a guerrilla war fought in Ireland from 1919 to 1921 between the Irish Republican Army (IRA, the army of the Irish Republic) and British forces: the British Army, along with the quasi-mil ...

when the North Longford flying column, led by Seán Mac Eoin, became one of the most active units on the Irish side during that war.

Education

There are many national and secondary schools located in the county such as Moyne Community School, St. Mels and the Convent (Longford, Granard, Ballymahon, Lanesborough).

Demographics

With an area of and a population of 40,873, Longford is the fourth smallest of the 32 counties in area and second smallest in terms of population. It is also the fourth smallest of Leinster's 12 counties by size and smallest by population. It borders counties

Cavan Cavan ( ; ) is the county town of County Cavan in Ireland. The town lies in Ulster, near the border with County Fermanagh in Northern Ireland. The town is bypassed by the main N3 road that links Dublin (to the south) with Enniskillen, Bally ...

to the northeast, Westmeath to the southeast, Roscommon to the southwest and Leitrim to the northwest. Longford's population growth during the period 2002-2006 (10.6%) has been stronger than the National average (8.2%). Agriculture is an important facet in the way of life and for the economy in County Longford. There are 73,764 hectares of area (67.6% of the county's total area) farmed in the county. There are approximately 126,904 cattle in the county too.

People

* Padraic Colum (1881–1972), writer * Francis Ysidro Edgeworth (1845–1926), philosopher, economist, mathematician * Maria Edgeworth (1768–1849), writer, lived at Edgeworthstown House * Albert Reynolds (1932–2014), politician, former Taoiseach

References and notes

Notes

Primary references

Secondary references

Medieval history

* * * *

External links

County Longford Official Website

Longford County Council

Longford Ancestry

Farrells of Longford

Corboy Presbyterian: County Longford's only Presbyterian Church
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