Killarney ( ; ga, Cill Airne , meaning 'church of

sloe ''Prunus spinosa'', called blackthorn or sloe, is a species of flowering plant in the rose family Rosaceae. The species is native to Europe, western Asia, and regionally in northwest Africa. It is locally naturalized in New Zealand, Tasmania ...

s') is a town 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 ...

, southwestern

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

. The town is on the northeastern shore of

Lough Leane Lough Leane (; ) is the largest of the three lakes of Killarney, in County Kerry. The River Laune flows from the lake into the Dingle Bay to the northwest. Etymology and history The lake's name means "lake of learning" probably in reference to ...

, part of

Killarney National Park Killarney National Park ( ga, Páirc Náisiúnta Chill Airne), near the town of Killarney, County Kerry, was the first national park in Ireland, created when the Muckross Estate was donated to the Irish Free State in 1932. The park has since ...

, and is home to St Mary's Cathedral,

Ross Castle Ross Castle ( ga, Caisleán an Rois) is a 15th-century tower house and keep on the edge of Lough Leane, in Killarney National Park, County Kerry, Ireland. It is the ancestral home of the Chiefs of the Clan O'Donoghue, later associated with th ...

Muckross House Muckross House ( ga, Teach Mhucrois) is located on the small Muckross Peninsula between Muckross Lake and Lough Leane, two of the lakes of Killarney, from the town of Killarney in County Kerry, Ireland. In 1932 it was presented by William B ...

and Abbey, the

Lakes of Killarney The Lakes of Killarney are a scenic attraction located in Killarney National Park near Killarney, County Kerry, in Ireland. They consist of three lakes - Lough Leane, Muckross Lake (also called Middle Lake) and Upper Lake. Surroundings The l ...

MacGillycuddy's Reeks , photo=MacGuillycuddy's Reeks.jpg , photo_caption= , country=Ireland , country1= , location = County Kerry , region = Munster , region_type = Provinces of Ireland , parent= , border= , length_km=19 , length_orientation=East–West ...

Purple Mountain Purple Mountain may refer to: China * Purple Mountain (Nanjing), a mountain in Nanjing, Jiangsu Ireland * Purple Mountain (Kerry), a mountain in County Kerry United States * Purple Mountain (Alaska), a mountain in Alaska * Purple Peak (Col ...

Mangerton Mountain Mangerton or Mangerton Mountain (), at , is the 19th-highest peak in Ireland on the Arderin list, and the 26th–highest mountain according to the Vandeleur-Lynam list. Mangerton is the tallest mountain in the Mangerton Mountain Group, also c ...

, Paps Mountain, the

Gap of Dunloe The Gap of Dunloe (), also recorded as ''Bearna an Choimín'' (meaning "gap of the commonage" or "gap of the little hollow"), is a narrow mountain pass running north-south in County Kerry, Ireland, that separates the MacGillycuddy's Reeks mounta ...

and

Torc Waterfall Torc Waterfall () is a high, long cascade waterfall formed by the Owengarriff River as it drains from the ''Devil's Punchbowl'' corrie lake at Mangerton Mountain. The waterfall, which lies at the base of Torc Mountain, in the Killarney Nation ...

. Its natural heritage, history and location on the

Ring of Kerry The Ring of Kerry ( ga, Mórchuaird Chiarraí) is a circular tourist route in County Kerry, south-western Ireland. Clockwise from Killarney it follows the N71 to Kenmare, then the N70 around the Iveragh Peninsula to Killorglin – passing ...

make Killarney a popular tourist destination. Killarney won the Best Kept Town award in 2007, in a cross-border competition jointly organised by the Department of the Environment and the Northern Ireland Amenity Council. In 2011, it was named Ireland's tidiest town and the cleanest town in the country by Irish Business Against Litter.

History

Early history and development

Killarney featured prominently in early Irish history, with religious settlements playing an important part of its recorded history. Its first significantly historical settlement was the monastery on nearby

Innisfallen Island Innisfallen ( ) or Inishfallen (from ga, Inis Faithlinn , meaning 'Faithlinn's island') is an island in Lough Leane; one of the three Lakes of Killarney in County Kerry, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Innisfallen is home to the ruins of Innisfa ...

founded in 640 by St. Finian the Leper, which was occupied for approximately 850 years. Innisfallen (from Irish: ''Inis Faithlinn'', meaning "Faithlinn's island") is an island in Lough Leane, one of the three Lakes of Killarney. It is home to the ruins of Innisfallen Abbey which was founded in 640 by St. Finian, and was occupied until the monks were dispossessed in 1594, by

Elizabeth I, Queen of England Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is sometimes referred to as the "Virgin Queen". Eliz ...

. According to tradition, the

Irish High King High King of Ireland ( ga, Ardrí na hÉireann ) was a royal title in Gaelic Ireland held by those who had, or who are claimed to have had, lordship over all of Ireland. The title was held by historical kings and later sometimes assigned ana ...

Brian Boru Brian Boru ( mga, Brian Bóruma mac Cennétig; modern ga, Brian Bóramha; 23 April 1014) was an Irish king who ended the domination of the High King of Ireland, High Kingship of Ireland by the Uí Néill and probably ended Viking invasion/domi ...

received his education at Innisfallen.

Aghadoe Aghadoe (Irish: ''Achadh an Dá Eó'') is a large townland overlooking the town and lakes of Killarney in Ireland. Officially it is also a parish, although the parish is larger than the area normally associated with the name. The area is famous ...

, the local townland which overlooks present day Killarney, may have begun as a pagan religious site. The site has also been associated with the 5th century missionary

St. Abban ST, St, or St. may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Stanza, in poetry * Suicidal Tendencies, an American heavy metal/hardcore punk band * Star Trek, a science-fiction media franchise * Summa Theologica, a compendium of Catholic philosophy an ...

, but 7th century

ogham Ogham (Modern Irish: ; mga, ogum, ogom, later mga, ogam, label=none ) is an Early Medieval alphabet used primarily to write the early Irish language (in the "orthodox" inscriptions, 4th to 6th centuries AD), and later the Old Irish langua ...

stones mark the first clear evidence of Aghadoe being used as an important site.Long, 1. According to legend, St. Finian founded a monastery at Aghadoe in the 6th or 7th century. The first written record of 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 ...

dates from 939 AD in the

Annals of Innisfallen Annals ( la, annāles, from , "year") are a concise historical record in which events are arranged chronologically, year by year, although the term is also used loosely for any historical record. Scope The nature of the distinction between anna ...

where the Aghadoe monastery is referred to as the "Old Abbey." Following the Anglo-Norman invasion of Ireland in 1169, the Normans built

Parkavonear Castle Parkavonear Castle is a 13th-century Anglo-Norman ruin in Aghadoe in Ireland, overlooking the lakes of Killarney. It was built following the Anglo-Norman invasion of Ireland in 1169. It is two stories high, and, unusually, is built to a cylindr ...

, also at Aghadoe. The castle was perhaps intended as an early warning outpost due to its views of the entire Killarney valley and lakes region.

was built on the lake shore in the late 15th century by local ruling clan the O'Donoghues Mor (Ross). Ownership of the castle changed hands during the

Desmond Rebellions The Desmond Rebellions occurred in 1569–1573 and 1579–1583 in the Irish province of Munster. They were rebellions by the Earl of Desmond, the head of the Fitzmaurice/FitzGerald Dynasty in Munster, and his followers, the Geraldines and ...

of the 1580s to the Mac Carty Mor.

Muckross Abbey Muckross Abbey (Irish: ''Mainistir Locha Léin'' and ''Mainistir Mhucrois'') is one of the major ecclesiastical sites, found in the Killarney National Park, County Kerry, Ireland. It was founded in 1448 as a Franciscan friary for the Observant ...

was founded in 1448 as 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 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 ...

for the Observantine Franciscans by Donal McCarthy Mor. The abbey was burned down by

Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three Ki ...

ian forces under General Ludlow in 1654, and today remains a ruin. Killarney was heavily involved in 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 ...

. The town, and indeed the entire county, had strong republican ties, and skirmishes with the British forces happened on a regular basis. The Great Southern Hotel was for a while taken over by the British, both as an office and barracks, and to protect the neighbouring railway station. One notable event during the war was the

Headford Ambush The Headford Ambush was carried out by the Irish Republican Army (IRA) on 21 March 1921, during the Irish War of Independence. The IRA's 2nd Kerry Brigade ambushed a train carrying British troops of the Royal Fusiliers at Headford Junction rai ...

when the

IRA Ira or IRA may refer to: *Ira (name), a Hebrew, Sanskrit, Russian or Finnish language personal name *Ira (surname), a rare Estonian and some other language family name *Iran, UNDP code IRA Law *Indian Reorganization Act of 1934, US, on status of ...

attacked a railway train a few kilometres from town. However, divisions among former colleagues were quick to develop following the truce and treaty, and Killarney, like many other areas, suffered in the rash of increasing atrocities during the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

. A day after the

Ballyseedy Massacre The executions during the Irish Civil War took place during the guerrilla phase of the Irish Civil War (June 1922 – May 1923). This phase of the war was bitter, and both sides, the government forces of the Irish Free State and the anti-Trea ...

, five

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

prisoners were murdered in Killarney by Free State forces.

Tourism development

Plaque commemorating the coming of the Railway to Killarney

Killarney's tourism history goes back at least to the mid 18th century, when Thomas, fourth Viscount Kenmare (Lord Kenmare), began to attract visitors and new residents to the town. The date of 1747 was used in recent 250-year celebrations to honour the history of Killarney tourism. A visit by

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 21 ...

in 1861 gave the town some international exposure. Killarney benefited greatly from the coming of the railway in July 1853. British trade directory publisher

Isaac Slater Isaac Slater (1803 – 3 December 1883) was a British publisher of trade directories. He was born in Manchester. In 1818 he became the apprentice of James Pigot, a publisher of trade directories. Either in 1833, or after the death of Pigot ...

noted that there were three hotels in the town in 1846 but by 1854, one year after the coming of the railway, James Fraser named seven hotels and described their locations:

the Railway Hotel opposite the Railway Station; the Kenmare Arms and Hibernia which are on the main street and immediately opposite the church... the Victoria which is about a mile .5 kmto the west of the town on the shores of the Lower Lake; the Lake View which is about the same distance to the east of the town and also on the shore of the Lower Lake; the Muckross about two and a half miles kmaway and near the
Muckross Lake Muckross Lake (), also called Middle Lake or The Torc, is a lake in Killarney National Park, County Kerry, Ireland. It is one of the three famous Lakes of Killarney, along with Lough Leane and Upper Lake. It is Ireland's deepest lake, reaching ...
and the Torc which occupies an elevated site about a mile and a half .5 kmfrom the town on the hill which rises immediately over the Lake Hotel.

In 1858, Irish born Victorian journalist,

Samuel Carter Hall Samuel Carter Hall (9 May 1800 – 11 March 1889) was an Irish-born Victorian journalist who is best known for his editorship of ''The Art Journal'' and for his much-satirised personality. Early years Hall was born at the Geneva Barracks in Wat ...

named O'Sullivan's Hotel and the Innisfallen rather than the Hibernia and Torc, but Isaac Slater also named the Hibernia in 1846. At the time he was writing, tours of the

were already an industry and Killarney was considered the starting point of the circuitous route. He was fascinated by the horses' endurance on the two-day trip, and leaves clear advice for other travellers;

It is a common and wise custom of those who make this tour, and are not pressed for time, to hire the carriage at the hotel in Killarney and continue with it 'all the way round.' It is absolutely marvellous what these mountain bred horses can get through "thinking nothing" of thirty miles 0 kmfor days together or even fifty miles 0 kmin a single day.

As part of the trip, he noted that there were hotels in

Glenbeigh Glenbeigh or Glanbehy () is a town and civil parish on the Iveragh peninsula in County Kerry, Ireland. The parish includes Rossbeigh beach, Coomasahran Lake and a number of important rock art sites. Owing to its natural heritage, history and its ...

and Waterville along with a "comfortable inn", which is now

The Butler Arms Hotel The Butler Arms Hotel is located in the town of Waterville in Kerry County, Ireland. The hotel opened in 1884 and has a written history closely linked with the history of Ireland. Overview The Butler Arms opened in 1884 and is situated o ...

Economy

Industry

Thomas Browne, 4th Viscount Kenmare Thomas Browne, 6th Baronet & 4th Viscount Kenmare (April 1726 – 11 September 1795) was an Irish landowner and politician. Family Thomas Browne's father, Valentine Browne (1695–1736), 5th Baronet and 3rd Viscount Kenmare, was one of t ...

founded linen mills in the 1740s as part of his efforts to increase the population and economy of Killarney. In later years,

hosiery Hosiery, also referred to as legwear, describes garments worn directly on the feet and legs. The term originated as the collective term for products of which a maker or seller is termed a hosier; and those products are also known generically as h ...

and shoe making were major industries in the town. Modern employers include Liebherr Cranes, which has had a presence in Killarney since 1958, with a combined manufacturing/research and development facility in the town manufacturing container cranes. In honour of its founder, a street in Killarney was named Dr. Hans Liebherr Road. Other businesses include

Tricel Tricel is a global engineering company headquartered in Killarney in County Kerry, Ireland. Tricel's four core divisions are Water Storage, Environmental, Construction and Distribution. It has production sites in ten locations in Northern Europ ...

(also known as Killarney Plastics) which was founded in 1973. In the public sector, both the

Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media The Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media ( ga, An Roinn Turasóireachta, Cultúir, Ealaíon, Gaeltachta, Spóirt agus Meán) is a department of the Government of Ireland. The mission of the department is to promote an ...

and

Department of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a v ...

have offices in Killarney.

Tourism

Tourism is the largest industry in Killarney, generating around €410 million every year. Roughly 1.1 million tourists visit the town every year, with foreign tourists making up over 60% of all visitors. Flower Garden at Muckross House

Transport

Road

Killarney is served by

National Primary Route A national primary road ( ga, Bóthar príomha náisiúnta) is a road classification in Ireland. National primary roads form the major routes between the major urban centres. There are 2649 km of national primary roads. This category of ro ...

N22 (north to

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 ...

and

Castleisland Castleisland () is a town and commercial centre in County Kerry in south west Ireland. The town is known for the width of its main street. As of the 2016 Census, Castleisland had a population of 2,486. Castleisland was described by one of its ...

and east to

Cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...

); the

National Secondary Route A national secondary road ( ga, Bóthar Náisiúnta den Dara Grád) is a category of road in Ireland. These roads form an important part of the national route network but are secondary to the main arterial routes which are classified as national ...

s N72 (west to

Killorglin Killorglin () is a town in County Kerry, Ireland. As of the 2016 CSO census, the town's population was 2,199. Killorglin is on the Ring of Kerry tourist route, and annual events include the August Puck Fair festival, which starts with the crown ...

and east to Mallow,

Fermoy Fermoy () is a town on the River Blackwater in east County Cork, Ireland. As of the 2016 census, the town and environs had a population of approximately 6,500 people. It is located in the barony of Condons and Clangibbon, and is in the Dái ...

, and

Dungarvan 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 ...

) and the N71 (south to

Kenmare Kenmare () is a small town in the south of County Kerry, Ireland. The name Kenmare is the anglicised form of ''Ceann Mara'', meaning "head of the sea", referring to the head of Kenmare Bay. Location Kenmare is located at the head of Kenmare ...

and

Bantry Bantry () is a town in the civil parish of Kilmocomoge in the barony of Bantry on the southwest coast of County Cork, Ireland. It lies in West Cork at the head of Bantry Bay, a deep-water gulf extending for to the west. The Beara Peninsula is ...

Rail

Killarney railway station Killarney railway station is a station on the Mallow to Tralee line serving the town of Killarney in County Kerry. It is situated next to the bus station and Killarney Outlet Centre. Adjacent to the station on the approach road is the Great S ...

(operated by

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

) has direct services to

and

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

, with connections to the rest of the rail network.

Bus

Bus Éireann Bus Éireann (; "Irish Bus") is a state-owned bus and coach operator providing services throughout Ireland, with the exception of Dublin and the Greater Dublin Area, where bus services are provided by sister company Dublin Bus. It is a subsidia ...

provides bus services to Limerick (and onwards to Dublin), Tralee,

and

Skibbereen Skibbereen (; ) is a town in County Cork, Ireland. It is located in West Cork West Cork ( ga, Iarthar Chorcaí) is a tourist region and municipal district in County Cork, Ireland. As a municipal district, West Cork falls within the administr ...

Air

Kerry Airport Kerry Airport ( gle, Aerfort Chiarraí; ), often called Farranfore Airport, is an international airport in Farranfore, County Kerry, Ireland. It is north of the Ring of Kerry and southeast of the county's capital Tralee. Passenger services ar ...

(17 km), in

Farranfore Farranfore () is a village in County Kerry, Ireland. It lies on the N22 road approximately midway between Tralee (10 miles or 17 km) and Killarney (9 miles or 15 km) and on the railway line connecting the two towns. Farranfor ...

between

and Killarney, provides a number of air services with connecting trains running from

Farranfore railway station Farranfore railway station serves the village of Farranfore in County Kerry, Ireland. It is located a short distance away from Kerry Airport. History The station opened on 18 July 1859 as part of the Tralee & Killarney Railway which opened on ...

Cork Airport Cork Airport ( ga, Aerfort Chorcaí, ) is the second-largest of the three principal international airports in Ireland, after Dublin and ahead of Shannon. It is located in Cork City, south of the city centre in an area known as Farmers Cross ...

(89 km), easily accessible by bus or rail, also serves the Kerry region.

Sport

Association football

The

International Football Association Board The International Football Association Board (IFAB) is the body that determines the Laws of the Game of association football. IFAB was founded in 1886 to agree standardised Laws for international competition, and has since acted as the "guardia ...

(IFAB), the body that determines the Laws of the Game, met at the Lake Hotel in Killarney in 1905. Killarney has three

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

clubs—all of which compete in the

Kerry District League The Kerry District League (known as the Denny Kerry District League for sponsorship reasons) is an association football league featuring amateur and junior clubs from County Kerry. The KDL is a winter league run by Adrian Casey. Its top divisio ...

. Killarney Athletic A.F.C. was founded in 1965, and played its first competitive game in the Desmond League as a youth team. It entered a junior team at the start of 1966. In the early 1970s, the club became a founding club of the Kerry District League (KDL). Originally the club played in the centre of Killarney, but have since moved to a modern facility (with two pitches) in the Woodlawn area of the town. Killarney Celtic was founded in 1976. The club purchased their own ground in 1993 and have invested in their facilities since then. There is a grass pitch and a FIFA 1-star full-size synthetic all-weather pitch (both floodlit to match standard), a 50 x 80 meter grass training pitch and a 70 x 35 metre synthetic training pitch which is also fully floodlit. Cedar Galaxy was formed in 2011 and play in the

Division 2B. The team were promoted to Division 2A for the 2013/2014 campaign.

Gaelic games

The

Kerry GAA The Kerry County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA), or Kerry GAA, is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland. It is responsible for Gaelic games in County Kerry, and for the Kerry county teams. The Kerry branch of the G ...

branch of the

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 ...

was founded in 1888. Kerry's county hurling and

county football teams A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

play at the

Fitzgerald Stadium Fitzgerald Stadium ( ga, Staid a' Ghearaltaigh) is the principal GAA stadium in Killarney, Ireland, and is the home championship venue for the Kerry senior football team. Named in honour of one of the first great players of the Gaelic Athleti ...

in Killarney, which opened in 1936 and has capacity for 43,180 spectators. Killarney has three

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 ...

clubs:

Dr Crokes Dr Crokes is a Gaelic football and hurling club based in Killarney in County Kerry, Ireland. Notable players include Colm Cooper. Founded in 1886, the club's successes include the capture of the All-Ireland Senior Club Football Championship i ...

Killarney Legion Killarney Legion are a Gaelic Athletic Association club from Killarney in County Kerry, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The club was founded on a March evening in 1929 when a group of eleven men held a meeting in the then Temperance movement, Temp ...

and

Spa A spa is a location where mineral-rich spring water (and sometimes seawater) is used to give medicinal baths. Spa towns or spa resorts (including hot springs resorts) typically offer various health treatments, which are also known as balneoth ...

. The rural hinterland has a large number of football teams, such as Kilcummin, Fossa, Firies,

Glenflesk Glenflesk () is a small village in County Kerry, Ireland. It is located on the N22 national primary route between Cork and Killarney. The local Roman Catholic church is dedicated to Saint Agatha and was built . Glenflesk is in the Roman Catholi ...

and

Gneeveguilla Gneeveguilla, ( ), officially Gneevgullia (), is a small village in the Sliabh Luachra region of East County Kerry, Ireland. It lies about east of Killarney, close to the County Kerry/County Cork border. Location Gneeveguilla is situated in ...

. All these teams compete in the Kerry County league and the

East Kerry Senior Football Championship The East Kerry Senior Football Championship is a Gaelic football competition for teams affiliated to the East Kerry division. Most adult clubs in the division compete for this cup, even if they are playing at junior or intermediate grades. In r ...

(O'Donoghue Cup) and league. Dr. Crokes is the most successful of these teams, winning the

All-Ireland Senior Club Football Championship The All-Ireland Senior Club Football Championship is an annual Gaelic football tournament which began in season 1970–71. It is the top-tier competition for the senior football clubs of Ireland and London. The current champions are Kilcoo of ...

in 1992 and the

Munster Senior Club Football Championship The Munster Senior Club Football Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as the AIB Munster GAA Football Senior Club Championship) is an annual Gaelic football competition for the champion clubs of each county. It has been organised by the Mu ...

in 1991, 1990 and 2007. The club has also won the

County Championship The County Championship (referred to as the LV= Insurance County Championship for sponsorship reasons) is the domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales and is organised by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB). It bec ...

on 7 separate occasions, including in 2010. Dr. Crokes is the only club in Killarney with a

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 ...

team; it won the Kerry Intermediate Hurling Championship in 1999 and 2001.

Rowing

There are six

rowing Rowing is the act of propelling a human-powered watercraft using the sweeping motions of oars to displace water and generate reactional propulsion. Rowing is functionally similar to paddling, but rowing requires oars to be mechanically atta ...

clubs in the town, who share a common history in Ireland's oldest surviving regatta, the Killarney Regatta, which is held annually on the first or second Sunday in July. The six clubs are Commercial RC (Killarney), Flesk Valley RC, Fossa RC, Muckross RC, St. Brendan's RC and Workmen RC. The style of rowing seen at the regatta is traditional, fixed seat rowing in wide, wooden six-person boats. Since the 1980s, a number of the clubs have moved toward coastal type rowing and modern 'slide' or Olympic style rowing. Muckross Rowing Club is the largest of the clubs, having developed into a full-time 'sliding' club with 32 National Championships (since 1996) at various levels from Junior to Senior. A number of members of the club have also been selected to row for Ireland and have competed at the

Home International Regatta The Home International Regatta is a rowing regatta held every year for the countries of the British Isles - England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. Events are held for both men and women at junior (under 18) and senior levels, including Para-rowi ...

Coupe de la Jeunesse The Coupe de la Jeunesse is an international rowing regatta rowed over 2,000 m every year. It was founded in 1985 and is open to rowers who are 18 or under by the end of the current calendar year. It is a two-day team event, with points award ...

World Rowing Championships The World Rowing Championships is an international rowing regatta organized by FISA (the International Rowing Federation). It is a week-long event held at the end of the northern hemisphere summer and in non-Olympic years is the highlight of the ...

and

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a var ...

. Paul Griffin, Sean Casey and

Cathal Moynihan Cathal Moynihan (born 14 February 1981) is an Irish rower. He competed in the men's lightweight coxless four event at the 2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Bei ...

members of Muckross Rowing Club, are Olympic and Irish World Championship rowers.

Rugby

Killarney RFC Killarney Rugby Football Club is a rugby union club based in Killarney, County Kerry, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is affiliated to the Munster Rugby, Munster Branch of the Irish Rugby Football Union. The club competes in Division 2 of the M ...

play in the Munster Junior League. The club's 1st XV won promotion to Division 2 in 2009-10,. while the same season the club fielded a 2nd XV for the first time. The club has also a large youth and underage set-up catering for all young enthuasists from the town and surrounding areas.

Golf

Killarney Golf & Fishing Club Killarney Golf and Fishing Club is a private - members owned golf club on the shore of Lough Leane just west of Killarney, County Kerry, Ireland. The club has 2 18-hole golf courses, Killeen and Mahony's Point & a 9-Hole Course called Lackaban ...

attracts various national competitions such as the Irish Open. The Ross Golf Course is a 9-hole golf course less than one mile from the centre of the town.

Other sports

Killarney Racecourse Killarney Racecourse is a horse racing venue in Killarney, County Kerry, Ireland which stages both National Hunt and Flat racing Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys ( ...

is located just outside the town and holds flat and national hunt meetings. The Ring of Kerry Cycle, a charity cycle around the Ring (175km) takes place every first Saturday in July. There is also a club in Killarney called Killarney Cycling Club. St. Paul's Killarney Basketball Club, established in 1985, has youth teams and a senior national league team that plays in the Irish Basketball Division one league. Killarney is also the home of Irish

floorball Floorball is a type of floor hockey with five players and a goalkeeper in each team. Men and women play indoors with sticks and a plastic ball with holes. Matches are played in three twenty-minute periods. The sport of bandy also played a role ...

In popular culture and music

In 1900 the composer

Cyril Rootham Cyril Bradley Rootham (5 October 1875 – 18 March 1938) was an English composer, educator and organist. His work at Cambridge University made him an influential figure in English music life. A Fellow of St John's College, where he was also or ...

wrote his Op.8 "Four Impressions (Killarney)" for solo violin and small orchestra. The work was never published, but Rootham later arranged the work for pianoforte duet (Op.8 No.2, unpublished) and for violin and piano (Op.8.No.3, published in 1902 as "Impressions pour Violon et Piano"). At the beginning of the 20th century, many songs which romanticized Ireland made direct mention of Killarney. Examples included "My Father Was Born In Killarney - Don’t Run Down The Irish" (1910), "

Too Ra Loo Ra Loo Ral "Too-Ra-Loo-Ra-Loo-Ral (That's an Irish Lullaby)" is a classic Irish-American song that was written in 1913 by composer James Royce Shannon (1881–1946) for the Tin Pan Alley musical '' Shameen Dhu''. The original recording of the song, by Chaunc ...

" (1914) and "For Killarney and you" (1910). IRAMemorialKillarney

"There's Only the One Killarney" is a song that was written by Irish songwriter

Dick Farrelly Richard Farrelly (17 February 1916 – 11 August 1990) was an Irish songwriter, policeman and poet, composer of "The Isle of Innisfree", the song for which he is best remembered. His parents were publicans and when Farrelly was twenty-three he ...

and recorded by Irish tenor Patrich O'Hagan. Killarney also appears in "How Can You Buy Killarney," written by Kennedy, Steels, Grant and Morrison, and recorded by Joseph Locke, among others. Killarney is also mentioned in "

Christmas in Killarney "Christmas in Killarney" is an Irish-American Christmas song written by John Redmond, James Cavanaugh and Frank Weldon, copyright 1950. This song has been performed by many artists. Two recordings made the '' Billboard'' retail chart in 1950 ...

" (written by Redmond, Cavanaugh and Weldon) and "Did Your Mother Come From Ireland?" (written by Kennedy and Carr), both most notably recorded by

Bing Crosby Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby Jr. (May 3, 1903 – October 14, 1977) was an American singer, musician and actor. The first multimedia star, he was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century worldwide. He was a ...

. "Some Say the Devil Is Dead" by

Derek Warfield Derek Warfield (born 15 September 1943) is an Irish singer, songwriter, historian, and a former member of the musical group The Wolfe Tones. Personal life Born in the Dublin suburb Inchicore, Warfield was educated at Synge Street CBS. He was ap ...

contains the line "Some say the devil is dead and buried in Killarney/ More say he rose again and joined the British Army." In the chorus of

Celtic rock Celtic rock is a genre of folk rock, as well as a form of Celtic fusion which incorporates Celtic music, instrumentation and themes into a rock music context. It has been extremely prolific since the early 1970s and can be seen as a key foundat ...

band

Gaelic Storm Gaelic Storm is a Celtic band founded in Santa Monica, California in 1996. Their musical output includes pieces from traditional Irish music, Scottish music, and original tunes in both the Celtic and Celtic rock genres. The band had its first b ...

's song '' Raised on Black and Tans'', the singer declares his Irish heritage by saying "my mother’s brother’s sister’s cousin’s auntie’s Uncle Barney’s father’s brother had a cousin from Killarney."

Van Morrison Sir George Ivan Morrison (born 31 August 1945), known professionally as Van Morrison, is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist whose recording career spans seven decades. He has won two Grammy Awards. As a teenager in t ...

references the town in the opening lines of his 1974 song "

Fair Play Fair play or Fairplay usually refers to sportsmanship. Fair play or Fairplay may also refer to: Media * ''Fair Play'' (1925 film), an American silent film * ''Fair Play'', a 1972 TV movie starring Paul Ford * ''Fair Play'' (2014 film), a Czech ...

" off of his album ''

Veedon Fleece ''Veedon Fleece'' is the eighth studio album by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison, released on 5 October 1974. Morrison recorded the album shortly after his divorce from wife Janet (Planet) Rigsbee. With his broken marriage in the pa ...

'': "''Fair play to you / Killarney's lakes are so blue / And the architecture I'm taking in with my mind / So fine''." In 2013 Colin O'Sullivan published a novel called ''Killarney Blues'', set in his native town and for which he was awarded the "

Prix Mystère de la critique The Prix Mystère de la critique was established in 1972 by ', published by from 1948 to 1976, and is one of the oldest French awards for a detective novel. It continues to be awarded each year by its founder, Georges Rieben and his team, and ha ...

" in 2018.

Notable people

* Eóin Brosnan,

er and solicitor *

Jessie Buckley Jessie Buckley (born 28 December 1989) is an Irish actress and singer. The recipient of a Laurence Olivier Award, in addition to nominations for an Academy Award and three BAFTA Awards, she was listed at number 38 on ''The Irish Times'' list of ...

, singer and actress * Paul Coghlan, former senator *

Colm Cooper Colm "the Gooch" Cooper (born 3 June 1983) is an Irish Gaelic footballer whose league and championship career at senior level with the Kerry county team spanned fifteen years from 2002 to 2017. Born in Killarney, County Kerry, Cooper was born ...

, Gaelic footballer *

Edward Eagar Edward Eagar (1787–1866) was a lawyer, merchant and criminal. Early life Eagar was born in Killarney, Ireland. His parents were landed gentry so he was well educated. He trained as a solicitor and became an attorney to His Majesty's Courts in ...

, lawyer and convict *

Michael Fassbender Michael Fassbender (born 2 April 1977) is an Irish actor. He is the recipient of various accolades, including a Screen Actors Guild Award, a Critics' Choice Movie Award, and nominations for two Academy Awards, four British Academy Film Award ...

, actor *

Thomas Fitton Thomas Edmond John Fitton (16 August 1911 – 31 August 2000), known as John, was an Anglo-Irish first-class cricketer and Royal Air Force officer. Life Fitton was born in Ireland at Killarney in August 1911. He was educated in England at Tr ...

, cricketer and

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

officer * Dick Fitzgerald, Kerry Gaelic footballer * Hugh Kelly, writer * Seán Kelly, MEP, former President of the GAA and Chairman, Irish Institute of Sport *

Mark Lanegan Mark William Lanegan (November 25, 1964 – February 22, 2022) was an American singer, songwriter, and poet. First becoming prominent as the lead singer for the early grunge band Screaming Trees, he was also known as a member of Queens of the St ...

, American musician and author who immigrated to Killarney, where he died *

Tadhg Lyne Tadhgie Lyne ( 8 December 1930 – 31 May 2000) was an Irish Gaelic footballer with Kerry. Called 'the Prince of Forwards', Lyne was one of the finest scoring forwards of his time. Early life Tadhgie Lyne grew up on High Street, Killarney, on ...

, three times

All-Ireland Senior Football Championship The All-Ireland Senior Football Championship (SFC) ( ga, Craobh Shinsir Peile na hÉireann) is the premier competition in Gaelic football. An annual tournament organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA), it is contested by the county ...

winner with the

Gaelic football team * James McDonogh, first-class cricketer *

Michael McElhatton Michael McElhatton (born 12 September 1963) is an Irish actor and writer. He is best known for playing the role of Roose Bolton in the HBO series ''Game of Thrones''. He joined the series as a guest star in the second season, and continued t ...

, soccer player *

Brendan Moloney Brendan Anthony Moloney (born 18 January 1989) is an Irish former professional footballer who played mainly as a right-back. Career Born in Beaufort, Killarney, County Kerry, he was a graduate of the Nottingham Forest Youth Academy and captain ...

, soccer player *

Breeda Moynihan-Cronin Breeda Moynihan-Cronin (''née'' Moynihan; born 31 March 1953) is a former Irish Labour Party politician who served as a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Kerry South constituency from 1992 to 2007. She was born in Cork in 1953, but is a native of K ...

, former TD * Michael Moynihan, former TD *

Paul Nagle Paul Nagle (born 29 August 1978) is an Irish rally co-driver. Drivers with whom he has teamed include Kris Meeke, Gareth MacHale and Craig Breen.

, rally co-driver * Peter O'Brien, Gaelic footballer * Diarmuid O'Carroll, soccer player *

Monsignor Hugh O'Flaherty Hugh O'Flaherty (28 February 1898 – 30 October 1963), was an Irish Catholic priest and senior official of the Roman Curia, and a significant figure in Catholic resistance to Nazism. During World War II, O'Flaherty was responsible for savin ...

, Roman Catholic priest who lived in Killarney as a child * John O'Leary, former TD *

Gillian O'Sullivan Gillian O'Sullivan (born 21 August 1976 in Killarney) is an Irish race walker. She set the unofficial world record in the 5000m walk in Belfast, United Kingdom since 2002 however, the IAAF have refused to verify it. She won a silver medal at th ...

, former Olympian racewalker, world record holder and silver medalist at the World Athletics Championships 2003 * John M. O'Sullivan, TD * Eileen Sheehan, poet

International relations

Killarney is twinned with: :

Castiglione di Sicilia Castiglione di Sicilia ( Sicilian: ''Castigghiuni di Sicilia'') is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Catania in Sicily, southern Italy. Castiglione di Sicilia lies about east of Palermo and about north of Catania. It bo ...

Catania Catania (, , Sicilian and ) is the second largest municipality in Sicily, after Palermo. Despite its reputation as the second city of the island, Catania is the largest Sicilian conurbation, among the largest in Italy, as evidenced also by ...

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

, Italy :

Pleinfeld Pleinfeld is a Franconian municipality and market town in the Weißenburg-Gunzenhausen district, in the German state of Bavaria. It is situated in the Metropolitan Area of Nuremberg and in the Franconian Lake District. Pleinfeld is a nationally re ...

Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...

, Germany :

Concord Concord may refer to: Meaning "agreement" * Pact or treaty, frequently between nations (indicating a condition of harmony) * Harmony, in music * Agreement (linguistics), a change in the form of a word depending on grammatical features of other ...

, North Carolina, United States :

Cooper City Cooper City is a city in Broward County, Florida, United States. The city is named for Morris Cooper, who founded the community in 1959. The city's population was 34,401 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. In 2006, with the annexati ...

, Florida, United States :

Springfield Springfield may refer to: * Springfield (toponym), the place name in general Places and locations Australia * Springfield, New South Wales (Central Coast) * Springfield, New South Wales (Snowy Monaro Regional Council) * Springfield, Queenslan ...

, Illinois, United States :

Myrtle Beach Myrtle Beach is a resort city on the east coast of the United States in Horry County, South Carolina. It is located in the center of a long and continuous stretch of beach known as "The Grand Strand" in the northeastern part of the state. Its y ...

, South Carolina, United States : Scottsdale, Arizona, United States :

Kendal Kendal, once Kirkby in Kendal or Kirkby Kendal, is a market town and civil parish in the South Lakeland district of Cumbria, England, south-east of Windermere and north of Lancaster. Historically in Westmorland, it lies within the dale of th ...

Cumbria Cumbria ( ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in North West England, bordering Scotland. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local government, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumb ...

, England,

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

Staffanstorp Staffanstorp is a locality and the seat of Staffanstorp Municipality, Skåne County, Sweden with 14,808 inhabitants in 2010. Staffanstorp is the largest Scanian settlement never to acquire town privileges before 1971, when they were abolished in ...

Scania Scania, also known by its native name of Skåne (, ), is the southernmost of the historical provinces of Sweden, provinces (''landskap'') of Sweden. Located in the south tip of the geographical region of Götaland, the province is roughly conte ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

Casperia Casperia is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Rieti in the Italian region Latium, located about northeast of Rome and about southwest of Rieti. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 1,164 and an area of .All demographics ...

Rieti Rieti (; lat, Reate, Sabino: ) is a town and ''comune'' in Lazio, central Italy, with a population of 47,700. It is the administrative seat of the province of Rieti and see of the diocese of Rieti, as well as the modern capital of the Sabina re ...

Lazio it, Laziale , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

, Italy

References

External links

* * {{Authority control Towns and villages in County Kerry