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Linn Duachaill (; "Duachall's pool") is the name of a Viking
longphort A longphort (Ir. plur. ''longphuirt'') is a term used in Ireland for a Viking ship enclosureConnolly S.J (1998). The Oxford Companion to Irish History. Oxford University Press. p. 580 or shore fortress. Although these ''longphorts'' were used as b ...
near the village of
Annagassan Annagassan ()"Annagassan" A Dictionary of British Place-Names. A. D. Mills. Oxford University Press, 2003. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. Solihull Libraries. 16 April 2008 is a village in the townland of Ballynagassan, County ...
,
County Louth County Louth ( ; ga, An Lú) is a coastal county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Ireland, within the province of Leinster. Louth is bordered by the counties of Meath to the south, Monaghan to the west, Armagh to the north and Down to the ...
, Ireland. The settlement was built in 841 CE, the same time as the settlement of ''Dubh Linn'', or Dublin. In contrast to Dublin, the settlement was abandoned. It has been argued that possibly because of changing tidal patterns, it lacked continuous access to the sea. The tides would have made access to the water difficult for a number of hours per day.


History

The longphort of Linn Duachaill is first mentioned in Irish annals of the 840s. A certain Tergeis or Turgesius, as he is called in the annals, is said to have founded forts at Dubh Linn and Linn Duachaill, from which the "surrounding territories and churches were plundered and preyed." Walter Alison Phillips, ed., ''History of the Church of Ireland: From the Earliest Times to the Present Day'', Volume 2 ''Movement Towards Rome: The Medieval Church and the Reformation'', Oxford University Press, 1934, OCLC 606118054
p. 3
This Turgesius was a colourful figure: he apparently brought the north of Ireland under his rule and enthroned his wife on the high altar of the cathedral at the monastery of Clonmacnoise, but was taken prisoner in 843 by Máel Sechnaill mac Máele Ruanaid and drowned in Loch Nar.


Site discovery

The archeological site of Linn Duachaill was discovered in 2010 on a flat area on the River Glyde, after a team of archeologists and a
geophysicist Geophysics () is a subject of natural science concerned with the physical processes and physical properties of the Earth and its surrounding space environment, and the use of quantitative methods for their analysis. The term ''geophysics'' som ...
had searched from 2005 to 2007 and found a pattern of straight ditches, unlike the usually circular forts built by the native population. The initial drive for the excavation came from a local filmmaker, Ruth Cassidy, member of the local historical society. The announcement that the finds were identified as Linn Duachaill was made in September 2010. Since the site is on agricultural land, it is very well preserved. Three test trenches were dug. The team, headed by archeologist Mark Clinton, excavated a "defensive rampart, consisting of a deep ditch and a bank." This wall would have protected the fort on one side, while the other sides would have been protected by the River Glyde and the Irish Sea. Objects found include "Viking ship rivets, cut-up Viking silver and looted Irish metalwork," besides "part of a human skull, a whorl for spinning thread and a brooch pin." The nearby hillfort
Lisnaran Fort Lisnaran Fort is a ringfort (rath) and National Monument located in County Louth, Ireland. Location Lisnaran Fort is located outside Annagassan, near the meeting-point of the River Glyde and River Dee. History Lisnaran contains the remai ...
was traditionally associated with Linn Duachaill, although it is also claimed that Lisnaran is Gaelic rather than Viking.


References

{{coord, 53.8888, N, 6.3578, W, source:wikidata, display=title Archaeological sites in County Louth Viking Age populated places Medieval sites in Ireland