Abbeylara () is a village in the easternmost portion of County Longford,

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 ...

, located about three kilometers east of

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 nation ...

on the R396 regional road. Its name is derived from a monastery, the great

Abbey of Lerha An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christian monks and nuns. The conce ...

, founded in 1205 by Hiberno-Norman magnate,

Risteárd de Tiúit Risteárd de Tiúit (anglicised as Richard Tuite) (ob. 1210) was an Anglo-Norman nobleman and a member of Richard de Clare, 2nd Earl of Pembroke's Irish invasion force, and Lord Chief Justice of Ireland. His part in the original invasion is acknowl ...

, for Cistercian monks. The monastery was dissolved in 1539, although its ruins are still apparent on approach to the village. An ancient earthwork, the Duncla (

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

''Dún-chlaí'' meaning "fortified ditch") or

Black Pig's Dyke 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 and northeast Connacht, Ireland. Remnants can be found in north County Leitrim, north Co ...

, which runs south-eastwards 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 ...

, goes through the larger

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one o ...

of Abbeylara, and passes about one kilometre north of the village. Because of its proximity to

and Lough Derragh, with a plentiful supply of

trout Trout are species of freshwater fish belonging to the genera '' Oncorhynchus'', '' Salmo'' and '' Salvelinus'', all of the subfamily Salmoninae of the family Salmonidae. The word ''trout'' is also used as part of the name of some non-salm ...

, tench,

bream Bream ( ) are species of freshwater and marine fish belonging to a variety of genera including '' Abramis'' (e.g., ''A. brama'', the common bream), '' Acanthopagrus'', ''Argyrops'', '' Blicca'', '' Brama'', '' Chilotilapia'', ''Etelis'', '' L ...

and pike, Abbeylara attracts anglers and local angling clubs hold regular competitions.

Abbeylara GFC Abbeylara Gaelic Football Club is a Gaelic football club based in Abbeylara, County Longford, Ireland. History The Abbeylara club can trace its origins back to the Ballywillan Michael Davitts club (founded in 1889 and named after Michael Davit ...

are the local Gaelic football club. On 20 April 2000, the Gardaí (police) shot dead local man John Carthy in a siege at his home.

References

External links

Abbeylara on Longford County Council website
(archived) {{Authority control Towns and villages in County Longford

See also

References

External links