Aughrim (; ) is a small town in

County Wicklow County Wicklow ( ; ga, Contae Chill Mhantáin ) is a county in Ireland. The last of the traditional 32 counties, having been formed as late as 1606, it is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the province of Leinster. It is bordered by ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland is the s ...

. It lies in a scenic valley in the

Wicklow Mountains The Wicklow Mountains (, archaic: ''Cualu'') form the largest continuous upland area in the Republic of Ireland. They occupy the whole centre of County Wicklow and stretch outside its borders into the counties of Dublin, Wexford and Carlow ...

in the east of

where the Ow and Derry rivers meet to form the Aughrim River. Aughrim is on the R747 road between

Arklow Arklow (; ; , ) is a town in County Wicklow on the southeast coast of Ireland. The town is overlooked by Ballymoyle Hill. It was founded by the Vikings in the ninth century. Arklow was the site of one of the bloodiest battles of the 1798 re ...

and

Baltinglass Baltinglass, historically known as Baltinglas (), is a town in south-west County Wicklow, Ireland. It is located on the River Slaney near the border with County Carlow and County Kildare, on the N81 road. Etymology The town's Irish name, '' ...

, and the R753 regional road.

Architecture

The Rednagh Bridge south of the village was the site of an engagement during 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, ...

between Crown forces and the rebels. A plaque on the bridge commemorates Anne Devlin, who was employed by and supported Robert Emmet, a revolutionary who was hanged in 1803 for his leadership of an aborted uprising. There are a number of unusual granite terraced houses throughout the village, constructed - along with a

forge A forge is a type of hearth used for heating metals, or the workplace (smithy) where such a hearth is located. The forge is used by the smith to heat a piece of metal to a temperature at which it becomes easier to shape by forging, or to th ...

, and

town hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or a municipal building (in the Philippines), is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses ...

- at the behest of the Earl of Meath. Aughrim was a granite mining village, and this material is widely used, giving the village a distinctive and coherent architecture. Aughrim has won the Irish Tidy Towns Award for the tidiest village in County Wicklow from 1996–2007 and won the Irish Tidy Towns Competition in 2007.

Wind farm dispute

Since 2014, German-owned company ABO Wind has applied to build a

wind farm A wind farm or wind park, also called a wind power station or wind power plant, is a group of wind turbines in the same location used to produce electricity. Wind farms vary in size from a small number of turbines to several hundred wind turb ...

surrounding Aughrim. It would include eleven turbines (150 m tall) with access roads, covering the hills between Aughrim and

, in the

townland A townland ( ga, baile fearainn; Ulster-Scots: ''toonlann'') is a small geographical division of land, historically and currently used in Ireland and in the Western Isles in Scotland, typically covering . The townland system is of Gaelic orig ...

s of Ballymanus, Roddenagh, Killaduff, Askekeagh, Ballinglen, Preban, Tomcoyle, Kilballyowen, Killacloran, Clone, Coolahullin, Ballycoog Upper and Lower, Ballykillageer Upper and Lower, Ballintemple, Coolgarow, Kilcarra East and West, Glenart, Shelton Abbey, Kilbride and Killinskyduff. Local residents have opposed the plan and formed the South Wicklow Wind Action Group (SWWAG) to campaign against it.

Wicklow County Council Wicklow County Council ( ga, Comhairle Chontae Chill Mhantáin) is the authority responsible for local government in County Wicklow, Ireland. As a county council, it is governed by the Local Government Act 2001. The council is responsible for ...

voted to reject the wind farm. In 2017, ABO Wind applied to build the wind farm again, with minor adjustments. This was also opposed, but in 2019

An Bord Pleanála (; meaning "The Planning Board"; ABP) is an independent, statutory, quasi-judicial body that decides on appeals from planning decisions made by local authorities in the Republic of Ireland. As of 2007, An Bord Pleanála directly decided majo ...

approved the wind farm, against the recommendation of their own inspector. This controversial decision has been awaiting judicial review.

Sports

Aughrim has a number of walking trails, with the Sean Linehan Way starting by Tinakilly Bridge on the east side of the village, while just to the west the Ciaran Shannon Way can be accessed via the Rednagh Road or by parking at Annacurragh village. The village is home to the county grounds of the Wicklow county

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 ...

team. The 'Angling for All' fishing lake and Aughrim river provide

rainbow A rainbow is a meteorological phenomenon that is caused by reflection, refraction and dispersion of light in water droplets resulting in a spectrum of light appearing in the sky. It takes the form of a multicoloured circular arc. Rainbows c ...

and

brown trout The brown trout (''Salmo trutta'') is a European species of salmonid fish that has been widely introduced into suitable environments globally. It includes purely freshwater populations, referred to as the riverine ecotype, ''Salmo trutta'' morp ...

fishing. A Paul McGinley-designed golf course is open at nearby Macreddin.

People

* Tara Blaise, singer, grew up in the village * Shane Byrne, Irish

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In it ...

international was born in Aughrim

Gallery

References

* ''Illustrated road book of Ireland, Second Edition'', Automobile Association, London (1970)

External links

The Tidy Towns of Ireland "Celebrating 50 years"

Aughrim in Wicklow Tourism
{{Tidy Towns (Ireland) Towns and villages in County Wicklow