Rath () is a

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

in the barony of Inchiquin in

County Clare County Clare () is a Counties of Ireland, county in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster in the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern part of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, bordered on the west by the Atlantic Ocean. Clare County Council ...

, Ireland.

Location

Rath lies on the R460 regional road between Inagh to the south-west and Corofin to the north-east. It is about northwest of the

county town In Great Britain and Ireland, a county town is usually the location of administrative or judicial functions within a county, and the place where public representatives are elected to parliament. Following the establishment of county councils in ...

– Ennis. Corofin, in the parish of Kilnaboy, is about to the south. The parish is and covers . The bridge at Corofin over the River Fergus is the northern boundary of the parish. Hamlets include Riverston and Knockmacart. The former West Clare Railway traversed the parish from east to west. The land consists of a mix of coarse pasture and good arable land. It contains parts of the lakes of Inchiquin and Tadane. Church of Rath Blaithmaic

There are the ruins of an ancient church near the shore of a small lake, and nearby the ruined Rath Castle. Other ruined castles are O'Nial's Court, once the residence of the O'Nials, and Tier Mac Bran castle near the shore of Inchiquin lake. In 1841 the population was 2,647 in 398 houses. The parish today is part of the Catholic parish of Corofin, Kilnaboy and Rath. It is served by the church of St Mary's in Rath.

Legend of Lough Raha

Lough Raha is said to be the place where the early Irish saint Mac Creiche defeated the ''Brioch-Seach'', or badger monster. The demon badger killed both cattle and men, and was not subdued by the prayers of six local saints. When Mac Creiche arrived the monster, as high as a tall tree, was pursuing and killing the people, discharging balls of fire from its mouth. The saint drove the monster into the waters of the lake, which turned red. The monster rose up again, and Mac Creiche took his cowl and threw it over the monster. The cowl grew so it was "like a cowl of smelted iron" that pressed the monster to the lake bed. The monster would not arise again until the eve of

Judgement Day The Last Judgment is a concept found across the Abrahamic religions and the ''Frashokereti'' of Zoroastrianism. Christianity considers the Second Coming of Jesus, Jesus Christ to entail the final judgment by God in Abrahamic religions, God of a ...

Townlands

The parish contains the townlands of Annagh, Applevale, Ballykinnacorra North, Ballykinnacorra South, Boherbullog, Cahercorcaun, Cahernamona, Carnane, Carrowduff, Carrownagarraun, Carrowvere, Craggaunboy, Clifden, Cregmoher, Curraghkeel, Drinagh, Gortcooldurrin, Gortnaglough, Killeen, Kihaska, Knocknareeha, Liscullaun, Loughnagowan, Maghera, Martry, Moanreel North, Moanreel South, Moherbullog, Moyhill, Poulbaun, Rafline, Rath, Roxton, Scool, Shessiv and Tonlegee.

References

Citations

Sources

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External links

Rath parish at the Clare County Library
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rath Civil parishes of County Clare