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Lough Lurgan; and Lough Lurgan was counted one of the three most ancient lakes of Ireland. Lough-fordremon in Kerry, and Lough Kera in Mayo County, being the two other. It is seaven leagues from Galway to the Iles of Aran, westward, and a league eastward on the south side of Galway. It divides the county of Clare on the south, from Moycullin Barony on the north of it, three leagues asunder. In this haven, Lugad Mac-con, with a fleet of forreigners, arrived, Anno D. 250; and became King of Ireland, by killing of Art, King of Ireland in battle, about Athenry, eight miles from Galway.

Eastward from the Iles of Aran to Slimhead, are seaven leagues of sea on the south side of the barony of Balinahinsy, and on the north side of Kerry, and the bay of Lymerick in a spacious distance. On all this western coast from Galway to Slimhead, the 4th of Febr. 1683, upon breaking of the long continued frosty weather, the night before being Sunday, there was such a deale of eels, congers, and

pu

gavit Deum, ut propter merita istius
eri ibi nati, qui piscem sibi dederat, copia
piscium ibi esset." The harbour which
directs to the lake named Orbsen, accu-
rately points out the site of the Claddagh
fishing village, where the boy who gave
his fish to Endeus, was born,-ibi nati.
This is the oldest known reference to it
extant. The language, and most probably
the manners, of this singular colony, have
undergone no change since the days of St.
Endeus, now nearly 1400 years ago.

For "Lough Lurgan" and the "county of Clare" mentioned above, see the Additional Notes hereto.

e Battle. The battle of Magh Mucru

gurnards,

imhe. For an account of this famous battle, see our author's Ogygia, p. 327. The plain on which it was fought, and on which as on Aghrim, a kingdom was lost and won, is well known. Even the particular place where Art was killed, between the castles of Moyveola and Kilcornan, is still pointed out by the same name, Turloch Airt, as in the days of our author. It would be creditable to the proprietor of the soil here, whoever he may be, to mark this classic spot with a suitable monument. It might, moreover, afford a few days' employment and food to some of the starving inhabitants of the neighbourhood.

gurnards, some quick, some dead, cast ashore every where for severall days, so as the like was not seen in the memory of any man before; yet the sea was not frose. The ocean towards the west hath no limits nearer than America.

From Slimehead seven leagues to Bofin', northward; and thence to Koelshaly Roe, the western ocean flows between the Owles in the county of Mayo, and the north side of the barony of Ballynahinsy. Full moon at four o'clock thirty minutes, causes high water in all these western coasts. So much of the borders of West Connaught, whence now to the continent.

The half barony of Rosses, commonly called Joyce Countrey from

f Bofin. Koelshaly-roe.-The Owles.—

Bofin island will be found noticed further on. Koelshaly-roe, in Irish, Caol fáile puao, means the narrow reddish brine; but now corruptly pronounced Caol páipe puaỏ, which has no meaning. This was occasioned by substituting the letter p for l, in the word ráile; and from the Irish mal-pronunciation, the place has been called in English the "Killary." This is a well known strait, or inlet of the ocean, much celebrated by modern tourists, which divides the barony of Ballinahinch, or Conamara, in the county of Galway, from the barony of Murrisk, in the county of Mayo. It is again alluded to towards the end of this treatise. The Owles are the present baronies of Murrisk and Borrishoole, in the county of Mayo. They are again. mentioned further on, in our author's description of the barony of Ballinahich.

8 Rosse. Joyce Countrey.-Shoyes.Ror, translated promontorium by Colgan,

a Welsh Acta SS. p. 603, n. 11; and nemus by O'Sullevan, Hist. Cathol. fol. 188. The former meaning it generally bears in the north, and the latter in the south of Ireland. My learned friend Mr. O'Donovan informs me, that in a note from Ware's MSS. in Nomenclat. Hib. MS. by Archdall, it is translated boscus, as Ror da lon, i. e. nemus duarum merularum; and that in Cormac's Glossary it is interpreted fiobuide, a wood. It enters largely into the names of places in Ireland. Our barony was named from the old castle of Ross, which was itself so called from the land on which it stood, on the western banks of Lough Measg. It was originally a barony, but before our author's time was reduced to a half barony. See Appendix I. A document entitled the "Division of Connaught," dated A. D. 1586, preserved in the Cotton Lib., British Museum, places the barony of Rosse in the county of Mayo, and states it to contain "the Joyes, Walshes and Partrish

a Welsh family of Yoes, Joas, or Shoyes, which held that land from the O'Flaherties (formerly part of Partry-an-tslevy", which extended from St. Patrick's Hill in the Owles, to Lough Orbsen), hath the barony of Balynahinsy, Koelshaly Roe, and the Owles on the west of it, and by a high ridge of mountaines called Formna-mor, is divided on the north from the same Owles. From that mountain, Bruin River, falling into Lough Measg, separates Partry mountain in the barony of Kera, from Kilbridy' townland, the north side of Lough Measg,

(Partry) lands, xii myles long and viii broad. Mc. Thomas and Mc. Tybod chief in the same;" and it then enumerates the following "Gent. and their castles, viz., Mac Thomas, Castlekirke; Murrogh ne dow, Ballynonagh; Mc. Envile, Ballenesleo; Abbè Mc. Envile, Cloynlaghell; Richard M. Moyler Joy, Castlenew."Titus, B. xiii. fo. 399. See the Additional Notes for further particulars of Joyce Country and the Shoyes.

Partry-an-tslevy. - Partnaize an -pleibe, Partrigia de monte. See Harris's Ware, vol. ii. p. 53. In this district of Partry of the mountain, the Joyces settled under the O'Flaherties in the thirteenth century; and here, as we are told in the Indenture of Composition, A. D. 1585, the O'Flaherties, at some former time, got "eighteen quarters of land in Ballynenagh (Baile Inneonagh), from some of the Boorks, as is said, for an Ericke."-See Appendix. Before the O'Flaherties, or their tributaries the Joyces, settled here, O'Cadain, O'Kyne; O'Dopċuide, anglicized Dorcey and Darcey; and O'Gopmog, O'Gormog,

were the ancient chiefs of Partry of the Mountain. St. Patrick's Hill.—A remarkable conical mountain (within view of which this is written) in the barony of Murrisk and county of Mayo; called in Irish Cpuac Pháopaic, i. e. the "rick" (here pronounced reek) or “stack” of Patrick; and Cpuaċan aigli, translated by Colgan in Trias Thaum. p. 138, col. 1, "Mons Aquila," Mounteagle.

i

Kilbridy.-Kilbride, so called from the chapel of St. Bridget, mentioned immediately after. By letters patent of King James I., dated 30th May, A. D. 1619, Rot. Pat. an. 16o. pars 2, numerous lands in this half barony of Ross, were granted to Edward Grana Joyce, of Kilbride, Gent., and to several others of the clan. This grant, although many other persons were included in it, may yet be considered the great charter of the Joyces, after the Indenture of Composition, A. D. 1585, contained in the Appendix I. Of the other places mentioned in the above paragraph, the parish of Balynchala, is now called Ballinacalla, or Ballincholla, Baile

Measg, in the half barony of Rosse, and yet belonging to the parish of Balynchala on the south side. In Kilbridy there is a chappell and well dedicated to St. Bridget. There is on the south of it an arm of Lough Measg, which shoots into the countrey westward about four miles to Glenntre[s]ky. On the west of Kilbridy townland is Lough-na-fohy Lake, out of which the river of Gairge comes into that arme of Lough Measg.

Within that arm of Lough Measg is the Earl's Island', where Edmond Burk*, second son of Richard the Red Earl of Ulster, Anno D. 1338, was put to death; which should be therefore rather called

an Chala, the townland of the Callow, anciently Cala Coca mearga. The chapel dedicated to St. Bridget is now in ruins. It gave name to the townland of Kilbride, on which it stands. The well, called Cpó brigoe, is near it; and also another "holy" well called Tobar Mhuipe. Glenntresky, Gleann Treisge, is named Glantrague in Larkin's map of the county of Galway. Lough na fohy, Coċ na Feożaio, is now called Lough na feoy, and is in the parish of Ross. Gairge, Gage, river is now called the Finney.

The Earl's Island. It is still known by the same name, Oileán an lapla. It lies in that arm of Lough Mask which runs up to Toorluggach, in the parish of Ross.

k Edmond Burk.-i. e. De Burgo, De Burgh, Bourke, Burke, but seldom Burk, as written by our author. The Earl of Clanricarde, in the "Pedigree of De Burgh" before referred to, p. 39, note, has omitted the above historical fact of

the

the murder of this unfortunate nobleman. In Lodge's Peerage of Ireland, the manner in which it was perpetrated is told correctly enough; but, as often occurs in that work, an error is committed by stating, that "the stone was fixed about his neck by his kinsman, Edward Bourk MacWilliam."-See vol. i. p. 121. By this "kinsman" was probably meant Sir Edmond Albanach, for whom see p. 39, note; but that he did not immediately perpetrate the deed, appears from the above narrative, which carries with it all the marks of truth. I find no trace on record of any commission appointing this Edmond Burke, conjointly with the Archbishop of Tuam, to the government of Connaught, as mentioned by our author; but many of our records have been lost since their time. For further particulars of him, and his father, the Red Earl, and also of the family of Nolan, for many years located at Balinrobe mentioned above, see the Additional Notes.

the Earl's Son's Island. But the male line of that house being, all to him, extinct, most likely he was reputed and commonly called Earl of Ulster; there being but one girle, then about seven years old, his nephew William, Earl of Ulster's daughter, after Dutchess of Clarence, apparent heir generall. During whose nonage, Edmond was joyned in commission with Malachias, Arch-Bishoppe of Tuam, for the government of Connaught; until he was seized upon by Sir William Bourk, aforementioned, his sons, on Low Sunday, the 19th of Aprill, in the Fryer's house of Balinrobe; Roger de Flet, Seneschall of Connaught, and Nicholas Lienot', and other nobles of his company, being killed on the place. He was that night carried to Lough Measg Castle, the next night to Ballyndeonagh Castle, and the third night to that island on Lough Measg; whither the ArchBishope of Tuam came to bring him and his kinsmen to a reconciliation and as they were on points of agreements, the villains who had the custody of his body, a certain family of the Stantons", dispairing

66

'Lienot.-Mac Firbis, in his account of the Welsh tribes contained in the Book of Hy Fiachrach, states that the Lienots, or Lynotts, a family long settled in Tirawly in Mayo, came to Ireland with the descendants or followers of the Red Earl of Ulster: "Lionóidig do żeaċt in-Єpinn le slioce an lapla púaio." That part of the book alluded to concludes with the narrative of a barbarous occurrence which took place between the Barretts of Tirawly and those Lynotts, which strongly marks the ferocity of these Welsh adventurers, as well as the uncivilized state of the times. For barbarity similar to that there recorded, see Wynne's History of

Wales, book vi.

m

Ballyndeonagh.-Called Ballynonagh in the document of A. D. 1586, before quoted, p. 44, note . This castle still retains its ancient name. It stands, in ruins, on the townland of Cappagh na gapple, alias Petersburgh, near the demesne of Ross.

n The Stantons.-Among the "Englyshe greate rebelles of Connaught," A.D. 1515, were "Syr Myles Stauntons sonnes," i. e. his descendants.-State Papers, vol. ii. part iii., p. 26. A branch of this family of Staunton, in Irish Stondun, settled in Mayo County, under the "Red Earl;" chiefly in the territory afterwards called the barony

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