Macroom (; ga, Maigh Chromtha) is a

market town A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village or city. In Britain, small rural ...

County Cork County Cork ( ga, Contae Chorcaí) is the largest and the southernmost county of Ireland, named after the city of Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. Its largest market towns a ...

, Ireland, located in the valley of the

River Sullane The River Sullane ( ga, An Sulán) runs from the mountains between County Cork and County Kerry in southern Ireland, near the village of Cúil Aodha. After passing Ballyvourney, it runs through the centre of Macroom, to which it provides drinki ...

, halfway between

Cork city Cork ( , from , meaning 'marsh') is the second largest city in Ireland and third largest city by population on the island of Ireland. It is located in the south-west of Ireland, in the province of Munster. Following an extension to the city's ...

and

Killarney Killarney ( ; ga, Cill Airne , meaning 'church of sloes') is a town in County Kerry, southwestern Ireland. The town is on the northeastern shore of Lough Leane, part of Killarney National Park, and is home to St Mary's Cathedral, Ross Cast ...

. Its population has grown and receded over the centuries as it went through periods of war, famine and

workhouse In Britain, a workhouse () was an institution where those unable to support themselves financially were offered accommodation and employment. (In Scotland, they were usually known as poorhouses.) The earliest known use of the term ''workhouse' ...

s, forced emigration and intermittent prosperity. The 2011 census gave an urban population of 3,879 people, while the 2016 census recorded 3,765 people. Bridge over the Sullane, Macroom - geograph

Bridge over the Sullane, Macroom - geograph

Macroom began as a meeting place for the

druid A druid was a member of the high-ranking class in ancient Celtic cultures. Druids were religious leaders as well as legal authorities, adjudicators, lorekeepers, medical professionals and political advisors. Druids left no written accounts. Whi ...

s of

Munster Munster ( gle, an Mhumhain or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, in the south of Ireland. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" ( ga, rí ruirech). Following t ...

. It is first mentioned is in 6th-century records, and the immediate area hosted a major battle involving the Irish king

Brian Boru Brian Boru ( mga, Brian Bóruma mac Cennétig; modern ga, Brian Bóramha; 23 April 1014) was an Irish king who ended the domination of the High Kingship of Ireland by the Uí Néill and probably ended Viking invasion/domination of Ireland. ...

. During the

middle ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

, the town was invaded by a succession of warring clans, including the Murcheatach Uí Briain and Richard de Cogan families. In the early modern period the MacCarthy's took control and later the area found prosperity via milling. The MacCarthys built a series of

tower house A tower house is a particular type of stone structure, built for defensive purposes as well as habitation. Tower houses began to appear in the Middle Ages, especially in mountainous or limited access areas, in order to command and defend strateg ...

s, some of which survive. The family lost influence during the Williamite wars of the 1690s, after which authority over the town castle waxed and waned between the MacCarthys and a number of

Anglo-Irish Anglo-Irish people () denotes an ethnic, social and religious grouping who are mostly the descendants and successors of the English Protestant Ascendancy in Ireland. They mostly belong to the Anglican Church of Ireland, which was the establis ...

families. In the 17th century, Macroom became a central point of conflict in the

Cromwellian conquest of Ireland The Cromwellian conquest of Ireland or Cromwellian war in Ireland (1649–1653) was the re-conquest of Ireland by the forces of the English Parliament, led by Oliver Cromwell, during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. Cromwell invaded Ireland w ...

. The population fell in the 1840s during the Great Famine. Evidence can be found in the former

, now the district hospital at the north side of New Street, and the mass graveyard to the west, near

Clondrohid Clondrohid () is a village and civil parish in County Cork, Ireland, four miles (6 km) north of Macroom. As of the 2016 census, the population of the village was recorded as 179, down from 188 people as of the 2011 census. Geography Paris ...

. During the late 18th and early 19th century, a number of Anglo-Irish families, and a branch of the

Massey family The Massey family is a Canadian Methodist family that has been prominent since the mid-19th century, known for manufacturing farm equipment and for being patrons of the arts in Canada. Their company, Massey Ferguson, built the family its fortun ...

, settled in the area. Many of their estate houses were burned in the period around the

Irish War of Independence The Irish War of Independence () or Anglo-Irish War was a guerrilla war fought in Ireland from 1919 to 1921 between the Irish Republican Army (IRA, the army of the Irish Republic) and British forces: the British Army, along with the quasi-mil ...

as the town was caught up in the turmoil of IRA activity. Today the town is an economic hub for the mid west Cork region, and the location of a

Danone Danone S.A. () is a French multinational food-products corporation based in Paris. It was founded in Barcelona, Spain. It is listed on Euronext Paris where it is a component of the CAC 40 stock market index. Some of the company's products are ...

milk processing factory, which dries and cans

infant formula Infant formula, baby formula, or simply formula (American English); or baby milk, infant milk or first milk (British English), is a manufactured food designed and marketed for feeding to babies and infants under 12 months of age, usually prepar ...

from milk supplied by local dairy farmers. Until the 1950s, New Street was the town's economic hub, and contained many small retail outlets.

Name

Macroom's

Irish language Irish (Standard Irish: ), also known as Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Insular Celtic branch of the Celtic language family, which is a part of the Indo-European language family. Irish is indigenous to the island of Ireland and was ...

name, , likely translates as 'crooked plain' in reference to the bend in the River Sullane on which its historic core is situated. It has also been suggested that it may translate as "meeting place of followers of the god

Crom Crom or CROM may refer to: Places * Crom, a townland in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland * Crom Estate, a Northern Irish National Trust Property ** Crom Castle * Ben Crom, a mountain in the Mourne Mountains in County Down, Northern Ireland * C ...

" or "crooked oak", the latter a reference to a large oak tree that apparently grew in the town-square during the reign of King John.Lewis, Samuel.
Macroom, County Cork in Lewis Topographical Dictionary of Ireland 1837
". Retrieved 2 January 2011
Google Books

History

Neolithic

Evidence of pre-history human activity in the Macroom area survives in the many

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age ( Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age ( Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly ...

burial monuments; the area is unusually rich with standing stones,

dolmen A dolmen () or portal tomb is a type of single-chamber megalithic tomb, usually consisting of two or more upright megaliths supporting a large flat horizontal capstone or "table". Most date from the early Neolithic (40003000 BCE) and were some ...

s and

stone circle A stone circle is a ring of standing stones. Most are found in Northwestern Europe – especially in Britain, Ireland, and Brittany – and typically date from the Late Neolithic and Early Bronze Age, with most being built from 3000 BC. The ...

s.Macroom: Town Profile
". agriculture.gov.ie. Retrieved on 19 March 2007. Later, in the early Dark Ages, Macroom seems to have been a centre for

Bardic In Celtic cultures, a bard is a professional story teller, verse-maker, music composer, oral historian and genealogist, employed by a patron (such as a monarch or chieftain) to commemorate one or more of the patron's ancestors and to praise t ...

conventions and a base for the

Druid A druid was a member of the high-ranking class in ancient Celtic cultures. Druids were religious leaders as well as legal authorities, adjudicators, lorekeepers, medical professionals and political advisors. Druids left no written accounts. Whi ...

s of Munster. The first historical reference to Macroom dates from the 6th century, when the townland was known as Achad Dorbchon and held within the kingdom of Muscraighe Mitine. The Eóganachta were then the dominant clan of

and held kingdoms from Muscraighe Mitine to the midlands town of Birr. At some point, they were replaced by the Uí Floinn, who commissioned a castle in Macroom so as to establish Raithleann as capital of Muskerry.

Middle ages

Muscraighe Mitine underwent three invasions during the 13th century. The Murcheatach Uí Briain and Richard de Cogan arrived in 1201 and 1207 respectively; the MacCarthys became the dominant and most powerful family and held Macroom Castle until the mid-17th century. From the 14th century, Macroom became the capital of the Barony of Muskerry and the centre for trade, burial and religious worship. It was one of the earliest Irish milling centres, and from the end of the 16th century the town grew from a village to a functionally diverse urban centre. The locality grew outwards from the castle. The MacCarthys established the town as a centre for markets and fairs, and in 1620 a market house was built to the east of and facing the castle. The family introduced a

plantation A plantation is an agricultural estate, generally centered on a plantation house, meant for farming that specializes in cash crops, usually mainly planted with a single crop, with perhaps ancillary areas for vegetables for eating and so on. Th ...

scheme which aimed to attract new agriculture and industrial techniques and methods to the area.

Modern period

By the mid-17th century,

families owned approximately one-third of the town in value terms. The Protestant families introduced butter making, a labour-intensive industry. A 1750

tenement A tenement is a type of building shared by multiple dwellings, typically with flats or apartments on each floor and with shared entrance stairway access. They are common on the British Isles, particularly in Scotland. In the medieval Old Town, i ...

list details 134 buildings and 300 families, with a population ratio of 6 to 1 between Catholic and Protestants. The town had developed from a locality of mud cabins in the early 1660s to a linear shaped urban settlement of mainly

thatch Thatching is the craft of building a roof with dry vegetation such as straw, water reed, sedge (''Cladium mariscus''), rushes, heather, or palm branches, layering the vegetation so as to shed water away from the inner roof. Since the bulk of ...

ed cabins, which were later replaced by solid cottages following a campaign by the Irish Land and Labour Association (ILLA). Macroom Castle was for a period owned by Admiral Sir William Penn, a

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against Fr ...

officer and father of

William Penn William Penn ( – ) was an English writer and religious thinker belonging to the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), and founder of the Province of Pennsylvania, a North American colony of England. He was an early advocate of democracy a ...

, after whom the U.S. state of

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

is named.

Battle of Macroom

The 1650 Battle of Macroom was waged as part of the

, when English Parliamentarian forces led by Roger Boyle defeated an

Irish Confederate The Irish Confederation was an Irish nationalist independence movement, established on 13 January 1847 by members of the Young Ireland movement who had seceded from Daniel O'Connell's Repeal Association. Historian T. W. Moody described it as "th ...

force under David Roche. Bishop Boetius MacEgan, acting on behalf of the MacCarthys, failed to hold the castle. He was taken prisoner by Parliamentarian forces and executed by hanging at

Carrigadrohid Carrigadrohid () is a townland and village in the parish of Aghinagh, County Cork, Ireland. It is situated on the north bank of the River Lee, with the nearby village of Canovee to the south. Carrigadrohid is part of the Dáil constituency of ...

Irish War of Independence

Macroom was the main base in Cork for the

Auxiliary Division The Auxiliary Division of the Royal Irish Constabulary (ADRIC), generally known as the Auxiliaries or Auxies, was a paramilitary unit of the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC) during the Irish War of Independence. It was founded in July 1920 by Major ...

of the

Royal Irish Constabulary The Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC, ga, Constáblacht Ríoga na hÉireann; simply called the Irish Constabulary 1836–67) was the police force in Ireland from 1822 until 1922, when all of the country was part of the United Kingdom. A separate ...

(RIC) during the

. The

Irish Republican Army The Irish Republican Army (IRA) is a name used by various paramilitary organisations in Ireland throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. Organisations by this name have been dedicated to irredentism through Irish republicanism, the belief th ...

(IRA) was highly active in the county, especially in the areas around Macroom, Bandon and

Dunmanway Dunmanway (, official Irish name: ) is a market town in County Cork, in the southwest of Ireland. It is the geographical centre of the region known as West Cork. It is the birthplace of Sam Maguire, an Irish Protestant republican, for whom the ...

. RIC policemen in the town described the area as "practically in a state of war". After a series of burnings of local RIC barracks and courthouses a curfew was imposed on the town, with a ban on public meetings and market fairs.Hart, 27 A local IRA volunteers wrote of a "hinterland unpoliced and unwatched". Local RIC policemen felt they had lost control and the Auxiliaries were called to reinforce them. The townspeople of Macroom treated the Auxiliaries with hostility, and there were instances of their patrols being stoned. The British were embroiled in a guerrilla battle in the Muskerry hills, coming under fire from the Ballyvourney IRA cell, and lost three men – two of them officers – in one attack.Hart, 28 On 28 November 1920 at Kilmichael, on the road between Macroom and Dunmanway, a convoy consisting of 18 Auxiliaries in two lorries were ambushed by IRA volunteers from the

3rd Cork Brigade The 3rd Cork Brigade, also known as Third (West) Cork Brigade, was a unit of the Irish Republican Army that operated in the western areas of County Cork during the Irish War of Independence. The unit was commanded by Tom Barry for most of the co ...

under the command of Tom Barry. 16 Auxiliaries were killed and 1 wounded, while the IRA suffered no casualties. After the ambush, the Auxiliaries increased their mistreatment of the County Cork populace, and

martial law Martial law is the imposition of direct military control of normal civil functions or suspension of civil law by a government, especially in response to an emergency where civil forces are overwhelmed, or in an occupied territory. Use Martia ...

was declared in the counties of Cork, Kerry, Limerick and Tipperary, which led Macroom to fall under martial law for a period of time. Macroom Castle was burned out on five separate occasions; the last occasion was on 18 August 1922, following the evacuation of the Auxiliaries from the town. Volunteers from the

anti-treaty IRA The 1921 Anglo-Irish Treaty ( ga , An Conradh Angla-Éireannach), commonly known in Ireland as The Treaty and officially the Articles of Agreement for a Treaty Between Great Britain and Ireland, was an agreement between the government of the ...

, including Erskine Childers and

Frank O'Connor Frank O'Connor (born Michael Francis O'Donovan; 17 September 1903 – 10 March 1966) was an Irish author and translator. He wrote poetry (original and translations from Irish), dramatic works, memoirs, journalistic columns and features on a ...

, retreated from Cork City to Macroom, burning the castle before leaving during the

Irish Civil War The Irish Civil War ( ga, Cogadh Cathartha na hÉireann; 28 June 1922 – 24 May 1923) was a conflict that followed the Irish War of Independence and accompanied the establishment of the Irish Free State, an entity independent from the United ...

Mount Massey which is now ruined, was the 18th and 19th century home of the members of the Massey family, and is located north by Kilnagurteen and gave the townland of Masseytown its name. The family were major landowners with land covering 13,363 acres, extending from Clondrohid to Drishane. During the 19th century, the family tried to temper growing Irish nationalist sentiment by sponsoring the local town fair. Later their home and estate was besieged and burnt in December 1920 by IRA volunteers during the Irish War of Independence. IRA volunteer and politician

Michael Collins Michael Collins or Mike Collins most commonly refers to: * Michael Collins (Irish leader) (1890–1922), Irish revolutionary leader, soldier, and politician * Michael Collins (astronaut) (1930–2021), American astronaut, member of Apollo 11 and ...

was killed in 1922 in an ambush near Béal na Bláth. Lady Olivia Ardilaun, a descendant of the McCarthys, and widow of Lord Ardilaun, sold the castle

demesne A demesne ( ) or domain was all the land retained and managed by a lord of the manor under the feudal system for his own use, occupation, or support. This distinguished it from land sub-enfeoffed by him to others as sub-tenants. The concept or ...

in 1924 to a group of local businessmen, which they put in trust for the town.

Geography and climate

Macroom was built on the

, a tributary of the River Lee. Its hinterland lies on a valley at the foot of the

Boggeragh Mountains The Boggeragh Mountains ( ga, An Bhograch) are located in County Cork, Ireland, with the Munster Blackwater to the north and the River Lee to the south of the hills. With an elevation of , the highest peak is Musheramore ( ga, Muisire Mór). The ...

. The town stretches for about and largely consists of two long streets, Main Street and New Street, divided by the Ten Arch Bridge, which also leads off to the suburb of Massey Town, further towards the village of

Ballinagree Ballinagree (), sometimes Ballynagree, is a small village situated at the foot of the Boggeragh Mountains in County Cork, Ireland. It is located in Roman Catholic Diocese of Cloyne, in the Parish of Aghinagh, which also has Rusheen, Bealnamoriv ...

and the Boggeragh Mountains. Like the rest of Ireland, the climate is temperate maritime, very even and heavily influenced by the

North Atlantic Current The North Atlantic Current (NAC), also known as North Atlantic Drift and North Atlantic Sea Movement, is a powerful warm western boundary current within the Atlantic Ocean that extends the Gulf Stream northeastward. The NAC originates from where ...

, resulting in mild winters and cool summers. Weather in Macroom is mild, usually warm, temperate and humid, with significant rainfall throughout the year, averaging at 1164 mm. Rain falls on average around 21 days of each month, peaking in December (average 24 days), and falling off slightly in June (average 21 days). Snow is uncommon; it tends to fall in January or February, for an average of 2–3 days per year. Wind speeds vary from c 80 km/hr avg in winter, to 50–52 in summer. The mean temperature is 10.1 °C.Climate: Macroom
". Climate-Data.org. Retrieved 25 February 2017

Economy

The economy is primarily agricultural, with local dairy farmers being members of the Dairygold co-operative. Their milk is dried or evaporated in

Mitchelstown Mitchelstown () is a town in County Cork, Ireland with a population of approximately 3,740. Mitchelstown is situated in the valley to the south of the Galtee Mountains, 12 km south-west of the Mitchelstown Caves, 28 km from Cahir, 50 ...

as skim milk or whey concentrate, and eventually supplied to the local

plant, which produces infant formula for a worldwide market.

Tourism

Tourist attractions include the town centre, an 18-hole golf course, and the Castle Grounds, with fishing and golfing grounds. The town's surroundings contain large amounts of megalithic monuments, early Christian holy wells, churches and sacred sites associated with ancient visionaries and healers. Mushera Mountain is located a few kilometres to the north of the town, near Millstreet Country Park. It contains the ancient Saint John's Well. Carrigaphooca Castle a tower house 6 km west of the town no longer accessible to the public. The Castle Arch, the centerpiece of the old castle grounds, admits walkers to the

parklands. It is held in trust to, and in the possession of the people of Macroom. Its large park contains riverside walks among mature oak and beech trees.

The Gearagh

The Gearagh is a national nature reserve on an inland delta, is located south of Macroom. It comprises a series of small islands, separated by anastomosing, mostly flat, river channels or streams, and is bounded by Toon Bridge, Illaunmore, and Anahala Bridge. The area is thought to have been wooded since the end of the last Ice Age c. 8,000 bc.The Gearagh
. ''National Parks & Wildlife Service'', 1997. Retrieved on 19 March 2007. The alluvial woodland extended as far as the Lee Bridge, and consisted of a large number of mature oak and ash trees.O'Reilly, 279-286 The reserve was gutted in 1954 when the Lee hydro-electric scheme led to extensive tree-felling and flooding. Now submerged houses are visible from the area around Two Mile Bridge. The scheme resulted in the loss of sixty percent of the former oak woodland. Today, the Gearagh is of interest and importance due to its rich and rare diversity of wildlife, and represents the only extant extensive

alluvial Alluvium (from Latin ''alluvius'', from ''alluere'' 'to wash against') is loose clay, silt, sand, or gravel that has been deposited by running water in a stream bed, on a floodplain, in an alluvial fan or beach, or in similar settings. ...

woodland in Western Europe. Footpath at the Gearagh - geograph

The Gearagh is primarily of interest and importance due to its rich and rare diversity of wildlife, and it represents the only extant extensive alluvial woodland in Western Europe. It hosts numerous rare plant species including

marsh marigold ''Caltha palustris'', known as marsh-marigold and kingcup, is a small to medium size perennial herbaceous plant of the buttercup family, native to marshes, fens, ditches and wet woodland in temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. It flower ...

, meadowsweet and

nightshade The Solanaceae , or nightshades, are a family (biology), family of flowering plants that ranges from Annual plant, annual and perennial herbs to vines, lianas, epiphytes, shrubs, and trees, and includes a number of agricultural crops, medicinal ...

,O'Donoghue, 5 and 62 species of

moss Mosses are small, non-vascular flowerless plants in the taxonomic division Bryophyta (, ) '' sensu stricto''. Bryophyta ('' sensu lato'', Schimp. 1879) may also refer to the parent group bryophytes, which comprise liverworts, mosses, and ...

and

liverwort The Marchantiophyta () are a division of non-vascular land plants commonly referred to as hepatics or liverworts. Like mosses and hornworts, they have a gametophyte-dominant life cycle, in which cells of the plant carry only a single set of ...

. While oak and ash trees once pre-dominated, today there are a number of

willow Willows, also called sallows and osiers, from the genus ''Salix'', comprise around 400 speciesMabberley, D.J. 1997. The Plant Book, Cambridge University Press #2: Cambridge. of typically deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist so ...

and

alder Alders are trees comprising the genus ''Alnus'' in the birch family Betulaceae. The genus comprises about 35 species of monoecious trees and shrubs, a few reaching a large size, distributed throughout the north temperate zone with a few sp ...

trees on the higher islands and inlets. It hosts a large diversity of birds and wildfowl and attracts both summer and winter migrants. Examples include mallards, wigeon,

Greylag geese The greylag goose or graylag goose (''Anser anser'') is a species of large goose in the waterfowl family Anatidae and the type species of the genus ''Anser (bird), Anser''. It has mottled and barred grey and white plumage and an orange beak and ...

heron The herons are long-legged, long-necked, freshwater and coastal birds in the family Ardeidae, with 72 recognised species, some of which are referred to as egrets or bitterns rather than herons. Members of the genera ''Botaurus'' and ''Ixobrychu ...

s and coots. It also hosts

Atlantic salmon The Atlantic salmon (''Salmo salar'') is a species of ray-finned fish in the family Salmonidae. It is the third largest of the Salmonidae, behind Siberian taimen and Pacific Chinook salmon, growing up to a meter in length. Atlantic salmon are ...

and the near extinct

freshwater pearl mussel The freshwater pearl mussel (''Margaritifera margaritifera'') is an endangered species of freshwater mussel, an aquatic bivalve mollusc in the family Margaritiferidae. Although the name "freshwater pearl mussel" is often used for this species, ...

. The area is protected under the international

Ramsar Convention The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance Especially as Waterfowl Habitat is an international treaty for the conservation and sustainable use of Ramsar sites (wetlands). It is also known as the Convention on Wetlands. It ...

. Today the Gearagh comprises wide but shallow water enclosing a series of small islands separated by anastomosing, mostly flat, river streams. It remains an area of outstanding natural beauty, with a diverse ecological systemWood, 136 and wide variety of plants, birds and fish, including

whooper swan The whooper swan ( /ˈhuːpə(ɹ) swɒn/) (''Cygnus cygnus''), also known as the common swan, pronounced ''hooper swan'', is a large northern hemisphere swan. It is the Eurasian counterpart of the North American trumpeter swan, and the type speci ...

kingfisher Kingfishers are a family, the Alcedinidae, of small to medium-sized, brightly colored birds in the order Coraciiformes. They have a cosmopolitan distribution, with most species found in the tropical regions of Africa, Asia, and Oceania, ...

s and

otter Otters are carnivorous mammals in the subfamily Lutrinae. The 13 extant otter species are all semiaquatic, aquatic, or marine, with diets based on fish and invertebrates. Lutrinae is a branch of the Mustelidae family, which also includes we ...

Carrigaphooca Castle

Carrigaphooca Castle is a ruined five storey rectangular

situated on a steep-sided rock overlooking the

. It is located 6 km west of Macroom, in an area once known as Gleann na n-Dearg (''Valley of the Reds'').O'Brien (1990), 31 The tower dominates the landscape of Lissacresig (''Fairyland'') in

, and Lower Shanballyshane, in

Kilnamartyra Kilnamartyra ( , meaning ''church of the martyr'' or ''church of the relic'') is a village and civil parish in County Cork, Ireland. It is located around half-way between Killarney and Macroom. The parish is a kilometre from the L3402 local road ...

.O'Brien (1990), 30 Carrigaphooca is made of

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicat ...

and

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms w ...

and was built as a defensive tower by MacCarthy clan member Donal MacCarthy of Drishane c. 1336–51. Cormac Teige McCarthy, the Lord of

Blarney Blarney () is a suburban town within the administrative area of Cork City in Ireland. It is located approximately north-west of the city centre. It is the site of Blarney Castle, home of the legendary Blarney Stone. Blarney is part of the Dáil ...

took refuge in the tower after he had sided with the Irish during the

Siege of Kinsale The siege of Kinsale, or Battle of Kinsale ( ga, Léigear/Cath Chionn tSáile), was the ultimate battle in England's conquest of Gaelic Ireland, commencing in October 1601, near the end of the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, and at the climax of t ...

in 1601. He stayed there until he was forgiven by

Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is sometimes referred to as the "Virgin Queen". Eli ...

after he had written a personal letter of apology to her.O'Brien (1990), 32 In 1602, the castle was attacked and taken by Donal Cam O'Sullivan Beare and another member of the extended McCarthy family. After a protracted

siege A siege is a military blockade of a city, or fortress, with the intent of conquering by attrition, or a well-prepared assault. This derives from la, sedere, lit=to sit. Siege warfare is a form of constant, low-intensity conflict characteriz ...

, their forces broke through the outer wall and burned the timber door at the north face entrance. The defenders surrendered and were allowed to go free.Heritage Unit of Cork County Council (2017), p. 95 Carrigaphooca is positioned in an area rich with neolithic monuments; a stone circle lies two fields to the east. The tower is located on private property, and no longer accessible to the public, although it is owned by the state and maintained by the Office of Public Works.Heritage Unit of Cork County Council (2017), p. 96

Mountain Dew festival

From 1976 to 1982 Macroom hosted the annual Mountain Dew festival, organised by young local business people. The festivals attracted up to 20,000 attendees each year, with lineups that included

Rory Gallagher William Rory Gallagher ( ; 2 March 1948 – 14 June 1995) was an Irish guitarist, singer, songwriter, and producer. Due to his virtuosic playing, but relative lack of fame compared to some others, he has been referred to as "the greatest ...

Thin Lizzy Thin Lizzy are an Irish hard rock band formed in Dublin in 1969. Their music reflects a wide range of influences, including blues, soul music, psychedelic rock and traditional Irish folk music, but is generally classified as hard rock or som ...

and

Van Morrison Sir George Ivan Morrison (born 31 August 1945), known professionally as Van Morrison, is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist whose recording career spans seven decades. He has won two Grammy Awards. As a teenager in t ...

. It was the first of its kind for Ireland, and was intended to reinvigorate a town that was then stagnant economically. According to one of the organisers, Martin Fitzgerald, "The town needed a bit of shake rattle and roll to tempt not just international investors but Irish people to rest there a bit long...a rock concert fitted the bill". Line ups included

Phil Lynott Philip Parris Lynott (, ; 20 August 1949 – 4 January 1986) was an Irish singer, bassist, and songwriter. His most commercially successful group was Thin Lizzy, of which he was a founding member, the principal songwriter, lead vocalist and b ...

Elvis Costello Declan Patrick MacManus OBE (born 25 August 1954), known professionally as Elvis Costello, is an English singer-songwriter and record producer. He has won multiple awards in his career, including a Grammy Award in 2020, and has twice been nom ...

Marianne Faithfull Marianne Evelyn Gabriel Faithfull (born 29 December 1946) is an English singer and actress. She achieved popularity in the 1960s with the release of her hit single " As Tears Go By" and became one of the lead female artists during the British I ...

and Horslips, and was attended by

John Lydon John Joseph Lydon (; born 31 January 1956), also known by his former stage name Johnny Rotten, is an English singer and songwriter. He was the lead singer of the late-1970s punk rock, punk band the Sex Pistols, which lasted from 1975 until 197 ...

of the

Sex Pistols The Sex Pistols were an English punk rock band formed in London in 1975. Although their initial career lasted just two and a half years, they were one of the most groundbreaking acts in the history of popular music. They were responsible for ...

Churches

According to the 2011 census, the urban population of 3,879 included 3,535 people identifying as

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

. The town's Catholic church, dedicated to St. Coleman, was built in 1841. It was remodeled in 1893, based on a design by Dominic Coakley. Macroom's

Church of Ireland The Church of Ireland ( ga, Eaglais na hÉireann, ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Kirk o Airlann, ) is a Christian church in Ireland and an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. It is organised on an all-Ireland basis and is the sec ...

building was constructed in 1823 on foot of a loan of £1000 from the Board of Fruits. The building is now derelict, although the graveyard is still in use. The remains of a

thatched Thatching is the craft of building a roof with dry vegetation such as straw, water reed, sedge (''Cladium mariscus''), rushes, heather, or palm branches, layering the vegetation so as to shed water away from the inner roof. Since the bulk of ...

-chapel lies to the west of the town, on Lackaduduv mountain. A rare surviving form, the remnants are known locally as "Carrignaspirroge Chapel".

Transport

Macroom is on the national primary route N22, approximately 38 km from

and 48 km from Killarney. The nearest airport is

Cork Airport Cork Airport ( ga, Aerfort Chorcaí, ) is the second-largest of the three principal international airports in Ireland, after Dublin and ahead of Shannon. It is located in Cork City, south of the city centre in an area known as Farmers Cro ...

. A railway ran between the town and Cork city from 1866 to 1953, terminating in the mart grounds. By 1890 there were five services each way on week days and two on Sundays, with the running time taking just over an hour. Macroom railway station opened on 12 May 1866; it closed for passenger traffic on 1 July 1935 and for goods traffic on 10 March 1947, and was finally closed on 1 December 1953.

Education

The town has two

primary Primary or primaries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels * Primary (band), from Australia * Primary (musician), hip hop musician and record producer from South Korea * Primary Music, Israeli record label Works ...

and three

secondary Secondary may refer to: Science and nature * Secondary emission, of particles ** Secondary electrons, electrons generated as ionization products * The secondary winding, or the electrical or electronic circuit connected to the secondary winding i ...

schools; a De La Salle for boys, the St. Mary's Secondary School Convent of Mercy for girls, and McEgan College, a mixed technical college located in the castle grounds. The Convent of Mercy school is situated within the

Sisters of Mercy The Sisters of Mercy is a religious institute of Catholic women founded in 1831 in Dublin, Ireland, by Catherine McAuley. As of 2019, the institute had about 6200 sisters worldwide, organized into a number of independent congregations. They a ...

's complex attached to St. Colman's Church, and also includes a convent, primary school, graveyard and grotto. Coláiste De La Salle was opened in 1933 and originally located in the town hall, until a permanent building was completed three years later. By the late 1970s the school was experiencing severe capacity issues and a re-structure and extension of the school was undertaken in 1982. Since its opening the ratio of pupils has remained relatively stable with 40% coming from the town and the rest from surrounding parishes. A new building was built in 2008 for St Colman's Boys National School after years of planning applications and appeals.

Notable people

* Rena Buckley (b. 1986/1987): the GAA's most decorated player, with 18 All-Ireland Medals. *

Eibhlín Dubh Ní Chonaill Eibhlín Dubh Ní Chonaill (also known as Eileen O'Connell, ) was a member of the Irish gentry and a poet. She was the main composer of ''Caoineadh Airt Uí Laoghaire'', a traditional lament in Irish described (in its written form) as the greate ...

(–): composer of

Caoineadh Airt Uí Laoghaire Caoineadh Airt Uí Laoghaire or the ''Lament for Art Ó Laoghaire'' is an Irish keen composed in the main by his wife Eibhlín Dubh Ní Chonaill, a member of the Gaelic gentry of County Kerry in the 18th century. It has been described as the gr ...

and wife of

Art Ó Laoghaire Art Ó Laoghaire (IPA:ˈaɾˠt̪ˠoːˈl̪ˠiːəɾʲə, also Airt Ó Laoghaire or Art O'Leary, born 1746, died 4 May 1773), a Roman Catholic member of the Gaelic nobility of Ireland, was a Captain in the Hungarian Hussars Regiment of the army o ...

. *

Donal Creed Donal John Creed (7 September 1924 – 23 November 2017) was an Irish Fine Gael politician who served as a Minister of State from June 1981 to February 1982 and from December 1982 to February 1986. He served as a Teachta Dála (TD) from 1965 ...

(1924 – 2017):

Fine Gael Fine Gael (, ; English: "Family (or Tribe) of the Irish") is a liberal-conservative and Christian-democratic political party in Ireland. Fine Gael is currently the third-largest party in the Republic of Ireland in terms of members of Dáil É ...

politician; MEP,

Teachta Dála A Teachta Dála ( , ; plural ), abbreviated as TD (plural ''TDanna'' in Irish, TDs in English), is a member of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas (the Irish Parliament). It is the equivalent of terms such as ''Member of Parl ...

Minister of State Minister of State is a title borne by politicians in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. In some countries a Minister of State is a Junior Minister of government, who is assigned to assist a specific Cabinet Minister. I ...

under

Garret FitzGerald Garret Desmond FitzGerald (9 February 192619 May 2011) was an Irish Fine Gael politician, economist and barrister who served twice as Taoiseach, serving from 1981 to 1982 and 1982 to 1987. He served as Leader of Fine Gael from 1977 to 1987, and ...

Michael Creed Michael Creed (born 29 June 1963) is an Irish Fine Gael politician who has been a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Cork North-West constituency since 2007, and previously from 1989 to 2002. He previously served as Minister for Agriculture, Food and ...

(b. 1963): Former Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine *

Dermot Desmond Dermot Desmond (born 14 August 1950) is an Irish businessman and financier. He is estimated to be worth €2.04 billion and is ranked by the ''Sunday Independent'' as the ninth-richest person in Ireland. Early life and education Desmond was b ...

(b. 1950): businessman and seventh-richest person in Ireland * Ann Kelleher: a vice-president at

Intel Intel Corporation is an American multinational corporation and technology company headquartered in Santa Clara, California. It is the world's largest semiconductor chip manufacturer by revenue, and is one of the developers of the x86 ser ...

(1746–1773) - native nobleman who was a captain in the Hungarian Hussars. He was declared an outlaw under the Penal Laws for refusing to sell his horse for a paltry sum and was thereafter shot while riding. *

Peadar Ua Laoghaire Father Peadar Ua Laoghaire or Peadar Ó Laoghaire (, first name locally ; 30 April 1839 – 21 March 1920), also anglicized as Peter O'Leary, was an Irish writer and Catholic priest, who is regarded today as one of the founders of modern literatu ...

- (1839–1920): Irish-language author born in the nearby parish of Clondrohid, regarded as one of the founders of modern Irish literature * Michael O'Leary (d. 1961): recipient of the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previousl ...

* Rita Lynch (1914–2009):

Soprano A soprano () is a type of classical female singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hz to "high A" (A5) = 880& ...

* Jimmy MacCarthy (b. 1953): singer/songwriter * John A. Murphy (1927-2022): historian, former

senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

, former

Emeritus Professor ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...

of History at

University College Cork University College Cork – National University of Ireland, Cork (UCC) ( ga, Coláiste na hOllscoile Corcaigh) is a constituent university of the National University of Ireland, and located in Cork. The university was founded in 1845 as one o ...

* T. J. Murphy (1893–1949): Labour Party politician * T. C. Murray - (1873–1959): playwright born on New Street, Macroom; some of his works were performed on Broadway. * Timothy Quill (1901–1960): Labour Party politician and co-operator

Gallery

File:Mairie de Macroom, Irlande.jpg, Macroom Town Hall was built for £1,000 in 1900 on premises purchased from Lady Ardilaun (born at the castle in 1850) two years before. The first phase of work on the building was completed in 1904.History of Macroom Town Hall
". Macroom UDC. Retrieved 14 December 2013 File:Macroom 07.jpg, Graveyard in the Church of Ireland churchyard File:Macroom 14.jpg, Street houses on bridge street, with the castle ruins in background File:Bridge over the River Sullane, Macroom from the new riverside walk. - geograph.org.uk - 1239799.jpg, Bridge over the Sullane File:Morris's Bridge, Dromduff nr. Macroom - geograph.org.uk - 734777.jpg, Morris's Bridge, Dromduff File:Carrigaphooca Castle - geograph.org.uk - 538454.jpg, The MacCarthy tower house, Carrigaphooca Castle, built c. 1436

Sources

Notes

References

* Cope, Julian. ''The Modern Antiquarian''. Thorsons, 1998. * Corcoran, Kevin. ''Saving Eden: The Gearagh and Irish Nature''. Cork: The Gearagh Press, 2021. * Hart, Peter M. ''The I.R.A. and Its Enemies: Violence and Community in Cork, 1916-1923''. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1999 * ''Heritage Castles of County Cork''.

Cork County Council Cork County Council ( ga, Comhairle Contae Chorcaí) is the authority responsible for local government in County Cork, Ireland. As a county council, it is governed by the Local Government Act 2001. The council is responsible for housing and ...

, 2017. * ''Heritage Churches of County Cork''.

, 2015. * * * O'Reilly, H. "Survey of the Gearagh, an Area of Wet Woodland on the River Lee, near Macroom, Co. Cork". ''The Irish Naturalists' Journal, Vol. 11, No. 10'', 1955. 279-286 * Ring, Denis Paul. ''A Historical Geography of Macroom C.500-1995''. Castle House Publications, 1995. * White, Gerry & O'Shea, Brendan. ''The Burning of Cork''. Cork: Mercier Press, 2006.

External links

Official Town Website
{{Authority control Towns and villages in County Cork MacCarthy dynasty