Castletown-Kilpatrick, also known as Castletown KP or Castletown (), is a

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 ...

and village in

County Meath County Meath (; gle, Contae na Mí or simply ) is a county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Ireland, within the province of Leinster. It is bordered by Dublin to the southeast, Louth to the northeast, Kildare to the south, Offaly to the ...

in Ireland. It falls in the

Meath East Meath may refer to: General *County Meath, Republic of Ireland **Kingdom of Meath, medieval precursor of the county ** List of kings of Meath **Meath GAA, including the intercounty football and hurling teams **Diocese of Meath, in the Roman Catholi ...

constituency. The Boyne Valley to Lakelands greenway passes through on the disused

Navan and Kingscourt Railway The Midland Great Western Railway (MGWR) was the third largest Irish gauge () railway company in Ireland. It was incorporated in 1845 and absorbed into the Great Southern Railways in 1924. At its peak the MGWR had a network of , making it Irelan ...

line. The village lies south of the N52 and east of the R162 regional road, between Kells and

Ardee Ardee (; , ) is a town and townland in County Louth, Ireland. It is located at the intersection of the N2, N52, and N33 roads. The town shows evidence of development from the thirteenth century onward but as a result of the continued dev ...

, south of

Nobber Nobber ( – referring to the description by the local native Irish population, to the development of moat around a Norman castle) is a village in north County Meath, Ireland. The village is located near a river called the Dee () and near White ...

History

Evidence of ancient settlement in the area includes a number of

ring fort Ringforts, ring forts or ring fortresses are circular fortified settlements that were mostly built during the Bronze Age up to about the year 1000. They are found in Northern Europe, especially in Ireland. There are also many in South Wale ...

sites, and a large

motte-and-bailey castle A motte-and-bailey castle is a European fortification with a wooden or stone keep situated on a raised area of ground called a motte, accompanied by a walled courtyard, or bailey, surrounded by a protective ditch and palisade. Relatively eas ...

site, in Castletown townland. The disused

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 second l ...

church in the townland, dedicated to Saint Patrick and likely the origin of "Kilpatrick", was built on the site of an older churchyard. The existing

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 letter ...

church, also dedicated to Saint Patrick, was built . A battle of the

1798 Rebellion The Irish Rebellion of 1798 ( ga, Éirí Amach 1798; Ulster-Scots: ''The Hurries'') was a major uprising against British rule in Ireland. The main organising force was the Society of United Irishmen, a republican revolutionary group influenced b ...

, involving revolutionaries from County Wexford, was fought near the village. The casualties were buried in mostly unmarked graves in the nearby Knightstown

bog A bog or bogland is a wetland that accumulates peat as a deposit of dead plant materials often mosses, typically sphagnum moss. It is one of the four main types of wetlands. Other names for bogs include mire, mosses, quagmire, and muskeg; a ...

. The Navan and Kingscourt branch line had a halt at the village, which was closed in 1933. The line remained in use for freight use until 2001. A

human-trafficking Human trafficking is the trade of humans for the purpose of forced labour, sexual slavery, or commercial sexual exploitation for the trafficker or others. This may encompass providing a spouse in the context of forced marriage, or the extract ...

base of activity was discovered outside the village in 2016.

Amenities

The village has a pub, shop,

pitch and putt Pitch and putt is an amateur sport very similar to, and derived from, golf, where the hole length is typically up to and just 2–3 clubs are typically used. The game was organised and developed in Ireland during the early 20th century, befor ...

club, Catholic church and national (primary) school. The church is in the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Meath The Diocese of Meath ( ga, Deoise na Mí) is a diocese of the Catholic Church that is located in the middle part of Ireland. It is one of eight suffragan dioceses of the ecclesiastical province of Armagh. Thomas Deenihan has been bishop of the d ...

. As of 2024, Castletown National School had an enrollment of 84 pupils.

Notable residents

* Shane McEntee (19 December 1956 – 21 December 2012), Fine Gael politician and Minister of State *

Helen McEntee Helen McEntee (born 8 June 1986) is an Irish Fine Gael politician who has served as Minister for Justice from June 2020 to November 2022. From April to November 2021, she became a minister without portfolio during a period of maternity leave. S ...

(born 8 June 1986), Shane's daughter, Fine Gael politician and Minister of Justice *

C. Y. O'Connor Charles Yelverton O'Connor, (11 January 1843 – 10 March 1902), was an Irish engineer who is best known for his work in Western Australia, especially the construction of Fremantle Harbour, thought to be impossible, and the Goldfields Wate ...

(11 January 1843 – 10 March 1902), Irish engineer based in Australia

Notes and sources

Footnotes

References

Towns and villages in County Meath Parishes of the Catholic Church in Ireland {{Ireland-geo-stub