County Laois ( ; ) is a

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

. It is part of the

Eastern and Midland Region The Eastern and Midland Region has been defined as a region in Ireland since 1 January 2015. It is a NUTS Level II statistical region of Ireland (coded IE06). NUTS 2 Regions may be classified as ''less developed regions'', ''transition ...

and in the

province A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

Leinster Leinster ( ; or ) is one of the four provinces of Ireland, in the southeast of Ireland. The modern province comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Meath, Leinster and Osraige, which existed during Gaelic Ireland. Following the 12th-century ...

. It was known as Queen's County from 1556 to 1922. The modern county takes its name from

Loígis Loígis () is the name of an Irish tribe, as it is called by contemporary scholars. Formerly, scholars generally called the tribe ''Laoighis'' or ''Laeighis'' in Irish, ''Lagisia'' in Latin, and ''Leix'' in English. Loígis is also the name of the ...

, a medieval kingdom. Historically, it has also been known as County Leix.

Laois County Council Laois County Council () is the local authority of County Laois, Ireland. As a county council, it is governed by the Local Government Act 2001. The council is responsible for housing and community, roads and transportation, urban planning and de ...

is the

local authority Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of governance or public administration within a particular sovereign state. Local governments typically constitute a subdivision of a higher-level political or administrative unit, such a ...

for the county, and is based in

Portlaoise Portlaoise ( ), or Port Laoise (), is the county town of County Laois, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Midland Region, Ireland, South Midlands in the province of Leinster. Portlaoise was the fastest growing of the top 20 largest town ...

. At the 2022 census, the population of the county was 91,657, an increase of 56% since the 2002 census.

History

Prehistoric

The first people in Laois were bands of hunters and gatherers who passed through the county about 8,500 years ago. They hunted in the forests that covered Laois and fished in its rivers, gathering nuts and berries to supplement their diets. Next came Ireland's first farmers. These people of the Neolithic period (4000 to 2500 BC) cleared forests and planted crops. Their burial mounds remain in

Clonaslee Clonaslee () is a village in north County Laois, Ireland, situated in the foothills of the Slieve Bloom Mountains on the R422 Mountmellick to Birr road. Clonaslee is approximately 100 km west of Dublin, and is close to the towns of Portl ...

and Cuffsborough. Starting around 2500 BC, the people of the Bronze Age lived in Laois. They produced weapons, tools, and golden objects. Visitors to the county can see a

stone circle A stone circle is a ring of megalithic standing stones. Most are found in Northwestern Europe – especially Stone circles in the British Isles and Brittany – and typically date from the Late Neolithic and Early Bronze Age, with most being ...

they left behind at Monamonry, as well as the remains of their hill forts at Clopook and Monelly. Skirk, near

Borris-in-Ossory Borris-in-Ossory (, or the ' Burgage of Osraige') is a village in west County Laois, Ireland, close to the Tipperary border and the M7 motorway. Features The village has facilities such as a school, churches, community hall, convenience reta ...

, has a Bronze Age standing stone and ring fort. The body of

Cashel Man Cashel Man is a bog body found near Cashel in County Laois, Ireland, on 10 August 2011. The body was a young adult male, around 20–25,Hart, Edward, dir. "Ghosts of Murdered Kings." NOVA. Prod. Edward Hart and Dan McCabe. PBS. 29 Jan. 2014. Tel ...

indicates that ritual killing took place around 2000 BC. The next stage is known as the pre-Christian Celtic Iron Age. For the first time, iron appeared in Ireland, showing up in the weapons used by factions who fought bloody battles for control of the land. At Ballydavis, archaeologists have discovered

ring barrows A ring cairn (also correctly termed a ring bank enclosure, but sometimes wrongly described as a ring barrow) is a circular or slightly oval, ring-shaped, low (maximum 0.5 metres high) embankment, several metres wide and from 8 to 20 metres i ...

that date from this time period. The county name derives from

, of which the modern county is only a part. In the 11th century, its dynastic rulers adopted the surname Ua/Ó Mórdha. They claimed descent from a member of the Red Branch Knights. By the first century AD, the western third of Laois was part of the

Kingdom of Ossory Osraige (Old Irish) or Osraighe (Classical Irish), Osraí (Modern Irish), anglicized as Ossory, was a medieval Irish kingdom comprising what is now County Kilkenny and western County Laois, corresponding to the Diocese of Ossory. The home of t ...

. The eastern part was roughly divided into seven parts, which were ruled by the Seven

Sept A sept () is a division of a family, especially of a Scottish or Irish family. The term is used both in Scotland and in Ireland, where it may be translated as Irish , meaning "progeny" or "seed", and may indicate the descendants of a person ...

s of

:Ua/Ó Mórdha (O'More,O'Moore), O'Lalor, O'Doran, O'Dowling, O'Devoy (O'Deevy), O'Kelly and McEvoy. Ireland900

Introduction of Christianity

When Ireland was Christianised, holy men and women founded religious communities in

. St.

Ciarán of Saighir Ciarán ( Irish spelling) or Ciaran (Scottish Gaelic spelling) is a traditionally male given name of Irish origin. It means "little dark one" or "little dark-haired one", produced by appending a diminutive suffix to ''ciar'' ("black", "dark") ...

(called "The Elder" to distinguish him from the younger St.

Ciarán of Clonmacnoise Saint Ciarán of Clonmacnoise (c. 516 – c. 549), supposedly born Ciarán mac an tSaeir ("son of the carpenter"), was one of the Twelve Apostles of Ireland and the first abbot of Clonmacnoise. He is sometimes called Ciarán the Youn ...

) founded his monastic habitation in the western

Slieve Bloom Mountains The Slieve Bloom Mountains (; ) is a mountain range in Ireland. They rise from the central plain of Ireland to a height of . While not very high, they are extensive by local standards. The highest points are Arderin () () at the southwestern en ...

as the first

bishop of Ossory . The Bishop of Ossory () is an Episcopal polity, episcopal title which takes its name after the ancient of Kingdom of Ossory in the Provinces of Ireland, Province of Leinster, Ireland. In the Catholic Church it remains a separate title, but i ...

, reputedly before St. Patrick. His mother Liadán had an early convent nearby at what is now Killyon. Between 550 and 600, St. Canice founded Aghaboe Abbey and St. Mochua founded a religious community at Timahoe. An early Christian community lived at Dun Masc or Masc's fort, on the Rock of Dunamase. The

Synod of Rathbreasail A synod () is a council of a Christian denomination, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. The word ''synod'' comes from the Ancient Greek () ; the term is analogous with the Latin word . Originally, ...

that established the Irish dioceses was held near

Mountrath Mountrath () is a small town in County Laois, Ireland. The town lies on the R445 midway between Dublin and Limerick, exactly 96.5 km (60 mi) from both cities. The town was bypassed by the M7 motorway in 2010, leading to a significant ...

in 1111, moving the Church away from its

monastic Monasticism (; ), also called monachism or monkhood, is a religious way of life in which one renounces worldly pursuits to devote oneself fully to spiritual activities. Monastic life plays an important role in many Christian churches, especially ...

base. As religious orders with strong ties to Rome replaced older religious communities, the wooden buildings of the early Christian churches in Laois gave way to stone monasteries. The

Augustinians Augustinians are members of several religious orders that follow the Rule of Saint Augustine, written about 400 A.D. by Augustine of Hippo. There are two distinct types of Augustinians in Catholic religious orders dating back to the 12th–13 ...

and

Dominicans Dominicans () also known as Quisqueyans () are an ethnic group, ethno-nationality, national people, a people of shared ancestry and culture, who have ancestral roots in the Dominican Republic. The Dominican ethnic group was born out of a fusio ...

established themselves at Aghaboe Abbey, while the

Cistercians The Cistercians (), officially the Order of Cistercians (, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint Benedict, as well as the contri ...

took over an older religious community at Abbeyleix.

Norman invasion

The

Norman invasion of Ireland The Anglo-Norman invasion of Ireland took place during the late 12th century, when Anglo-Normans gradually conquered and acquired large swathes of land in Ireland over which the monarchs of England then claimed sovereignty. The Anglo-Normans ...

in 1169–71 affected Laois as it was a part of the

Kingdom of Leinster The Kingdom of Leinster () was a kingdom of Gaelic Ireland which existed in the east of the island from the Irish Iron Age until the 17th century Early Modern Ireland. According to traditional Irish history found in the ''Annals of the Four Mast ...

. In Laois, the fortress on the Rock of Dunamase was part of the dowry of the Irish princess Aoife, who was given in marriage in 1170 to the Norman warrior Strongbow. Advancing Normans surveyed the county from wooden towers built on top of earthen mounds, known as

motte 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 (castle), bailey, surrounded by a protective Rampart (fortificati ...

s. They also built stone fortresses, such as Lea Castle, just outside Portarlington. Several of the county's towns were first established as Norman boroughs, including Castletown, Durrow and Timahoe. From 1175 until about 1325, Normans controlled the best land in the county, while Gaelic society retreated to the bogs, forests and the Slieve Bloom Mountains. The early 14th century saw a Gaelic revival, as the chieftains of

caused the Normans to withdraw. The Dempseys seized Lea Castle, while Dunamase came into the ownership of the O’Mores. Examples 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, to command and defend strategic points ...

s built by the Irish

Mac Giolla Phádraig Mac or MAC may refer to: Common meanings * Mac (computer), a line of personal computers made by Apple Inc. * Mackintosh, a raincoat made of rubberized cloth * Mac, a prefix to surnames derived from Gaelic languages * McIntosh (apple), a Canadian ...

chieftains are found at Ballaghmore and

Cullahill Castle Cullahill Castle was the principal stronghold of the MacGillapatricks of Upper Ossory built around 1425 and destroyed around 1650. Cullahill Castle takes its name from an ancient forest that covered Cullahill Mountain and extended down to Cu ...

, both decorated with

Sheela na gig A sheela na gig is a figurative carving of a naked woman displaying an exaggerated Human vulva, vulva. These carvings, from the Middle Ages, are Grotesque (architecture), architectural grotesques found throughout most of Europe on Architecture ...

s. In 1548, the English confiscated the lands of the O’Mores and built "Campa", known as the Fort of Leix, today's

16th century colony and County status

It was shired in 1556 by Queen Mary as Queen's County, covering the ''countries'' of Leix (Loígis), Slewmarge, Irry, and that part of Glimnaliry on the southwest side of the

River Barrow The Barrow () is a river in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is one of The Three Sisters (Ireland), The Three Sisters; the other two being the River Suir and the River Nore. The Barrow is the longest of the three rivers and, at 192 km (12 ...

. Laois received its present

Irish language Irish (Standard Irish: ), also known as Irish Gaelic or simply Gaelic ( ), is a Celtic language of the Indo-European language family. It is a member of the Goidelic languages of the Insular Celtic sub branch of the family and is indigenous ...

name following the

Irish War of Independence The Irish War of Independence (), also known as the Anglo-Irish War, was a guerrilla war fought in Ireland from 1919 to 1921 between the Irish Republican Army (1919–1922), Irish Republican Army (IRA, the army of the Irish Republic) and Unite ...

. Laois was also sometimes spelt "Leix". Portlaoise (previously Maryborough) is the main town of the county.

was the subject of two organised

plantations Plantations are farms specializing in cash crops, usually mainly planting a single crop, with perhaps ancillary areas for vegetables for eating and so on. Plantations, centered on a plantation house, grow crops including cotton, cannabis, tobacco ...

or colonisations by the

Kingdom of England The Kingdom of England was a sovereign state on the island of Great Britain from the late 9th century, when it was unified from various Heptarchy, Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, until 1 May 1707, when it united with Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland to f ...

in 1556 and 1607. During the first plantation,

Thomas Radclyffe, 3rd Earl of Sussex Thomas Radclyffe (or Ratclyffe), 3rd Earl of Sussex KG (c. 15259 June 1583), was Lord Deputy of Ireland during the Tudor period of English history, and a leading courtier during the reign of Elizabeth I. Family He was the eldest son of ...

attempted to dispossess the ruling O'Moore clan, who had been engaging in costly raids on

The Pale The Pale ( Irish: ''An Pháil'') or the English Pale (' or ') was the part of Ireland directly under the control of the English government in the Late Middle Ages. It had been reduced by the late 15th century to an area along the east coast s ...

, and settle the area with English colonists. However, this led to a long drawn-out guerrilla war in the county and left only a small colonist community clustered around garrisons. This initial attempt at plantation is widely regarded as a failure by historians, as occupying the territory was far more costly than the money yielded from it, and the scheme attracted fewer settlers than anticipated. The second, more successful plantation of the county took place in the aftermath of the

Nine Years' War The Nine Years' War was a European great power conflict from 1688 to 1697 between Kingdom of France, France and the Grand Alliance (League of Augsburg), Grand Alliance. Although largely concentrated in Europe, fighting spread to colonial poss ...

, and expanded the existing English settlements with more landowners and tenants. In 1659, a group of

Quakers Quakers are people who belong to the Religious Society of Friends, a historically Protestantism, Protestant Christian set of Christian denomination, denominations. Members refer to each other as Friends after in the Bible, and originally ...

led by William Edmundson, settled in Mountmellick, while a group of

Huguenot The Huguenots ( , ; ) are a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed (Calvinist) tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, ...

s were given refuge in Portarlington in 1696 after their service to William of Orange in the

Williamite War in Ireland The Williamite War in Ireland took place from March 1689 to October 1691. Fought between Jacobitism, Jacobite supporters of James II of England, James II and those of his successor, William III of England, William III, it resulted in a Williamit ...

. What followed was a period of relative calm. Anglo-Irish landowners enclosed the land and built fine houses, including Durrow Castle, Heywood House and

Emo Court Emo Court, located near the village of Emo, County Laois, Emo in County Laois, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, is a large Neoclassical architecture, neo-classical mansion. Architectural features of the building include sash-style windows, pavilion ...

. In 1836, a branch of the Grand Canal stretched to

Mountmellick Mountmellick or Mountmellic () is a town in the north of County Laois, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is on the N80 road (Ireland), N80 road, 6 km north of Portlaoise. The town is within Mountmellick (parish), Mountmellick Roman Catholic p ...

, further stimulating industry in that town. The Great Famine of 1845–49 devastated the county. The county's workhouses could not cope with the number of destitute people seeking shelter. By the time the workhouse opened at Donaghmore in 1853, many of the poorest had emigrated or died. The English language was already dominant in much of Leinster by the time of the famine, but the

was still spoken in Laois as late as the 1870s. The county was known as Queen's County () from 1556 until its name was informally changed on the establishment of the

Irish Free State The Irish Free State (6 December 192229 December 1937), also known by its Irish-language, Irish name ( , ), was a State (polity), state established in December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921. The treaty ended the three-ye ...

in 1922. The county's name was formerly spelt as ''Laoighis'' and ''Leix''. In the

Local Government Act 2001 The Local Government Act 2001 (No. 37) was enacted by the Oireachtas on 21 July 2001 to reform local government in Ireland. Most of the provisions of the Act came into operation on 1 January 2002. The act was a restatement and amendment of pr ...

, it is named in the list of counties as ''Laois'', although no legislation was enacted explicitly changing the name from Queen's County, the name formally established under the

Local Government (Ireland) Act 1898 The Local Government (Ireland) Act 1898 ( 61 & 62 Vict. c. 37) was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland that established a system of local government in Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots diale ...

which continued to have legal effect. When land is sold in the county the relevant

title deeds A deed is a legal document that is signed and delivered, especially concerning the ownership of property or legal rights. Specifically, in common law, a deed is any legal instrument in writing which passes, affirms or confirms an interest, right ...

are still updated as being in ''Queen's County''.

Geography and subdivisions

Laois is the 23rd in both in area and population of Ireland's 32 counties. It is the seventh-largest of Leinster's 12 counties in size and tenth largest in population. The county is landlocked and, uniquely, is

doubly landlocked A landlocked country is a country that has no territory connected to an ocean or whose coastlines lie solely on endorheic basins. Currently, there are 44 landlocked countries, two of them doubly landlocked (Liechtenstein and Uzbekistan), and t ...

, not bordering any other county which touches the coast.

Baronies

The county was formerly divided into nine

baronies Barony may refer to: * Barony, the peerage, office of, or territory held by a baron * Barony, the title and land held in fealty by a feudal baron * Barony (county division), a type of administrative or geographical division in parts of the British ...

: *

Ballyadams Ballyadams () is a Barony (Ireland), barony in County Laois (formerly called ''Queen's County'' or ''County Leix''), Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Etymology Ballyadams barony is named after Ballyadams Castle, a 15th-century fortified house nea ...

Cullenagh Cullenagh or Cullinagh () is a barony in County Laois (formerly called ''Queen's County'' or ''County Leix''), Ireland. Etymology The barony is named after the Cullenagh Hills; located between Abbeyleix and Timahoe, they rise to a height of ...

* Maryborough East * Maryborough West * Portnehinch *

Slievemargy Slievemargy (, IPA: �lʲiə mˠaɾ.ɟə is a barony in County Laois (formerly called ''Queen's County'' or ''County Leix''), Ireland. Etymology The barony is named after the large hill partially within its borders. The name ''Slievemargy'' ...

Stradbally Stradbally () is a town in County Laois, Ireland. Overview It is located in the midlands of Ireland along the N80 road, about from Portlaoise and from Dublin. It is a townland, a civil parish, and historic barony. It is known for its annu ...

* Tinnahinch *

Upper Ossory Upper Ossory () was an administrative barony in the south and west of Queen's County (now County Laois) in Ireland. In late Gaelic Ireland it was the túath of the Mac Giolla Phádraig ( Fitzpatrick) family and a surviving remnant of the once l ...

(later divided into

Upper Woods Upper Woods or Upperwoods () is a Barony (Ireland), barony in County Laois (formerly called ''Queen's County'' or ''County Leix''), Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Etymology Upper Woods barony is named after the forests of the Slieve Bloom Mount ...

Clarmallagh Clarmallagh () is a barony in County Laois (formerly called ''Queen's County'' or ''County Leix''), Ireland. Etymology Clarmallagh means "Flat land of Maigh Locha 'lake plain'', referring to Grantstown Lake. Geography Clarmallagh is located ...

and

Clandonagh Clandonagh () is a barony in County Laois (formerly called ''Queen's County'' or ''County Leix''), Republic of Ireland. A barony was a historical subdivision of a county; mainly cadastral rather than administrative. Etymology Clandonagh barony ...

)

Towns and villages

Abbeyleix Abbeyleix (; ) is a town in County Laois, Ireland, located around south of the county town of Portlaoise. Abbelyleix is in a civil parish of the same name. Abbeyleix was formerly located on the N8, the main road from Dublin to Cork. At one p ...

Aghaboe Aghaboe () is a small village in County Laois, Ireland. It is located on the R434 regional road in the rural hinterland west of the town of Abbeyleix. It contains the ruins of the Abbey of Aghaboe which was founded by St. Canice in the Oss ...

Arles Arles ( , , ; ; Classical ) is a coastal city and Communes of France, commune in the South of France, a Subprefectures in France, subprefecture in the Bouches-du-Rhône Departments of France, department of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Reg ...

* Ballacolla * Ballaghmore *

Ballickmoyler Ballickmoyler or Ballicmoyler () is a small town in County Laois, Ireland. It lies southeast of Portlaoise, at the junction of the N80 national secondary road and the R429 regional road. Public transport During the week Ballickmoyler is ser ...

Ballinakill Ballinakill () is a small village in County Laois, Ireland on the R432 regional road between Abbeyleix, Ballyragget and Castlecomer, County Kilkenny. As of the 2016 census, there were 445 people living in Ballinakill. History In 1606, Sir Th ...

Ballybrittas Ballybrittas (, IPA: �bˠalʲəˈbʲɾʲɪt̪ˠaːʃ is a small village in the northeast of County Laois, Ireland situated on the R445 about 5 km SW of Monasterevin, County Kildare. Formerly on the N7 Dublin - Limerick road, the village i ...

* Ballybrophy * Ballyhide *

Ballyfin Ballyfin ( or alternatively "town of Fionn") is a village and parish in the Slieve Bloom Mountains in County Laois, Ireland. It is around 8km west of Portlaoise, on the L21121 local road which joins the R423 regional road between Mountrath ...

* Ballylinan * Ballyroan * Barrowhouse *

* Camross * Castletown *

Clonaghadoo Clonaghadoo is a village in County Laois, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, located north of Mountmellick just off the N80 road (Ireland), N80 national secondary road. The Slieve Bloom Mountains lie southwest of the village. The village is part o ...

* Coolrain * Cullahill * Donaghmore * Durrow *

Emo Emo () is a genre of rock music characterized by emotional, often confessional lyrics. It emerged as a style of hardcore punk and from the Washington, D.C., hardcore scene, where it was known as emotional hardcore or emocore. The bands ...

Errill Errill () is a village in southwest County Laois, Ireland, near the County Tipperary and County Kilkenny borders. It is 6 km west of Rathdowney and 12 km north-east of Templemore. The village is centred on a village green around which s ...

* The Heath * Jamestown *

Killeshin Killeshin () is a village in County Laois, Ireland on the R430 regional road. Killeshin is a small rural community situated five kilometres west of Carlow town and overlooks the picturesque Barrow Valley. The church at the foot of Slievemargy ...

* Newtown * Pike of Rushall * Portarlington *

* Raheen *

Rathdowney Rathdowney or Rathdowny () is a small town in southwest County Laois, Ireland. It lies some 32 km southwest of Portlaoise in the Irish Midlands, at the point where the R433 regional road from Abbeyleix to Templemore is crossed by the R ...

* Rosenallis * Shanahoe *

* The Swan * Timahoe * Vicarstown

Climate

For climatological information see: durrow.ie for averages and extremes. The weather station at east Durrow was set up in May 2008. The equipment used is a Davis Vantage Pro II that measures temperature, humidity, wind speed, wind direction, rainfall and barometric pressure. This data is transmitted every 2 seconds to
website
where the data can be freely accessed. The station also reports to the Irish Weather Network which displays live weather data from similar stations all around Ireland. In addition, a Met Éireann climatological station (Number: 472) was installed in September 2010 and the data collected is sent to headquarters in Glasnevin, Dublin on a monthly basis. The climatological station measures rainfall in a manual gauge, soil temperatures at 5 cm, 10 cm and 20 cm depths, air temperature including wet-bulb, and daily maximum and daily minimum temperatures. The climatological station is a project that is envisaged to last thirty years and collect a climate profile for Durrow and Laois in general.

Governance and politics

Local government

is the

governing County Laois. It has 19 councillors, and is divided into three

local electoral area A local electoral area (LEA; ) is an electoral area for elections to Local government in the Republic of Ireland, local authorities in Ireland. All elections in the Republic of Ireland, elections use the single transferable vote. Republic of Ir ...

s, each of which is also a municipal district:

(6), Graiguecullen- Portarlington (6), and

(7). The council has two representatives on the

Eastern and Midland Regional Assembly The Eastern and Midland Region has been defined as a region in Ireland since 1 January 2015. It is a NUTS Level II statistical region of Ireland (coded IE06). NUTS 2 Regions may be classified as ''less developed regions'', ''transition ...

where it is part of the Midland strategic planning area.

Former districts

It was formerly divided into the

rural district A rural district was a type of local government area – now superseded – established at the end of the 19th century in England, Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. I ...

s of Abbeyleix, Athy No. 2, Mountmellick, Roscrea No. 3, and Slievemargy. The rural districts were abolished in 1925.

and

, within the former rural district of Mountmellick, had

town commissioners Town commissioners were elected local government bodies that existed in urban areas in Ireland from the 19th century until 2002. Larger towns with commissioners were converted to urban districts by the Local Government (Ireland) Act 1898, wit ...

. These became

town councils A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, borough counci ...

in 2002. All town councils in Ireland were abolished in 2014.

National politics

Most of County Laois is part of the Dáil constituency of Laois–Offaly (5 seats), with the

electoral division An electoral (congressional, legislative, etc.) district, sometimes called a constituency, riding, or ward, is a geographical portion of a political unit, such as a country, state or province, city, or administrative region, created to provid ...

s of Ballybrittas, Jamestown, Kilmullen, Portarlington South, in the former rural district of Mountmellick, in the Kildare South constituency. The constituency of Laois–Offaly existed from 1921 to 2016, and again since 2020. In 2016 to 2020 period, there was a separate constituency of

Laois County Laois ( ; ) is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and in the province of Leinster. It was known as Queen's County from 1556 to 1922. The modern county takes its name from Loígis, a medieval kingdom. Hist ...

(3 seats). It is part of the

European Parliament constituency Member of the European Parliament, Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) are Elections in the European Union, elected by the population of the Member state of the European Union, member states of the European Union (EU). The European Elect ...

South South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both west and east. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþa ...

(5 seats).

Places of interest

Rock of Dunamase Dunamase or the Rock of Dunamase ( "fort of Másc") is a rocky outcrop in County Laois, Ireland. Rising above a plain, it has the ruins of Dunamase Castle, a defensive stronghold dating from the early Hiberno-Norman period with a view across ...

* Castle Durrow * Timahoe Round Tower * Stradbally Hall *Mountmellick Quaker Museum *

Ballyfin House Ballyfin ( or alternatively "town of Fionn mac Cumhaill, Fionn") is a village and parish in the Slieve Bloom Mountains in County Laois, Ireland. It is around 8km west of Portlaoise, on the L21121 Local roads in Ireland, local road which joins t ...

Roundwood House
*

Dunamaise Arts Centre Dunamaise Arts Centre () is an arts and cultural centre located in Portlaoise, Ireland, opened in 1999. History Maryborough Gaol was built in a Neoclassical style. It is a seven-bay, two-storey building over a concealed basement with a thre ...

, Portlaoise *Portlaoise Leisure Centre * Tinnakill Castle *Abbeyleix Bog Project *Heywood gardens(Lutyens) *18-hole golf courses include Abbeyleix Road in Portlaoise; The Heritage in Killenard; The Heath; Abbeyleix, Mountrath and Rathdowney. County Laois also has a mixture of castles, mansions, forts and old structures that are now in ruins but are still worth visiting.

Demography

The population of County Laois is expanding, given its easy commute to the employment centres of Kildare and Dublin. Laois's population growth during the period 2002–2006 (14%) was stronger than the national average (8.2%), as follows: *2002 ... 58,774 *2006 ... 67,012 ... +14.01% *2011 ... 80,559 *2016 ... 84,697 As of the 2016 census, ethnically Laois was 84% white Irish, 8% other white, 2% black, 1% Asian, 1% 'other', with 3% not stated. As of the 2022 census, County Laois had a usual resident population of 91,284. Of these, 79.0% identified as White Irish, 0.9% as White Irish Travellers, and 9.2% as Other White ethnicities. 2.1% identified as Black or Black Irish, 2.2% as Asian or Asian Irish, and 1.7% as Other ethnicities. 5.0% of the population did not state their ethnicity.

Economy

Industrial parks are located in Portlaoise, Portarlington and Mountmellick. The county receives EU funding as it is part of the cluster of three

regions In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

(

Border Borders are generally defined as geography, geographical boundaries, imposed either by features such as oceans and terrain, or by polity, political entities such as governments, sovereign states, federated states, and other administrative divisio ...

, Midland and

West West is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some Romance langu ...

), colloquially known as "BMW", that qualifies for special funding aid. Agricultural activities occupy approximately 70% of the land area of the county (). However agriculture's share of income in the "BMW" region has declined sharply in the past decade, and represented only approximately 3.9% of annual income (GVA) in 2005 Central Statistics Office. The remaining area includes considerable stretches of raised bog and the Slieve Bloom mountains, which are partially covered by coniferous forest.

Culture

Performing arts

The county's largest theatre is the Dunamaise Theatre in

which opened in 1999. There are many festivals held in Laois each year including: * Durrow Die-Cast Model and Toy Show * Halloween Howls *Laois Bealtaine Festival *Half Door Club Music & Set Dance Festival *

Rose of Tralee Regional Finals The Rose of Tralee International Festival is an annual beauty pageant held in Tralee in County Kerry, featuring contestants from Ireland or from the Irish diaspora. The festival, takes its inspiration from a 19th-century ballad of the The Rose ...

*Laois Fleadh *Heartlands Rally *Gordon Bennett Classic Car Run *Laois Walks Festival *Festival Francais Portarlington *Durrow Scarecrow Festival *Stradbally National Steam Rally *

National Ploughing Championships The National Ploughing Championships () or NPC or the Ploughing, previously known as The National Ploughing Championships Machinery & Livestock Exhibition, is an outdoor agricultural show in Ireland incorporating a ploughing contest. Held eve ...

Electric Picnic Electric Picnic is an annual arts-and-music festival which has been staged since 2004 at Stradbally Hall in Stradbally, County Laois, Ireland. Overview It is organised by Pod Concerts and Festival Republic, who purchased the majority sh ...

*Maureen Culleton Festival of Dance * B.A.R.E in the Woods *Fisherstown Trad Festival *Ossory Agricultural Show *William Edmundson & Friends Gathering *Mountmellick Drama Festival *Laois International Golf Challenge

Media

Newspapers

*''

The Laois Voice ''The Laois Voice'' was a local newspaper in County Laois, Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the ...

Railways

Iarnród Éireann Iarnród Éireann, () or Irish Rail, is the operator of the national Rail transport in Ireland, railway network of Ireland. Established on 2 February 1987, it is a subsidiary of CIÉ, Córas Iompair Éireann (CIÉ). It operates all internal I ...

train services along the Dublin-Cork line connects the county between

Heuston station Heuston Station, ( ; ; formerly Kingsbridge Station) also known as Dublin Heuston, is one of Dublin's largest railway stations and links the capital with the south, southwest and west of Ireland. It is operated by Iarnród Éireann (IÉ), ...

and

Cork "Cork" or "CORK" may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Stopper (plug), or "cork", a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container *** Wine cork an item to seal or reseal wine Places Ireland * ...

Limerick Limerick ( ; ) is a city in western Ireland, in County Limerick. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is in the Mid-West Region, Ireland, Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. W ...

, travel through the county, with railway stations at Portarlington,

and Ballybrophy. From Portarlington trains run on the Dublin-Galway/Westport/Ballina line to

Athlone Athlone (; ) is a town on the border of County Roscommon and County Westmeath, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is located on the River Shannon near the southern shore of Lough Ree. It is the second most populous town in the Midland Region, Ir ...

as well as

Galway Galway ( ; , ) is a City status in Ireland, city in (and the county town of) County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lough Corrib and Galway Bay. It is the most populous settlement in the province of Connacht, the List of settleme ...

, Westport and Ballina railway station, Ballina. From Ballybrophy trains run on the Limerick-Ballybrophy railway line, Ballybrophy line to Nenagh railway station, Nenagh and

direct. Past Railways There used to be railway stations at Mountmellick and Abbeyleix which now the station houses have become residences. Both stations stopped in the 60s. The line was from Kilkenny city to Abbeyleix to Portlaoise and then on to Mountmellick.It was originally planned that the line would go on to connect Mountmellick to Geashill and with possibility for another line from Geashill to Mullingar but these were never built leaving Mountmellick as a dead end.Mountmellick being a dead end lead to its closure the Portlaoise to Abbeyleix to Kilkenny city line closed as it was not as popular as the Carlow to Kilkenny line.

Road transport

The M7 motorway (Ireland), M7 road runs through County Laois. This is one of the busiest roadways in Ireland connecting Dublin and Limerick and acts as part of the route for the M8 motorway (Ireland), M8 which connects Cork (city), Cork to Dublin. The M8 joins the M7 to the south of Portlaoise. Road infrastructure has improved greatly in the county over the past decade. Most major interurban routes through Laois have now been upgraded to motorway standards. All major traffic bottlenecks in Laois such as

and

have been bypassed following the opening of the M7/M8 tolled motorway project in May 2010. Both towns were major intercity bottlenecks for motorists, especially

where delays of up to 30 minutes or more were common. Bus Éireann provides regular intercity bus services in the county. The Dublin to Limerick service runs every hour through towns and villages on the old N7 road (now R445 road, R445) while the Dublin to Cork (city), Cork intercity bus service runs every two hours through towns in the county.

People

*John George Adair (1823–1885), builder of Glenveagh Castle and financier of JA Ranch in the Texas Panhandle. *Darina Allen (1953– ), TV chef. *John Barrett (clergyman), John Barrett (1753–1821), Vice Provost, Trinity College, 1807–1821. *Jonah Barrington (judge), Sir Jonah Barrington (1760–1834). *Elizabeth Barton of the Barton Family, Straffan and Lisduff *Claire Byrne (1976– ), TV presenter/newscaster, best known for co-presenting RTÉ's ''The Daily Show'' *Tony Byrne (footballer born 1946), Tony Byrne, former professional footballer who played for Republic of Ireland national football team, Ireland. *Ned Campion (1937- ), Equestrian competitor for Ireland in 1968 Summer Olympics *Des Connolly, footballer *William Cosby, governor of New York Colony, New York from 1732 to 1736. *Evelyn Cusack, Met Éireann meteorologist *William Dargan (1799–1867), responsible for the Industrial Exhibition, 1853. *Cecil Day-Lewis (1904–1972), British Poet-Laureate, 1967–1972. *Daniel Delany (1747–1814), Bishop of Kildare and Leighlin. *Eileen Dunne (1958– ), TV newscaster. *Denis Dynon, recipient of the Victoria Cross *Oliver J. Flanagan (1920–1987), Minister for Defence, 1976–1977. *Charles Flanagan *Seán Fleming *Stephen Hunt (footballer born 1981), Stephen Hunt (1981–), professional footballer playing for Wolverhampton Wanderers and Republic of Ireland national football team, Ireland. *Liam Hyland *Anne Jellicoe Founder of Alexandra College. *James Fintan Lalor (1807–1849), Young Irelander. *Peter Lalor (1827–1889), leader of the Eureka Stockade miners revolt, Ballarat, Victoria, Australia. *Patrick Lalor *Charles McDonald (Irish politician), Charles McDonald *James Macauley (1889–1945), former Ireland soccer international player. *Bartholomew Mosse (1712–1759), founder, Rotunda Maternity Hospital, Dublin. *David Murphy (Laois Gaelic footballer), David Murphy, Laois Gaelic footballer *Valentine O'Hara (1875–1945), author and authority on Russia and the Baltic states. *Kevin O'Higgins (1892–1927), TD and Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration, Minister for Justice. *Sean O'Rourke, broadcaster and journalist with RTÉ. *Bernard O'Shea, comedian, best known for his roles on RTÉ's ''Republic of Telly''. *Brian Rigney, former Ireland rugby international. *Robin Roe (1928–2010), 19 times capped Irish rugby international who also played for the British and Irish Lions. *Hon. William Russell Grace (1832–1904), mayor of New York, 1880–1885. *John Shaw (navy), John Shaw (1773–1823), U.S. Naval Officer. *Robert Sheehan (1988– ), actor best known for playing Nathan Young on E4 (TV channel), E4's comedy-drama, Misfits (TV series), ''Misfits''. *Brian Stanley (politician), Brian Stanley *Kivas Tully (1820–1905), architect, Trinity College, Toronto, the Custom House and the Bank of Montreal. *Zach Tuohy (1989–), professional Australian rules footballer, currently playing for Geelong Football Club. *Colm Begley (1986–), Gaelic football player. He played Australian rules football for the Brisbane Lions in the Australian Football League, AFL. * Professor Noel Fitzpatrick (1967–), Veterinary Surgeon for Channel 4 television series The Supervet. *Fionn mac Cumhaill, mythical hunter-warrior of Irish mythology *Damien Bowe, singer and former member of Irish boyband D-Side. *Anne Keenan-Buckley (1962–), a middle-distance runner who was on the Irish 1988 Summer Olympics, 1988 Summer Olympic team. *John Whelan (Irish politician)

Sport

Laois has a strong tradition of Gaelic games, with success at both Gaelic football and hurling. Laois GAA, Laois are one of few counties to contest an All-Ireland final in both Gaelic football and hurling. In the 21st century, Laois have been more successful footballers than hurlers. Laois minors have had several successes over the past two decades, and the Laois senior footballers reached the Leinster final in 2003 (victorious), 2004, and 2005. As of 2022, Laois hurlers compete in the Liam MacCarthy Cup, a competition reserved for the premiere hurling counties while the footballers compete in the Sam Maguire Cup. Laois play home games at O'Moore Park, the county's largest sporting venue, which is often used for hurling championship games. In rugby, Portlaoise RFC and Portarlington RFC compete in Division 2A of the Leinster League.

Twin towns

County Laois is a participant in the Twin towns and sister cities, Twin Towns program and has a relationship with the following municipalities: : Arlington, Massachusetts, United States : Carleton Place, Carleton Place, Ontario, Canada (2008) : Coulounieix-Chamiers, France (1996) : Franklin, Tennessee, United States (2008)

References

External links

Laois Tourism WebsiteOfficial website of Laois County CouncilThings to do in Laois – Tourist guideMap of castles, fortified houses and ruins in Laois
{{DEFAULTSORT:Laois, County County Laois, Leinster Counties of the Republic of Ireland States and territories established in 1556 Local government areas of the Republic of Ireland 1556 establishments in Ireland