Lough Key () is a lake in Ireland. It is in the northwest of

County Roscommon County Roscommon () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is part of the province of Connacht and the Northern and Western Region. It is the List of Irish counties by area, 11th largest Irish county by area and Li ...

, northeast of the town of Boyle. The

lough ''Loch'' ( ) is a word meaning "lake" or " sea inlet" in Scottish and Irish Gaelic, subsequently borrowed into English. In Irish contexts, it often appears in the anglicized form "lough". A small loch is sometimes called a lochan. Lochs whic ...

is believed to be named after a mythical figure named Cé.

Name

The name ''Lough Key'' comes from the Irish ''Loch Cé''. In

Irish mythology Irish mythology is the body of myths indigenous to the island of Ireland. It was originally Oral tradition, passed down orally in the Prehistoric Ireland, prehistoric era. In the History of Ireland (795–1169), early medieval era, myths were ...

, Cé was the

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

of the god Nuada. He was wounded in the Second Battle of Mag Tuired and fled southward until he came to Carn Corrslebe, where he rested. He saw ahead of him a beautiful plain full of flowers. He sought to reach it, and when he did, he died. When his grave was dug there, a lake burst out of it, and flooded the whole plain. It was thus named Loch Cé after him.

Geography

The lake is in the northern part of the

River Shannon The River Shannon ( or archaic ') is the major river on the island of Ireland, and at in length, is the longest river in the British Isles. It drains the Shannon River Basin, which has an area of , – approximately one fifth of the area of I ...

drainage basin A drainage basin is an area of land in which all flowing surface water converges to a single point, such as a river mouth, or flows into another body of water, such as a lake or ocean. A basin is separated from adjacent basins by a perimeter, ...

, and is fed by the Boyle River which flows from

Lough Gara Lough Gara () is a lake in Counties Sligo and Roscommon, Ireland. It is an Important Bird Area protecting 1,788 ha of which most (1,742 ha) is designated as a Ramsar Site (a wetland having international importance under the Ramsar Convention). ...

, through the town of Boyle, into Lough Key. From there it flows eastwards until it reaches the

just above

Carrick-on-Shannon Carrick-on-Shannon () is the county town of County Leitrim in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is the largest town in the county. A smaller part of the town located on the west bank of the River Shannon lies in County Roscommon and is home to th ...

. Its area is and its average depth is . One can see a view of the lake from the N4 road as it ascends the Curlew Mountains after bypassing Boyle. The view is enhanced by a modern steel sculpture of an Irish chieftain mounted on horseback (see photograph).

Background

The area around Lough Key and the nearby town of Boyle, in County Roscommon, has been inhabited for thousands of years. The lake is several kilometres across and contains over thirty wooded islands including Castle Island, Trinity Island, Orchard Island, Stag Island, Bullock Island, and Drumman's Island. Castle Island has had a number of structures built on it over the centuries. The earliest record dates to 1184, in the

Annals of Loch Cé The ''Annals of Loch Cé'' (also ''Annals of Lough Cé'') cover events, mainly in Connacht and its neighbouring regions, from 1014 to 1590. It takes its name from Lough Cé in the kingdom of Moylurg - now north County Roscommon - which was th ...

, where a lightning strike is reported to have started a fire in "The Rock of Loch-Cé," a "very magnificent, kingly residence." Currently a folly castle built in the early 19th century by the King family stands on the island.

Trinity The Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the Christian doctrine concerning the nature of God, which defines one God existing in three, , consubstantial divine persons: God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ) and God the Holy Spirit, thr ...

and Church Islands each have the ruins of medieval priories standing on them.

17th-20th centuries

The King family acquired the land around Lough Key in the 17th century Cromwellian Settlement, renaming the area from

Moylurg {{Use dmy dates, date=April 2022 Magh Luirg or Magh Luirg an Dagda, anglicised as Moylurg, was the name of a medieval Irish kingdom located in modern-day County Roscommon, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It was a sub-kingdom of the kingdom of Connach ...

to Rockingham. In 1809, Rockingham House – a mansion designed by English architect John Nash – was built. The house remained the seat of the Stafford-King-Harman family until it was badly damaged in a fire in 1957. It was subsequently demolished in 1970.

Lough Key Forest Park

Immediately to the south of the lough is Lough Key Forest Park, a popular destination for recreational walkers. The park, opened in 1972, covers formerly part of the Rockingham estate. The Moylurg Tower, a viewing tower built in 1973, stands on the site of the old Rockingham house overlooking the lake to the north and lawns to the south. There are many amenities in the park includin
boat tours, boats for hire, water activities
camping and caravan park, an outdoor playground and shop. A 2007 development added a number of new attractions including a forest canopy walkway and children's play areas, to cater to the "21st-century visitor". Sir Cecil Stafford-King-Harman (1895–1987), second (and last) Baronet of Rockingham, ensured that the land went back to the people of Ireland through the

Irish Land Commission The Irish Land Commission was created by the British crown in 1843 to "inquire into the occupation of the land in Ireland. The office of the commission was in Dublin Castle, and the records were, on its conclusion, deposited in the records tower ...

, who subdivided the pasture land into several farms of approximately and granted these to local people. An extensive area around the then-derelict Rockingham house became the Forest Park and this was looked after by the Department of Forestry. It is currently in the care of

Coillte Coillte (; ; meaning /) is a state-owned commercial forestry business in Ireland based in Newtownmountkennedy. Coillte manage approximately 7% of the country’s land, and operates three businesses - their core forestry business, a 'land solut ...

, a semi-state body. The park contains the remains of five ring forts, giving evidence of the long habitation of this region. The area surrounding the lake is significant in medieval Irish literature and legend. Starting around 1000 AD, the Annals of Boyle were compiled on Trinity Island, and from 1253 to 1590 the Annals of Lough Key continued from where the Boyle annals ended. Lough Key was also the site for the legend of Una Bháin. Famed harpist Turlough O'Carolan is buried at Kilronan, three miles (5 km) to the north of the lake.

Annalistic references

From the

Annals of the Four Masters The ''Annals of the Kingdom of Ireland'' () or the ''Annals of the Four Masters'' () are chronicles of Middle Ages, medieval Irish history. The entries span from the Genesis flood narrative, Deluge, dated as 2,242 Anno Mundi, years after crea ...

: * ''M955.11 - The fleet of Fearghal, son of Art, upon Loch-Ce.''

References

Gallery

Image:LoughKey1769x.jpg File:LoughKeyBoathouse.jpg File:LoughKeyRoscommon.JPG

External links

Lough Key Boats a family business that has been operating in the park since it was run by the Dept Of ForestryCoillte Lough KeyLough Key Forest and Activity Park
{{Authority control Key