About County Louth
County Louth is the smallest county in Ireland, but its position on the eastern coast between Dublin and Ulster has made it a crossroads of Irish history. The Cooley Peninsula in the north is the setting for the Táin Bó Cúailnge, the great Irish epic. Drogheda and Dundalk are two of the oldest towns in Ireland, their medieval heritage still visible.
History
Louth was the scene of some of the most significant events in Irish history. The Battle of the Boyne in 1690 was fought on the county's southern border, its outcome determining the religious and political character of Ireland for centuries. The Cromwellian massacre at Drogheda in 1649 remains one of the most shocking acts of the entire colonial period.
How Louth families left Ireland
Louth families emigrated through Drogheda, one of the east coast's significant ports. The county's proximity to Dublin and its more diverse economy meant emigration rates were somewhat lower than in the west, but the Famine still caused enormous suffering and displacement.
Places worth visiting in County Louth
- Monasterboice, one of Ireland's finest monastic sites, with the tallest round tower and most beautiful high crosses
- Mellifont Abbey, the first Cistercian monastery in Ireland, founded in 1142, its ruins elegant in the Boyne Valley
- Proleek Dolmen, the notable Neolithic portal tomb balanced on three standing stones
- Carlingford, the perfectly preserved medieval town on the shores of the lough, with Slieve Foy rising behind
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