Ventry
| Ventry Irish: Ceann Trá | |
| County Kerry | |
|---|---|
 The village centre | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | Q381006 |
| Location: | 52°8’0"N, 10°21’59"W |
| Data | |
| Population: | 423 (2011) |
| Local Government | |
Ventry is a Gaeltacht village in County Kerry, on the Dingle Peninsula, five miles west of Dingle. Due to its long sandy beach, Ventry is a tourist destination.
The name of the village is from the Irish Fionntrá, meaning 'white beach'.[1] Another name is Ceann Trá.[2]
History
Four miles west of Ventry are the ruins of Dunbeg (An Dún Beag), an Iron Age promontory fort on the edge of a steep cliff. Near Dunbeg is Kilvickadownig, where other archaeological ruins are found, including examples of the beehive house and the grave of Caol or Cháil Mic Crimthainn, the last to die in the Battle of Ventry from the Fenian Cycle of Irish mythology.
Also within Ventry parish is Rahinnane Castle, which was the residence of the Knight of Kerry, whose seat it was until Cromwellian conquest of Ireland. The castle was built on the site of an old ringfort. The ringfort was built up and a second added with walls of 20 feet, giving the appearance that there may have been a moat, although there never was one. Rahinnane Castle retains some of its original features, including a set of narrow stone stairs which connect the first and second floors.
Ventry Bay
The bay or harbour is a suitable anchorage for sailing and fishing boats. On 4 October 1939, a German submarine, U-35, entered Ventry Bay and landed 28 Greek sailors of the MV Diamantis, which they had sunk. The event was commemorated with a plaque in October 2009..[3]
Outside links
- Dingle Peninsula Tourism: Ventry
- Greek freighter DIAMANTIS, sunk on 3 October 1939 by German U-Boat U-35
- Live weather station: Ventry
References
- ↑ Ventry/Fionntrá: Placenames Database of Ireland
- ↑ Ventry/Ceann Trá: Placenames Database of Ireland
- ↑ "West Kerry: Local recalls U-35 landing 'perished' sailors in Ventry". The Kerryman. 21 October 2009. Archived from the original on 17 February 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20120217194149/http://www.kerryman.ie/local-notes/west-kerry-local-recalls-u35-landing-perished-sailors-in-ventry-1919692.html?start=2.