Dundalk

Dundalk Irish: Dún Dealgan
County Louth
Pictures of Dundalk
Location
Grid reference:	J048074
Location:	54°-0’32"N, 6°24’18"W
Data
Population:	31,149  (2011)
Dialling code:	042
Local Government
Dáil constituency:	Louth-East Meath
Website:	http://www.dundalk.ie

Dundalk is the county town of County Louth in Ireland. It is situated where the Castletown River flows into Dundalk Bay. The town is close to the border with Northern Ireland and equidistant from Dublin and Belfast.

The town's name, which was historically written as Dundalgan, has associations with the mythical Ulster warrior Cú Chulainn; the town's heraldic motto reads Mé do rug Cú Chulainn Cróga, meaning "I gave birth to brave Cú Chulainn".

Dundalk was granted its charter in 1189. It is the largest town in Ireland which does not enjoy city status.

The name of the town in Irish is Dún Dealgan, meaning "Dalgan's stronghold".

History

The Dundalk area has been inhabited since at least 3500 BC, in the Neolithic period. A tangible reminder of their presence can still be seen in the form of the Proleek Dolmen, the eroded remains of a megalithic tomb at Ballymascanlon a few miles to the north of Dundalk. According to the legendary accounts, when the Gaels first came to Ireland, the group which settled in northern Louth were known as the Conaille Muirtheimhne and took their name from Conaill Carnagh, legendary chief of the Red Branch Knights of Ulster. Their land now forms upper and lower Dundalk.

Dundalk had been originally developed as an unwalled village with streets which passed along a gravel ridge which runs from the present day Bridge Street in the North, through Church Street to Clanbrassil Street to Earl Street, and finally to Dublin Street.

St Patrick´s Church, Dundalk

In 1169 the Normans arrived in Ireland and by 1185 a nobleman named Bertram de Verdun erected a manor house at Castletown Mount and subsequently obtained the town's charter in 1189. Another Norman family, the De Courcys, led by John de Courcy, settled in the Seatown area of Dundalk, the "Nova Villa de Dundalke". Both families assisted in the fortification of the town, building walls and other fortification in the style of a Norman fortress.

The town of Dundalk was developed as it lay close to an easy bridging point over the Castletown River and as a frontier town, the northern limit of The Pale. In 1236 Bertram's granddaughter, Rohesia commissioned Castle Roche to fortify the region, and to offer protection from the Irish territory of Ulster. Further, the town was sacked in 1315, during the Bruce campaign of 1315-1318.

The modern town of Dundalk largely owes its form to Lord Limerick (James Hamilton, later 1st Earl of Clanbrassil) in the 17th century. He commissioned the construction of streets leading to the town centre; his ideas came from many visits to Europe. In addition to the demolition of the old walls and castles, he had new roads laid out eastwards of the principal streets. The most important of these new roads connected a newly laid down Market Square, which still survives, with a linen and cambric factory at its eastern end, adjacent to what was once an army cavalry and artillery barracks (now Aiken Barracks).

In the 19th century the town grew in importance and many industries were set up in the local area. This development was helped considerably by the opening of railways, the expansion of the docks area or 'Quay' and the setting up of a board of commissioners to run the town.

The separation of the Irish Fee State from the United Kingdom in May 1921 turned Dundalk into a border town and the Dublin–Belfast main line into an international railway. The Irish Free State opened customs and immigration facilities at Dundalk to check goods and passengers crossing the border by train. The Irish Civil War of 1922-23 saw a number of confrontations in Dundalk. The local Fourth Northern Division of the Irish Republican Army under Frank Aiken, who took over Dundalk barracks after the British left tried to stay neutral but 300 of them were detained by the National Army in August 1922. A raid though on Dundalk Gaol freed Aiken and over 100 other anti-treaty prisoners; two weeks later he retook Dundalk barracks and captured its garrison before freeing the remaining republican prisoners there. Aiken did not try to hold the town, however, and before withdrawing he called for a truce in a meeting in the centre of Dundalk. The 49 Infantry Battalion and 58 Infantry Battalion of the National Army were based in Dundalk along with No.8 armoured locomotive and two fully armoured cars of their Railway Protection Corps.

For several decades after the end of the Civil War, Dundalk continued to function as a market town, a regional centre, and a centre of administration and manufacturing. Its position close to the border gave it considerable significance during the "Troubles" of Northern Ireland. Many townsfolk were sympathetic to the cause of the Provisional Irish Republican Army and not averse to assisting their bloody campaign of murder in the North. It was in this period that Dundalk earned the nickname 'El Paso', after the Texan border town of the same name on the border with Mexico.

On 1 September 1973 the 27 Infantry Battalion was established with its Headquarters in Dundalk barracks, renamed Aiken Barracks in 1986 in honour of Frank Aiken.

Dundalk suffered economically when Irish membership of the European Economic Community in the 1970s exposed local manufacturers to foreign competition that they were ill equipped to cope with. The result was the closure of many local factories, resulting in the highest unemployment rate in Leinster, Ireland's richest province. High unemployment produced serious social problems in the town that were only alleviated by the advent of the grant-funded Celtic Tiger investment boom at the start of the 21st century. Dundalk's economy has developed rapidly since 2000. Today many international companies have factories in Dundalk, from food processing to high-tech computer components. Harp Lager, a beer produced by Diageo, is brewed in the Great Northern Brewery, Dundalk.

The Earls of Roden had property interests in Dundalk for over three centuries, and at an auction in July 2006 the 10th Earl sold his freehold of the town, including ground rents, mineral rights, manorial rights, the reversion of leases and the freehold of highways, common land, and the fair green. Included in the sale were many documents, such as a large 18th century estate map. The buyer was undisclosed.

Sport

• Football: Dundalk FC
• Rugby: Dundalk RFC

Dundalk also has a long horse racing tradition. August 2007 saw Ireland's first all-weather horse racing track open up on the site of the old Dundalk racecourse. The course held Ireland's first ever meeting under floodlights on September 27, 2007. Greyhound racing also takes place at Dundalk Stadium.

• American football: The Dundalk Mavericks American Football Club, set up in 2012
• Basketball: The Dundalk Ravens.
• Cricket: Dundalk Cricket Club
• Tennis: Welcome to Dundalk Lawn Tennis and Badminton club

Arts

Dundalk has two photography clubs - Dundalk Photographic Society and the Tain Photographic Club. In 2010 Dundalk Photographic Society won the FIAP Photography Club World Cup.

Dundalk has a vibrant music environment. The following can be found:

The Fr. McNally Chamber Orchestra created in April 2010. It is a string chamber orchestra made of violins, violas, double basses and cellos and has 29 members.

The Cross Border Orchestra of Ireland (CBOI) which is one of Ireland's primary youth orchestras. It is based in the Dundalk Institute of Technology and maintains a membership of 160 young musicians between the ages of 12 and 24 years. The CBOI was established in 1995 shortly after the implementation of the Peace Process and is recognised internationally and one of Ireland's flagship peace initiatives. The CBOI tours regularly to Europe and America and has sold out such prestigious venues as Carnegie Hall, New York and Chicago Symphony Hall.

The Clermont Chorale. It was formed in 2003 and has 30 members, drawn from all parts of County Louth. Its repertoire includes music from the 17th to the 21st century, across many styles and genres.

Dundalk School of Music. Created in February 2010, it aims to provide education in music for all age groups in many disciplines.

Historic Dundalk Gaol is the home of The Oriel Centre - a regional centre for Comhaltas Ceoltoirí Éireann. The Oriel Centre Dundalk Gaol. opened in Oct 2010 and focuses on the promotion of Traditional Irish music, song dance and the Irish language.

Outside links

("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Dundalk)

• DundalkLive.ie - Events guide, community portal and business directory
• Dundalk Chamber of Commerce
• Dundalk Town Council
• Architecture of Dundalk
• Dundalk Stadium - Greyhound and Horse Racing
• Dundalk Ice Dome
• Dundalk.ie
• Town Centre Commercial Manager
• Louth County Museum in Dundalk
• Louth Hospital in Dundalk
• Dundalk FC
• Dundalk Institute of Technology
• St Mary's college
• Dundalk Port
• Dundalk Photographic Society