"Historical Notes of County Longford" by James P. Farrell

Historical Notes and Stories. Part III - Chapter I - Granard

GRANARD - Ancient References

In a previous portion of this work, I have stated that there is no place in the County Longford possesses so much interest for the ecclesiastical student as the neighbourhood of Granard. The very same thing could be said of its historical importance. In fact, truly speaking, in the old pagan days of our country, and up to 1315, Granard was the only capital of the County Longford, if we are to understand by that the ancient kingdom of Annaly.

The word" Granard" was supposed by the learned Dr. O'Connor to be derived from the two Celtic words, " Grain," the sun, and "ard," a high place or hill; so that the proper meaning of the word "Granard " would seem to be "the Hill of the Sun." The reason this name was given to the town would appear to be, that in the early ages of the population of Ireland the people were sun and fire worshippers - that is, they worshipped these things as a deity, potent to relieve them from troubles and to afford them safety in dangers. It is also said that they worshipped the moon and stars, but this is not verified. It is thought, however, that sun and fire worship prevailed amongst our pagan forefathers, just as amongst the Aztecs in the days of Montezuma. The usual place from which the people prayed to the sun was off a high hill or eminence. At the foot of this hill they stood in a circle, whilst the Druids ascended and offered sacrifice to their deities.

Now, Granard is very favourably situated for small worship. On the one side they had the Hill of Granardkill and the Moat of Granard; and on the other side they had the Hill of Carragh, which commands a view of the whole county. An old bard, who sung of the Kings of Conmacne, describes, in the peculiar weirdly-thrilling chant of his profession, the “glories and magnificence" of Granard in its old pristine excellence. The Granard of to-day is by no means the actual site of old Granard, which, according to the Ordnance Survey Maps, was built about half a mile from the present town, in a somewhat western direction.

This old town was destroyed by Edward Bruce, in his march towards Dublin, in 1315, having been, up to then, the residence of King Con O’FARRELLl, of Annaly, who lived here in royal splendour at the time. Its destruction is described a little further on. Mr. O'Donovan thinks that the correct interpretation of Granard is, the 'Ugly Height', from the fact that when the father of a king named Carbre was getting it built, he called it an ‘Ugly Height’, or, in Irish “is Grána, ard é”, meaning, "it is uglily high." Another derivation Mr. O'Donovan gives is, Gran-ard-meaning ‘Grainhill’, which, he says, would go to prove that there was a great deal of cultivation here for a long period. He subsequently tells us that the Moat of Granard, or SlieveCairbhre, in the north, and the River Eithne, or Inny, in the south, were anciently the boundaries of Annaly. Carbre, who gave his name to Slieve-Carbrey, was the eighteenth in descent from O'CATHARNAIGH, who was progenitor of many families in ancient Teffia, or Meath, including the FOXES, O'QUINNS, CARNEYS, CAREYS, &c.

It is related in Colgan's “Acta Sanctorum," in reference to this Carbrey, that when St. Patrick reached Granard on his apostolic mission, where King Carbre lived at his fortification - the Moat - this monarch refused to listen to his teaching; and some of his chieftains in the then fertile plains of Ballinamuck presented the Apostle with a hound dressed for dinner. The saint, naturally moved with anger at such treatment (it is told), pronounced a malediction on the sons of Cairbre, as well as on the land of the place he was in and, as a result of this malediction, the land became barren, and mis-fortunes came on the line of Cairbre, from whose race the sceptre passed away. Subsequently, it is said, that his sons received the saint with all honour, and presented to him the beautiful place of Granard. There is another version also given in. reference to the cursing of Cairbre, which the following note, taken from the life of St. Patrick, will explain “Cap. Iv., Part ii. “But on the first day of the week, Patrick came to Taelten, ,in the County Westmeath, where the royal fair and public games and exercises of the kingdom used to be held yearly ; and there he met Carbreus, the son of Niall, and brother of King Laogarious, and like his brother in ferocity of mind and cruelty. When Patrick preached the word of life to him, and pointed out the way of salvation, the man of adamantine heart not only refused to believe the preached truth but laid projects for the death of him who was pro-pounding the way of life, and caused the companions of the holy man to be scourged in a neighbouring river, called Sele, because Patrick called him the enemy of God. Then the man of God, seeing that the man was of inveterate mind and reproved by God, says to him : - “Because you have resisted the doctrine of the Heavenly King, and refused to carry His sweet yoke, neither shall kings nor the pledges of the kingdom rise up from your stock; but your seed shall obey the seed of your brethren for ever; nor shall the neighbouring river, in which you have whipped my companions, although now it abounds in fishes, ever produce any fishes.' "

These two versions of the same story differ a little as to locality, cause, and effect; but it is certain that St. Patrick did visit Granard on his first apostolic mission and tour of Ireland, because the old town was a place of great natural strength, as well as being an important town in the kingdom in those days.