Lá i gCill Dara. A Day in Kildare.  Rathangan, Killeen Cormac and Mullamast forts and graveyards.

Lá i gCill Dara. A Day in Kildare. Rathangan, Killeen Cormac and Mullamast forts and graveyards.

The first day trip of 2023 took us south to County Kildare and to a number of sites, with various, interesting and in one case, a treacherous story. The three destinations were, Rathangan, Killeen Cormac and Mullamast.

Rathangan was our first port of call, and we stopped just beside the entrance to the Church of Ireland entrance, in our camper. After having a tasty fry-up, we went to explore the 1700 century graveyard with a view across the field to Rath Lamhgain, the quite impressive Rath in the adjacent field. Unfortunately the gate to the rath was padlocked so we had to contend with looking at it from a distance. The home of the Úí Fháille family, it became a Norman stronghold and is mentioned in the Annals of Ireland.

The Church graveyard is known to contain the grave of a man by the surname Spenser who, during the revolt of 1798, was actively involved in seeking out Rebel arms. Needless to say, this did not go down to well with the United Irishmen and eventually they managed to attack and kill him. Strangely enough, two brothers by the surname Derling, and both part of the rebellion, are also buried here and it is believed that one of them was the actual killer of Spenser. I did try and find the graves but had no luck.

Moving on down the road, we came to a very interesting site, not far from the M9 motorway. This site, Killeen Cormac, is sometimes known as the Druids graveyard and so is because not only is it both a Christian and pre—Christian burial site, but it is the home of several Ogham standing stones and one of which (since removed to Dublin), had an inscription in both Latin and Ogham, which stated “here lie four true Druids”! The cemetery, surrounded by a stone wall, within which is a small mound, has quite a hap hazard arrangement of graves, right up to relatively modern times. There is definitely an atmosphere in the cemetery, slightly unsettling on the day, with the wind whining through the branches of high trees which encircle this small plot.

There is a story that relates how King Cormac of Leinster was buried here. According to the legend, his body was taken on a carriage pulled by oxen who stopped near the fort. In some versions a hound, traveling with the cortege, jumped from the carriage and ran to the mound, where he pawed at the ground. It was here the King was laid to rest. Meantime the oxen are said to have been swept away in the nearby River Griese.  

Interestingly, the name Griese is connected to my final destination of the day, that of Mullamast. Mullach Mhaistín in Irish refers to the mound or hill of Maistiú. She was said to be the daughter of Aengus of Brú na Bóinne (Newgrange), who was taken away by Dáire Derg, son of Eoghaid. Unfortunately, she came foul of wicked sorcerer fairy, Gris who killed her. In anger Dáire Derg ended the life of Gris with a warrior's battlestone. It was this fairy Gris who is said to have given her name to what we now know as the River Griese.

In history there were many bloody battles here, but the most horrific act occurred in the 16th century during the reign of Elizabeth I of England who was taking over the lands of Ireland and giving them to her "planters". The local Gaelic chiefs naturally revolted and a peace "conference" was arranged by Captain Francis Cosby and Lord Deputy to Elizabeth, Henry Sydney. They invited the seven septs of Laois, the O'Mores, the O'Lalors, the O'Dowlings, the McEvoys, the Devoys, the Kellys and the O'Doran's to a feast, along with their families, and to talk peace. They Irish came, unarmed and trusting. Hospitality was something that was highly regarded in Gaelic law, so treachery was not on their radar. However, the colonists had other ideas and slaughtered men, women and children, ridding families of their leaders, and after Cosby is said to have raided the castle of the Lalors, hanging the wife and child of one leader by the hair. It was a monstrous act that Elizabeth ignored despite being well informed! The event was recorded in the Annals of the Four Masters.

I have to admit, that as my own mother was a Lalor from county Laois, this story really hits home and to be on that site where this massacre took place is both sad and maddening, for it was the beginning of the end of our Gaelic culture and language. Well when I say the end, I mean it weakened the whole way of life and although there are still many who can speak our language, English is by far the language of daily life. The site itself is an impressive one even now, a large earthwork in which stands a lonely plaque to commemorate the tragedy. It is also the site in which Daniel O'Connell in the 19th century, held one of his "Monster Meetings", to demand Catholic emancipation.

The light was getting low as I left a rather emotional scene.

Another point of interest....there was a Triskele stone on this site which now also resides in the National Museum.

Contact Details

Margaret McKenna
Carrick Eighter, Virginia, Co. Cavan, Ireland
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Art to me, is storytelling a means to visually capture the atmosphere and tell the tales behind our landscape or capture the essence of that person’s character.

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