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The Curragh

Coordinates:53°09′27″N06°50′24″W/ 53.15750°N 6.84000°W/53.15750; -6.84000
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For the traditional Irish boat, seeCurrach.

The Curragh
The Curragh of Kildare
Plain
The Curragh is located in Ireland
The Curragh
The Curragh
Coordinates:53°09′27″N06°50′24″W/ 53.15750°N 6.84000°W/53.15750; -6.84000
Part ofCentral Plain
Area
• Total19.71 square kilometres (7.61 sq mi; 4,870 acres)
Elevation30 m (100 ft)
Sheep grazing on the Curragh plain

The Curragh(/ˈkʌrə/KURR-ə;Irish:An Currach[ənˠ ˈkʊɾˠəx]) is a flat openplainof almost 2,000 hectares (5,000 acres) of common land inCounty Kildare.This area is well known for Irishhorse breedingand training. TheIrish National Studis located on the edge ofKildaretown, beside theJapanese Gardens.Also located here is Pollardstown Fen, the largestfenin Ireland. This area is of particular interest to botanists and ecologists because of the numerous bird species that nest and visit there. There are also many rare plants that grow there.

It is composed of asandysoilformed after aneskerdeposited a sand load and as a result, it has excellentdrainagecharacteristics. This makes it a popular location for training racehorses.

History

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Curragh Camp

Used as a meeting site during Pre-Christian societies, the Curragh is shrouded in mythology. The hill to the north of the Curragh is called theHill of Allen(Almhain) and is the purported meeting place of the mythicalFianna.Legend has it that in about 480 AD, whenSt Brigidbecame intent on founding a monastery in Kildare, she asked theHigh King of Leinsterfor the land on which to build it. When he granted her as much land as her cloak would cover, she then placed her cloak on the ground to cover the entire Curragh plain.[1]

On 1 April 1234,The 3rd Earl of Pembrokelosta battleat the Curragh against a group of men loyal toHenry III of England.Lord Pembroke was wounded in the battle and died at hiscastle at Kilkennyon 16 April.[2]

The Curragh with warning signs

It was a common site for mustering the armies ofthe Pale(seeEssex in Ireland). During the1798 Rebellionthere was a massacre in the Curragh atGibbet Rath.TheCurragh Campis now located there, where theIrish Defence Forcesundergo training.

Footsteps ofDan Donnellyat Donnelly's Hollow

At a natural bowl-shaped amphitheatre on the Curragh known locally as Donnelly's Hollow the Irish champion boxerDan Donnellydefeated the English champion George Cooper in 1815, before a large crowd. Donnelly had a famed reach and the remains of his arm were on show until recently in the Hideout Pub in the nearby town ofKilcullen.

In 1866, a commission was appointed by theBritish Treasuryto report into the use made of the Curragh and make recommendations on legislation.[3]It reported in 1868,[3]and led to the Curragh of Kildare Act 1868 (31 & 32 Vict.c. 60).[4]

On 2 January 1941 the Curragh wasbombed by the Luftwaffe,the air force of theThird Reich,causing slight damage. One SC250 bomb remains unaccounted for.[5]

[edit]
Curragh of Kildare Act 1868
Act of Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Long titleAn Act to make better Provision for the Management and Use of the Curragh of Kildare.
Citation31 & 32 Vict.c. 60
Dates
Royal assent16 July 1868
Curragh of Kildare Act 1870
Act of Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Long titleAn Act to confirm the Award under "The Curragh of Kildare Act, 1868." and for other purposes relating thereto.
Citation33 & 34 Vict.c. 74
Dates
Royal assent9 August 1870
Other legislation
Relates toCurragh of Kildare Act 1868

The earliest mention of the Curragh in legal documents was1299,when an act was passed, to prevent swine from feeding on the Curragh plains to the detriment of the sward.

In 1865 Parliament set up a commission to examine the Curragh. The findings of this led to the enactment of the Curragh of Kildare Act 1868 (31 & 32 Vict.c. 60). This created the honorary position of a Ranger tasked with the care, management and preservation of the Curragh for the purpose of horseracing and training of horses.

The 1868 act also provided for a second commission to report on the use of the Curragh for common pasture. This report is detailed in the Curragh of Kildare Act 1870 (33 & 34 Vict.c. 74). This act specifies sheep grazing rights for the Curragh.[6]

On the establishment of theIrish Free Statein 1922, the lands of the Curragh passed from the Crown to theMinister for Financeof the Irish State.

The Curragh of Kildare Act 1961 repealed the 1868 Act and sections of the 1870 Act. It also abolished the office of the Ranger and transferred its duties to theDepartment of Defence.[7]

Military

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There has been a permanent military presence in the Curragh since 1856.[8]TheCurragh Campis now home to theDefence Forces Training Centreof theIrish Defence Forces.[9]

Wrens of the Curragh

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Two anonymous Wrens of the Curragh

Records of women, known asWrens of the Curragh,who were paid for sex work by soldiers at the camp, go back to the 1840s.[8]They lived in 'nests' half-hollowed out of banks and ditches, which were covered in furze bushes; their lifestyle was communal – money and resources were shared amongst the (up to 60) women who lived there.[10]Whilst many women were sex workers, others had common-law marriages to soldiers but were barred from living within the camp itself.[10]The women's presence is no longer reported after the 1880s.[10]

Sport

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Horse racing

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TheCurragh Racecourseon the plain is Ireland's Premier Flat Racecourse. Every year, it hosts allfive classic racesin the racing calendar: theIrish Derby Stakes,theIrish Oaks,theIrish 1,000 Guineas,theIrish 2,000 Guineasand theIrish St. Leger.

Motor racing

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Main article:1903 Gordon Bennett Cup
1903 Gordon Bennett Trophy. René de Knyff, driving his Panhard to second place, passes Alexander Winton repairing the Winton Bullet 2 on the first lap.

On 2 July 1903, theGordon Bennett Cupran through the Curragh. It was the first international motor race to be held in what was then theUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.TheAutomobile Club of Great Britain and Irelandwanted the race to be hosted in the United Kingdom (as it existed then), and Ireland was suggested as the venue because racing was illegal on British public roads. Following a lobbying campaign, local laws were adjusted, and Kildare was chosen on the basis of the straightness of its roads. As a compliment to Ireland, the British team chose to race inShamrock green[a]which later became known asBritish racing green.[11][12][13][14]The route consisted of several loops of a circuit that passed-throughKilcullen,the Curragh,Kildare,Monasterevin,Stradbally,Castledermot,Carlow,and Athy. The 528 km (328 mi) race was won by the Belgian racerCamille Jenatzy,driving a Mercedes.[12][15]

AfterThe Emergencyboth motor cars and motorcycle racing took place on occasions drawing crowds up to 30,000. For eight years from 1947 until 1954 cars competed, while motorcycle racing continued until 1967.[16][17]The first race was run by theLeinster Motor Clubon 12 July 1947 over a 2.69 km (1.67 mi) course known as the "Short circuit" but eight years later the death ofDon Beaumanduring at a different Irish venue plus other fatal racing accidents in 1955 brought an end to motor car racing at the Curragh.[18]The 1951 Wakefield Trophy was won by the then 22-year-oldStirling Moss.[19]

Education

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The Curragh Camp has one primary school which is a mixed school called St Catherine of Sienna. It has one secondary school which is scheduled to close in 2024 formally named the Curragh Post Primary School (PPS), which has been situated beside the parade ground since 1933. With the closure of the secondary school on the Curragh Camp the Curragh will no longer have a secondary school.

Cultural references

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See also

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Notes

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  1. ^According toLeinster Leader,11 April 1903,Britain had to choose a different colour to its usual national colours of red, white and blue, as these had already been taken by Italy, Germany and France respectively. It also stated red as the colour forAmericancars in the 1903 Gordon Bennett Cup.

References

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  1. ^"The Curragh of Kildare".Te Dublin Builder.15 May 1866.Retrieved27 December2014– viaBritish Newspaper Archive.
  2. ^Powicke, F. M.(1962) [1953].The Thirteenth Century: 1216-1307(2nd ed.). Oxford: Clarendon Press. pp. 57–9.
  3. ^abReport of the Commission appointed by the Treasury to hold a local inquiry with a view to legislation on the subject of the Curragh of Kildare.Command papers.Vol. C 329. 12 June 1868.
  4. ^"31 & 32 Victoria c.60".The statutes of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.His Majesty's statute and law Printers. 1868. pp.248–263.Retrieved6 March2012.
  5. ^Bushe, Andrew; Byrne, Ciaran (26 November 2008)."De Valera ordered top secret war files destroyed".Irish Independent.Archivedfrom the original on 3 November 2012.Retrieved14 August2011.
  6. ^"Curragh of Kildare Act 1868".Hansard.Archivedfrom the original on 1 August 2019.Retrieved29 July2019.
  7. ^Curragh of Kildare Act 1961 (No. 35 of 1961). Enacted on 11 August 1961. Act of theOireachtas.Archivedfrom the original on 2019-07-29. Retrieved fromIrish Statute Bookon 22 October 2023.
  8. ^ab"Songbirds on society's margins".The Irish Times.Archivedfrom the original on 23 March 2020.Retrieved12 June2020.
  9. ^"The Curragh Museum".Irish Defence Forces.Archivedfrom the original on 14 July 2020.Retrieved12 June2020.
  10. ^abcLuddy, Maria (1992)."An outcast community:the 'wrens' of the curragh".Women's History Review.1(3): 341–355.doi:10.1080/09612029200200014.ISSN0961-2025.
  11. ^"Circle Genealogic and Historic Champanellois".Archivedfrom the original on 5 March 2007.Retrieved1 March2010.
  12. ^ab"Leinster Leader,Saturday, 11 April 1903 ".Archivedfrom the original on 6 January 2017.Retrieved19 January2010.
  13. ^"Forix 8W -Britain's first international motorrace by Brendan Lynch, based on his Triumph of the Red Devil, the 1903 Irish Gordon Bennett Cup Race. October 22, 2003 ".Archivedfrom the original on 15 October 2018.Retrieved19 January2010.
  14. ^"The Gordon Bennett races - the birth of international competition. Author Leif Snellman, Summer 2001".Archivedfrom the original on 10 February 2010.Retrieved19 January2010.
  15. ^"Bleacher report, The Birth of British motor racing".Bleacher Report.Archivedfrom the original on 6 January 2017.Retrieved19 January2010.
  16. ^Kenny, Liam (4 October 2007)."When horse power of a different kind echoed over the Curragh plains".Leinster Leader.Archivedfrom the original on 14 July 2014.Retrieved25 June2014.
  17. ^McCrossan, Oliver (2 August 2012)."Commemorating Car & Motorcycle Racing at the Curragh".Motorsport.ie. Archived fromthe originalon 14 July 2014.Retrieved25 June2014.
  18. ^Traynor, Michael (2004).Iona National Airways: Irelands First Commercial Airline.Michael Traynor. pp. 90–93.ISBN0-9549194-0-8.Archivedfrom the original on 17 February 2017.Retrieved24 October2016.
  19. ^"Wakefield Trophy [Formula Libre]".RacingSportsCars. 8 September 1951.Archivedfrom the original on 14 July 2014.Retrieved25 June2014.
  20. ^"Dating Amber is the funny, heartwarming coming out story the world needs now".GCN.1 June 2020.
  21. ^"Dating Amber review – gay teenagers' pretend love fails to blossom".The Guardian.3 June 2020.
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