Golden, County Tipperary
Encyclopedia
Golden is a village in South Tipperary
in Ireland
. The village is situated on the River Suir
. It is located between the towns of Cashel
and Tipperary
on the N74 road. In older times the village was known as Goldenbridge. It is also a parish
in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cashel and Emly
, and is in the historical barony of Clanwilliam.
, was the scene of an event of some significance in 1690, when King William III
renewed, by letter in his own hand, the Royal Charter of the city of Cashel
. This was an act of gratitude to the people of Cashel for the hospitality received by his followers following their attack on Limerick
. The letter was preserved for posterity by the Borough of Cashel and its successors. There is a medieval castle on the island, now in a ruinous state, but which still retains a certain grandeur. Located in the castle ruins is a memorial sculptured bust of Thomas MacDonagh
,(1878–1916) Tipperary-born poet and leader of the Easter Rising
in 1916.
The Augustinian Athassel Priory
is located south of the village. The abbey was founded by William FitzAdelm de Burgo (William de Burgh
) in the last decades of the 12th century. It was once the largest abbey in Ireland and was surrounded by a small town named Athassel which was burned twice, in 1319 by Lord Maurice Fitzthomas and in 1419 by Bryan O'Brien. No fragment of the settlement survives today, though an aerial survey exposes to view, a faint tracery of old foundations close to the Abbey ruin.
Perhaps Golden's most famous son was Father Theobold Mathew
, OFM (Cap), who was born at Thomastown Castle, close to Golden on 10 October 1790, though it is sometimes claimed that Rathclogheen House, close to the Castle was the place of his birth - that residence being part of the extensive family estate of the Mathew family, Earls Landaff. Father Mathew was the best known Irish temperance reformer and founded the Abstinence Society in 1838 and became widely known as the "Apostle of Temperance". To mark the centenary of the foundation of the Society, a statue in his honour was raised at Thomastown Cross in 1938 and is a very visible landmark on the N74 road, west of Golden.
One time Cashel
Mayor Sir John Judkin-FitzGerald 2nd Bt
of Lisheen
, & High Sheriff of Tipperary
[as was his father, Col Sir Thomas Judkin-FitzGerald (Uniacke) 1st Bt of Lisheen before him during the 1798 United Rebellion] lived at Golden where his 2nd wife Lady Geraldine FitzGerald d/o Preston FitzGerald of Dublin and maternal granddaughter of Major General William Pringle
(of 1812 Napoleonic Wars
Salamanca
Battle) died of infection some days after giving birth to their only child and daughter Geraldine Caroline in 1839.
, Golden-Kilfeacle, which once rejoiced in the more exotic name of the Golden Fontenoys. There are two hamlets close by at Kilfeacle and Thomastown, the latter being an estate village which co-existed with the demesne of Thomastown Castle, home of the Mathew family, Earls of Llandaff
.
The valley of the Suir is fertile agricultural terrain and is part of an area known as "the Golden Vale
", renowned for the richness of the sub-soil which has a limestone base, eminently suitable for the raising of bloodstock
. In 2002, the village had a population of 268 but it has been growing rapidly since then due to new housing development. The N74 connects Golden with Tipperary Town and Cashel
, while the L3121 links it with nearby New Inn.
South Tipperary
South Tipperary is a county in Ireland. It is part of the South-East Region and is also located in the province of Munster. It is named after the town of Tipperary and consists of 52% of the land area of the traditional county of Tipperary. The county was established in 1898 and has had a county...
in Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
. The village is situated on the River Suir
River Suir
The River Suir is a river in Ireland that flows into the Atlantic Ocean near Waterford after a distance of .Popular with anglers, it holds plentiful reserves of brown trout...
. It is located between the towns of Cashel
Cashel, County Tipperary
Cashel is a town in South Tipperary in Ireland. Its population was 2936 at the 2006 census. The town gives its name to the ecclesiastical province of Cashel. Additionally, the cathedra of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cashel and Emly was originally in the town prior to the English Reformation....
and Tipperary
Tipperary
Tipperary is a town and a civil parish in South Tipperary in Ireland. Its population was 4,415 at the 2006 census. It is also an ecclesiastical parish in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cashel and Emly, and is in the historical barony of Clanwilliam....
on the N74 road. In older times the village was known as Goldenbridge. It is also a parish
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cashel and Emly
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cashel and Emly
The Metropolitan Archdiocese of Cashel and Emly is a Roman Catholic archdiocese in mid-western Ireland. The diocese is in the secular province of Munster. The Diocese of Cashel was established in 1111 by the Synod of Rathbreasail and promoted to the status of a Metropolitan Province in 1152 by the...
, and is in the historical barony of Clanwilliam.
History
The bridge at Golden, which straddles an island in the River SuirRiver Suir
The River Suir is a river in Ireland that flows into the Atlantic Ocean near Waterford after a distance of .Popular with anglers, it holds plentiful reserves of brown trout...
, was the scene of an event of some significance in 1690, when King William III
William III of England
William III & II was a sovereign Prince of Orange of the House of Orange-Nassau by birth. From 1672 he governed as Stadtholder William III of Orange over Holland, Zeeland, Utrecht, Guelders, and Overijssel of the Dutch Republic. From 1689 he reigned as William III over England and Ireland...
renewed, by letter in his own hand, the Royal Charter of the city of Cashel
Cashel, County Tipperary
Cashel is a town in South Tipperary in Ireland. Its population was 2936 at the 2006 census. The town gives its name to the ecclesiastical province of Cashel. Additionally, the cathedra of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cashel and Emly was originally in the town prior to the English Reformation....
. This was an act of gratitude to the people of Cashel for the hospitality received by his followers following their attack on Limerick
Siege of Limerick (1690)
Limerick, a city in western Ireland, was besieged twice in the Williamite War in Ireland, 1689-1691. On the first of these occasions, in August to September 1690, its Jacobite defenders retreated to the city after their defeat at the Battle of the Boyne...
. The letter was preserved for posterity by the Borough of Cashel and its successors. There is a medieval castle on the island, now in a ruinous state, but which still retains a certain grandeur. Located in the castle ruins is a memorial sculptured bust of Thomas MacDonagh
Thomas MacDonagh
Thomas MacDonagh was an Irish nationalist, poet, playwright, and a leader of the 1916 Easter Rising.-Early life:MacDonagh was born in Cloughjordan, County Tipperary...
,(1878–1916) Tipperary-born poet and leader of the Easter Rising
Easter Rising
The Easter Rising was an insurrection staged in Ireland during Easter Week, 1916. The Rising was mounted by Irish republicans with the aims of ending British rule in Ireland and establishing the Irish Republic at a time when the British Empire was heavily engaged in the First World War...
in 1916.
Athassel Priory
Athassel Priory is a ruined monastic site on the western bank of the River Suir 8 km southwest of Cashel, County Tipperary, Ireland. The Athassel Priory of St. Edmund the King was a foundation of the Augustinian Canons Regular under the patronage of Walter de Burgh, 1st Earl of Ulster who was...
is located south of the village. The abbey was founded by William FitzAdelm de Burgo (William de Burgh
William de Burgh
William de Burgh, founder of the de Burgh/Burke/Bourke family of Ireland, d. 1206.-In Ireland:He arrived in Ireland in 1185 and was closely associated with Prince John....
) in the last decades of the 12th century. It was once the largest abbey in Ireland and was surrounded by a small town named Athassel which was burned twice, in 1319 by Lord Maurice Fitzthomas and in 1419 by Bryan O'Brien. No fragment of the settlement survives today, though an aerial survey exposes to view, a faint tracery of old foundations close to the Abbey ruin.
Perhaps Golden's most famous son was Father Theobold Mathew
Theobald Mathew (temperance reformer)
Theobald Mathew , an Irish teetotalist reformer, popularly known as Father Mathew was born at Thomastown, near Golden, County Tipperary, on October 10, 1790....
, OFM (Cap), who was born at Thomastown Castle, close to Golden on 10 October 1790, though it is sometimes claimed that Rathclogheen House, close to the Castle was the place of his birth - that residence being part of the extensive family estate of the Mathew family, Earls Landaff. Father Mathew was the best known Irish temperance reformer and founded the Abstinence Society in 1838 and became widely known as the "Apostle of Temperance". To mark the centenary of the foundation of the Society, a statue in his honour was raised at Thomastown Cross in 1938 and is a very visible landmark on the N74 road, west of Golden.
One time Cashel
Cashel, County Tipperary
Cashel is a town in South Tipperary in Ireland. Its population was 2936 at the 2006 census. The town gives its name to the ecclesiastical province of Cashel. Additionally, the cathedra of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cashel and Emly was originally in the town prior to the English Reformation....
Mayor Sir John Judkin-FitzGerald 2nd Bt
Judkin-Fitzgerald Baronets
The Baronetcy of Lisheen, in the County of Tipperary, was created in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom on 5 August 1801 for Col. Thomas Judkin-Fitzgerald , who had adopted the surname of Judkin in compliance with the will of his maternal uncle John Lapp Judkin, of Cashel...
of Lisheen
Lisheen
Lisheen is a townland in Ballynacally, County Clare. It is the home of the Maher family, among others....
, & High Sheriff of Tipperary
Tipperary
Tipperary is a town and a civil parish in South Tipperary in Ireland. Its population was 4,415 at the 2006 census. It is also an ecclesiastical parish in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cashel and Emly, and is in the historical barony of Clanwilliam....
[as was his father, Col Sir Thomas Judkin-FitzGerald (Uniacke) 1st Bt of Lisheen before him during the 1798 United Rebellion] lived at Golden where his 2nd wife Lady Geraldine FitzGerald d/o Preston FitzGerald of Dublin and maternal granddaughter of Major General William Pringle
William Pringle
William Pringle may refer to:* William Pringle , British Liberal Party politician, Member of Parliament for Penistone 1922–1924...
(of 1812 Napoleonic Wars
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
Salamanca
Salamanca
Salamanca is a city in western Spain, in the community of Castile and León. Because it is known for its beautiful buildings and urban environment, the Old City was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1988. It is the most important university city in Spain and is known for its contributions to...
Battle) died of infection some days after giving birth to their only child and daughter Geraldine Caroline in 1839.
Modern Village
The village is located in the ancient parish of Relickmurry and is in the modern parish of Golden & Kilfeacle. Within the village confines, there are a number of commercial and retail enterprises, including three public houses. The Church of The Sacred Heart is a focal point in the village as is the local sportsfield, home to the local club of the Gaelic Athletic AssociationGaelic Athletic Association
The Gaelic Athletic Association is an amateur Irish and international cultural and sporting organisation focused primarily on promoting Gaelic games, which include the traditional Irish sports of hurling, camogie, Gaelic football, handball and rounders...
, Golden-Kilfeacle, which once rejoiced in the more exotic name of the Golden Fontenoys. There are two hamlets close by at Kilfeacle and Thomastown, the latter being an estate village which co-existed with the demesne of Thomastown Castle, home of the Mathew family, Earls of Llandaff
Llandaff
Llandaff is a district in the north of Cardiff, capital of Wales, having been incorporated into the city in 1922. It is the seat of the Church in Wales Bishop of Llandaff, whose diocese covers the most populous area of South Wales. Much of the district is covered by parkland known as Llandaff...
.
The valley of the Suir is fertile agricultural terrain and is part of an area known as "the Golden Vale
Golden Vale
The Golden Vale is an area of rolling pastureland in the civil province of Munster, southwestern Ireland. Covering parts of three counties, Limerick, Tipperary and Cork, it is the best land in Ireland for dairy farming....
", renowned for the richness of the sub-soil which has a limestone base, eminently suitable for the raising of bloodstock
Bloodstock
Bloodstock was an annual metal music festival held from 2001 to 2006 over two days in The Assembly Rooms, Derby, England. The event featured big-name mainstream, underground and new bands split between two stages, as well as a 'Metal Market' offering general genre merchandise and CDs...
. In 2002, the village had a population of 268 but it has been growing rapidly since then due to new housing development. The N74 connects Golden with Tipperary Town and Cashel
Cashel, County Tipperary
Cashel is a town in South Tipperary in Ireland. Its population was 2936 at the 2006 census. The town gives its name to the ecclesiastical province of Cashel. Additionally, the cathedra of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cashel and Emly was originally in the town prior to the English Reformation....
, while the L3121 links it with nearby New Inn.
See also
- List of towns and villages in Ireland