Ranelagh
Ranelagh (/ˈrænɨlə/ ran-ə-lə) (Irish: Raghnallach) is a residential area and urban village on the south side of Dublin, Ireland. It is in the postal district of Dublin 6. It is in the local government electoral area of Pembroke/Rathmines and the Dáil Constituency of Dublin South-East.
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[edit] History
The English name is locally pronounced /ˈrɛnələ/. The park in London, Ranelagh Gardens, was named after Ranelagh House, home of the Cole family, who took their title (Earls of Ranelagh) from the district in County Dublin.
The district was originally a village just outside Dublin, surrounded by landed estates.
In the early years of the Irish Confederate Wars (1641–1649) the area was the scene of skirmishes culminating in the Battle of Rathmines. After the Irish united with the Royalists against the Parliamentarians, an attempt was made to take Dublin. Their army under Ormonde was defeated, many of them killed, and the place where they fell (mainly between Rathmines and Ranelagh) was known for a long time as the Bloody Fields.[1]
In 1785, only two years after the first manned flight, Richard Crosbie successfully flew in a hot air balloon from Ranelagh Gardens to Clontarf.[2] The 225th anniversary of his flight was commemorated with a balloon flight from the same gardens on 23 January 2010.[3]
The area was incorporated into the expanding city in the 19th century, after which massive development took place.
[edit] Education
There are several primary schools,and secondary schools in the area.
Scoil Bhríde, founded in 1917, was the first gaelscoil (Irish-language school) in Ireland.
Lios na nÓg, another gaelscoil, is located in Cullenswood House on Oakley Road, where St. Enda's School (Scoil Éanna) was set up by Patrick Pearse in 1908. This was the first school in Ireland where pupils were taught in both Irish and English. St. Edna's school then moved to Rathfarnham in 1912 leaving the school building, Cullenswood House, unoccupied. In 1998, Lios na nÓg moved in and the school went under a major refurbishment over the period 2008-'09.
The Ranelagh Multi-Denominational School, is another primary school established in September 1988, which is located on the main Ranelagh road close to the luas stop. It is on the site of the old St.Columba's national school, which was donated to RMDSA by the Church of Ireland. The school won many awards for the great architecture of the building, built late 1990s. Other primary schools in the area include Sandford National, located close to Gonzaga College.
Secondary schools include Muckross College for girls, Gonzaga College for boys and Sandford Park School for boys.
[edit] Transport
- The green Luas line passes through, and stops at, Ranelagh/Raghnallach and also at Beechwood on the edge of Ranelagh and Rathmines.
- Rathmines and Ranelagh railway station opened on 16 July 1896 and finally closed on 1 January 1959.[4]
- The 11, 18, 44 ,48A and 61 bus routes pass through Ranelagh.
[edit] People
- The area is the home of some of Ireland's leading politicians:
- Garret FitzGerald, who was Taoiseach (Prime Minister) of Ireland twice in the 1980s, lived the last years of his life at Anna Villa in Ranelagh
- Former Tánaiste and Minister for Justice Michael McDowell lives in Ranelagh off the triangle
- Former President of Ireland and UN High Commissioner Mary Robinson was a resident of the area
- Robert Briscoe, former Lord Mayor of Dublin and TD was born on Lower Beechwood Avenue, Ranelagh
- former Fianna Fáil TD, Michael Mulcahy lives in the Beechwood area of Ranelagh
- Ranelagh is the birthplace and childhood home of Hollywood actress Maureen O'Hara
- Maeve Brennan, short story writer and long-time journalist with The New Yorker magazine was born and raised in Ranelagh; she set the majority of her fiction in a terraced house here
- Renowned plantswoman Helen Dillon lives in Ranelagh, where she has created and maintains the Dillon Garden[5]
- Former World snooker champion Ken Doherty is from the area and used to practice in local snooker club, Jason's
- Nell McCafferty, Northern Irish civil rights campaigner and journalist, has lived in Ranelagh for several years
- Actor Eamon Morrissey grew up in Ranelagh
- John Mulholland, editor of the UK newspaper The Observer
[edit] Gaelic Football
- Founded in 2003, Ranelagh Gaels first commenced competitive action in 2004. They recently topped the league in Division 9 and now competed in League 8, and grade C in the Dublin county championship. They play their home games in Bushy Park in Terenure, and train in UCD.
- They have recently started a ladies team, which will compete in the league in 2010. The Ladies won the Dublin Junior E Championship in 2010. The first Championship the club has ever won.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ F. Elrington Ball: A History of the County Dublin. 1903. Part II. page 103 et passim
- ^ Rice, Eoghan (2006-12-17). "First Irishman to take to the skies to be honoured". Archived from the original on 2007-11-22. http://web.archive.org/web/20071122211946/http://www.tribune.ie/2006/12/17/80332.html. Retrieved 2007-04-09.
- ^ Ranelagh Arts Festival
- ^ "Rathmines and Ranelagh station". Railscot - Irish Railways. http://www.railscot.co.uk/Ireland/Irish_railways.pdf. Retrieved 2007-11-23.
- ^ The Dillon Garden
[edit] External links
| Preceding station | Luas | Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Charlemont | Green Line | Beechwood | ||
Coordinates: 53°19.51′N 6°15.28′W / 53.32517°N 6.25467°W
