Kinnitty
Kinnitty
Cionn Eitigh | |
|---|---|
Village | |
| Motto: Esto Fideles - The Faithful | |
| Country | Ireland |
| Province | Leinster |
| County | Offaly |
| Population (2006) | |
| • Urban | 742 |
| Time zone | UTC+0 (WET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-1 (IST (WEST)) |
| Irish Grid Reference | N184053 |
Kinnitty (Irish: Cionn Eitigh) is a village in County Offaly, Ireland. It is located 13 km east of Birr on the R440 and R421 regional roads.
The village derives its name from the myth that the head of an ancient princess is buried beneath the village, Ceann being Irish for head and Eitigh being the name of the princess. The village is situated at the foot of the Slieve Bloom Mountains in the ancient kingdom of Éile, and is served by two pubs (Slieve Bloom Bar & Clendennen's), two churches, a post office and some shops.
Uniquely there is a pyramid shaped tomb in the grounds of the town's Church of Ireland church. The pyramid was built by the Bernard family who resided in Kinnitty Castle, which they built on the site of St. Finnians monastery, the high cross of which is still situated on the site. From 1955 to 1985, Kinnitty Castle hosted a Forestry Training College.
Rex Ingram, the Hollywood director, and his brother, Colonel Francis Clere Hitchcock MC spent most of their early life here where their father was the parish rector. (The "Old Rectory" is on the Roscrea Road opposite the Church of Ireland church).
