Soloheadbeg
Soloheadbeg or Solloghodbeg (/ˌsɒləhədˈbɛɡ/;[1] from Irish Sulchóid Bheag)[2] is a townland and civil parish in County Tipperary, Ireland. Lying north and northwest of Tipperary town, it was the scene of three notable events in Irish history:
- King Mahon of Thomond and his brother Brian Ború defeated the Vikings at Soloheadbeg (the Battle of Sulcoit) in 968.
- It was a stopping-point for Donal Cam O'Sullivan Beare during his epic march from Dunboy Castle in west Cork to O'Rourke's Castle in Leitrim in 1603.
- The Soloheadbeg Ambush, said to be the first engagement of the Irish War of Independence, took place here on 21 January 1919. The event is commemorated by a monument at Solohead Cross, some 1.5 km northwest of Limerick Junction railway station, where a ceremony of remembrance is held each year on the anniversary of the ambush, which was led by Dan Breen and Seán Treacy of the Third Tipperary Brigade.