Inchcleraun
|
Native name: Inis Cloithrinn Nickname: Quaker Island |
|
|---|---|
 Inchcleraun
|
|
| Geography | |
| Location | River Shannon |
| Coordinates | 53°35′02″N 8°00′40″W / 53.584°N 8.011°WCoordinates: 53°35′02″N 8°00′40″W / 53.584°N 8.011°W |
| Area | 0.577 km2 (0.223 sq mi) |
| Administration | |
| Province | Leinster |
| County | Longford |
| Demographics | |
| Population | 0 |
Inchcleraun (Irish: Inis Cloithrinn), also called Quaker Island, is an island situated in Lough Ree on the River Shannon, in central Ireland.
The island is home to the ruins of St. Diarmaid’s Monastery, a monastery founded by Diarmaid the Just in AD 560. These buildings constitute a National Monument.
Inchcleraun is an island of 57.7 ha (143 acres) located in the centre of Lough Ree, with Knockcroghery, County Roscommon to its west and Newtowncashel, County Longford to its east..
The island takes its name from Irish for "Clothru's Island". In Irish legend, Clothru was a daughter of Eochu Feidlech, then High King of Ireland. She became the Queen of Connacht after her father’s death, and once owned the island. Her sister, Medb, retired to Inchcleraun after Medb's husband Ailill mac Máta killed her lover Fergus mac Róich. One point is called Grianan Meva ("Medb's sunny place"), and nearby is Innadmarfa Meva (Ionad Marbhtha Meidhbhe, "Place of Medb's death"), where she was killed by a stone thrown from Elfeet Castle, on the Longford side of the lake. In other versions of the legend, it is a lump of cheese fired from a slingshot by a nephew of Clothru.
The name “Quaker Island” is more recent, and owes to the island being owned at one time by a Quaker. The island is today owned by the Irish state.
Between 800 and 1300 the island and its churches were repeatedly plundered and burned by invaders, so the buildings are in ruins today. Six of the island's churches are surrounded by an enclosure in the southeast corner of the island.
...
Wikipedia