Ballinakill

Ballinakill (Irish: Baile na Coille, meaning "the town of the woods") is a small village in County Laois, Ireland on the R432 regional road between Abbeyleix, Ballyragget and Castlecomer, County Kilkenny. As of the 2016 census, there were 445 people living in Ballinakill.[1]

Ballinakill Baile na Coille
Town
Ballinakill National School
Ballinakill Location in Ireland
Coordinates: 52°52′27″N 7°18′36″W
Country	Ireland
Province	Leinster
County	County Laois
Population  (2016)[1]	445
Time zone	UTC+0 (WET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-1 (IST (WEST))

History

From 1613 until the Act of Union, the town was a parliamentary borough, electing two members to the Irish House of Commons.

The town was besieged and plundered by Irish rebels, including the Earl of Castlehaven and Lord Mountgarret, during the 1641 rebellion. When the castle and town surrendered much was robbed, including cattle, sheep and cloth. Remarkably, this information survives to us through an account from a native American Patagonian from present day southern Argentina/Chile 'but now a Christian' who had been a servant to Captain Richard Steele for twenty years and lived in Ballinakill.[2]

Landmarks

The gardens of the Heywood Estate lie just north of Ballinakill

The town square features a monument to men who died in the 1798 rebellion. The monument was erected in 1898. In 1998 a ceremony was held in Ballinakill to mark the bicentenary of the deaths.

Heywood Gardens, located just north of Ballinakill, is a formal garden on the former Heywood Estate which was designed by Edwin Lutyens and Gertrude Jekyll in the early 20th century.[3] The gardens are now managed by the Office of Public Works and open to the public.[4]

Sport

Ballinakill GAA and Spink GAA are local Gaelic Athletic Association clubs.

Further reading

• Ballinakill: A Journey through Time by Ger Dunphy and Christy O'Shea (2002)

References

1. "Sapmap Area - Settlements - Ballinakill". Census 2016. Central Statistics Office. April 2016. Retrieved 25 January 2020.
2. "1641 Depositions". 1641 Depositions. Retrieved 2019-01-16.
3. "Heywood Gardens, Ballinakill, Co. Laois". laois.ie. Laois County Council. Retrieved 25 January 2020.
4. "Heywood Gardens". heritageireland.ie. Office of Public Works. Retrieved 25 January 2020.

See also

• List of towns and villages in Ireland