River Boyne

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River Boyne

The River Boyne () is a river in Leinster

Leinster

Leinster , one of the Provinces of Ireland, lies in the east of Ireland and comprises the counties of County Carlow, County Dublin, County Kildare, County Kilkenny, County Laois, County Longford, County Louth, County Meath, County Offaly, County Westmeath, County Wexford and County Wicklow....
, Ireland

Ireland

Ireland is the List of islands by area in Europe, and the twentieth-largest island in the world. It lies to the north-west of continental Europe and is surrounded by hundreds of islands and islet....
, the course of which is about 112 kilometres (70 mile

Mile

A mile is a Units of measurement of length, usually used to measure distance, in a number of different systems. In contemporary English contexts, mile most commonly refers to the statute mile of 5,280 Feet or the nautical mile of 1,852 meters ....
s) long. It rises at Trinity Well, Newbury Hall, near Carbury

Carbury

Carbury , also formerly spelt "Carbery", is a village in north-west County Kildare, Republic of Ireland. It is situated in the on the R402 road regional road between Enfield, County Meath and Edenderry, County Offaly, near the border with County Offaly....
, County Kildare

County Kildare

County Kildare is an Republic of Ireland county located to the southwest of Dublin in the province of Leinster. The name comes from the Irish, meaning church of the oaks ....
, and flows towards the Northeast through County Meath

County Meath

County Meath is a county in Republic of Ireland, often informally called The Royal County. The county town is Navan, where the county hall and government are located, although Trim, County Meath, the former county town, has historical significance and remains a sitting place of the courts of the Republic of Ireland....
to reach the Irish Sea

Irish Sea

The Irish Sea also known as the Mann Sea or Manx Sea, separates the islands of Ireland and Great Britain. It is connected to the Celtic Sea portion of the Atlantic Ocean by St George's Channel between Republic of Ireland and Wales, and to the north by the North Channel between Northern Ireland and Scotland which forms part of...
outside Drogheda

Drogheda

Salmon

Salmon is the common name for several species of fish of the family Salmonidae. Several other fish in the family are called trout,the difference is often attributed to the migratory life of the salmon as compared to the residential behaviour of trout, this holds true for the Atlantic salmon....
and trout

Trout

Trout are a number of species of freshwater fish belonging to the Salmoninae subfamily of the Salmonidae family. Salmon belong to some of the same genera as trout but, unlike most trout, most salmon species spend almost all their lives in salt water....
can be caught in the river, which is surrounded by the Boyne Valley. It is crossed just west of Drogheda by the Boyne River Bridge

Boyne River Bridge

The Boyne River Bridge is the longest cable-stayed bridge in Republic of Ireland. It spans the Boyne River 3km west of Drogheda and is part of the M1 motorway ....
that carries the M1 motorway

Motorway

Motorway is a term for both a type of road and a classification or designation. Motorways are high capacity roads designed to carry fast motor traffic safely....
and by the Boyne Viaduct

Boyne Viaduct

The Boyne Viaduct , a 98ft high railway bridge, or viaduct, that crosses the River Boyne in Drogheda, carrying the main Dublin–Belfast Rail transport in Ireland....
that carries the Dublin

Dublin

Dublin is both the largest city and capital of Republic of Ireland. It is located near the midpoint of Ireland's east coast, at the mouth of the River Liffey and at the centre of the Dublin Region....
-Belfast

Belfast

Belfast is the capital city of Northern Ireland and the seat of Devolution#United Kingdom Northern Ireland Executive and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly in Northern Ireland....
railway line to the east.

Despite its short course, the Boyne has historical, archaeological and mythical connotations.

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Encyclopedia

The River Boyne () is a river in Leinster

Leinster

Ireland

Mile

Carbury

County Kildare

County Meath

Irish Sea

Drogheda

Salmon

Trout

Boyne River Bridge

The Boyne River Bridge is the longest cable-stayed bridge in Republic of Ireland. It spans the Boyne River 3km west of Drogheda and is part of the M1 motorway ....
that carries the M1 motorway

Motorway

Motorway is a term for both a type of road and a classification or designation. Motorways are high capacity roads designed to carry fast motor traffic safely....
and by the Boyne Viaduct

Boyne Viaduct

The Boyne Viaduct , a 98ft high railway bridge, or viaduct, that crosses the River Boyne in Drogheda, carrying the main Dublin–Belfast Rail transport in Ireland....
that carries the Dublin

Dublin

Belfast

Trim, County Meath

Trim is the traditional county town of County Meath in Republic of Ireland, although the county town is now Navan. The town was recorded in the 2006 census to have a population of 6,870....
, Trim Castle

Trim Castle

Trim Castle , Trim, County Meath, Ireland, on the shores of the Boyne has an area of 30,000 m?. It is the remains of the largest Norman architecture castle in Europe, and Ireland's largest castle....
, the Hill of Tara

Hill of Tara

The Hill of Tara , located near the River Boyne, is an archaeological complex that runs between Navan and Dunshaughlin in County Meath, Leinster, Republic of Ireland....
(the ancient capital of the High King of Ireland), Navan

Navan

Navan is the largest town and county town or administrative capital of County Meath, Republic of Ireland. It is thought to be one of the few places in the world to have a paladromic name ....
, the Hill of Slane

Slane

Slane is a village in County Meath, in Republic of Ireland. The village stands on a steep hillside on the left bank of the River Boyne at the intersection of the N2 road and the N51 road, Ireland ....
, Brú na Bóinne

Newgrange

Newgrange is one of the passage tombs of the Br? na B?inne complex in County Meath, one of the most famous prehistoric sites in the world and the most famous of all Ireland prehistoric sites....
(an archaeological site), Mellifont Abbey

Mellifont Abbey

Mellifont Abbey , located in County Louth, was the first Cistercians abbey to be built in Ireland....
, and the medieval city of Drogheda

Drogheda

Drogheda is an industrial and port town in County Louth on the east coast of Republic of Ireland, 56 km north of Dublin. Drogheda is the largest town in Ireland, recently surpassing its neighbour Dundalk....
. In the Boyne Valley can also be found other historical and archaeological monuments, like Loughcrew, Kells

Kells

Kells may refer to the following people:* Mick Fleetwood , British musician, best-known as part of Fleetwood Mac* Greg Kells, Canadian businessman and politician...
, Celtic crosses, castles, and more. The Battle of the Boyne

Battle of the Boyne

The Battle of the Boyne was fought in 1690 between two rival claimants of the English, Scottish and Irish thrones - the Catholic James II of England and the Protestant William III of England, who had Glorious revolution....
, a major battle in Irish history

History of Ireland

The history of Ireland began with the first known settlement in Ireland around 8000 BC, when hunter-gatherers arrived from continental Europe, probably via a land bridge....
, took place along the Boyne near Drogheda

Drogheda

Williamite war in Ireland

The Williamite War in Ireland, also known as the Jacobite War in Ireland and in Ireland as Cogadh an D? R? or The War of the Two Kings, was the opening conflict following the deposition of King James II of England in 1688 when he attempted to regain the throne of his Three Kingdoms from his daughter Mary II of England who repl...
.

This river has been known since ancient times. The Greek geographer Ptolemy

Ptolemy

Claudius Ptolemaeus , known in English as Ptolemy , was a Roman Greek mathematics, Greek astronomy, geographer and astrologer. He lived in History of Roman Egypt, and was probably born there in a town in the Thebaid called Ptolemais Hermiou; he died in Alexandria around 168 AD....
drew a map of Ireland in the 2nd century which included the Boyne, which he called Bubinda, and somewhat later Giraldus Cambrensis

Giraldus Cambrensis

Gerald of Wales , also known as Gerallt Gymro in Welsh language or Giraldus Cambrensis in Latin, archdeacon of Brecon, was a medieval clergyman and English historians in the Middle Ages....
called it Boandus. In Irish mythology

Irish mythology

The mythology of pre-Christian Ireland did not entirely survive the conversion to Christianity, but much of it was preserved, shorn of its religious meanings, in medieval Irish literature, which represents the most extensive and best preserved of all the branches of Celtic mythology....
it is said that the river was created by the goddess

Goddess

A goddess is a female deity. Often deities are part of a polytheism system that includes several deities in a pantheon .Common associations of goddesses are the Earth goddess, the Mother Goddess, Love goddess, and the hearth goddess, reflecting historical gender roles....
Boann

Boann

Boann is the Irish mythology goddess of the River Boyne, a river in Leinster, Ireland. According to the Lebor Gab?la ?renn she was the daughter of Delb?eth, son of Elatha, of the Tuatha D? Danann....
('queen' or 'goddess'), according to F. Dinneen, lexicographer of the Irish Gaelic language, and Boyne is an anglicised form of the name. In other legends, it was in this river where Fionn mac Cumhail captured Fiontán, the Salmon of Knowledge.

The Boyne Navigation

Boyne Navigation

The Boyne Navigation is a series of canals running 31 km roughly parallel to the River Boyne from Oldbridge to Navan in County Meath, in Republic of Ireland....
is a series of canals running roughly parallel to the main river from near Oldbridge to Navan. Owned by An Taisce

An Taisce

An Taisce , also known as the National Trust for Ireland, was established in 1948 with a similar mission to that of the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty in England, Wales and Northern Ireland....
and currently derelict, the Inland Waterways Association of Ireland

Inland Waterways Association of Ireland

The Inland Waterways Association of Ireland Cumann Uiscebhealaigh Int?re na h?ireann is a registered charity and a limited company in the Republic of Ireland and also operates in Northern Ireland....
are restoring the navigation to navigable status.

There are a number of railway bridges and viaducts crossing the Boyne which are well known.

Viking Ship

In 2006, the remains of a Viking ship were found in the river bed in Drogheda during dredging operations. The vessel is to be excavated as it poses a hazard to navigation.