Fethard (; ) is a small town in County Tipperary, Ireland. Dating to the Norman invasion of Ireland, the town's walls were first laid-out in the 13th century, with some sections of these defensive fortifications surviving today.

Fethard is located east of Cashel on the Clashawley River where the R692, R689 and R706 regional roads intersect. It is a civil parish in the barony of Middle Third and in the ecclesiastical parish of "Fethard and Killusty" in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cashel and Emly. , the town's population was 1,738. While the low hill, on which the town stands, may have been the location of a pre-Norman church, the first evidence of significant settlement dates from 1201, when a Norman lord, likely William de Braose, settled here. John Everard, a lawyer and member of a local landed family, served the Butler clan and Earl of Ormond. His performances as a justice in the Earl's liberty of Tipperary saw him appointed by Elizabeth I as Second Justice of the Court of King's Bench (Ireland) in 1602. In the same period, the Everard family's involvement with Fethard came to an end when the last Baronet, Sir Redmond Everard, 4th Baronet, who lived in France, sold his family's properties in Fethard in 1725. The new landowner, Mr Barton (a wine merchant from Bordeaux), replaced the old Everard mansion with a new house, which in turn became a military barracks early in the 19th century. making it one of the "best example[s] of a medieval walled town in Ireland". In some areas the remaining walls rise to a height of . Heritage tourism marketing for the area focuses on the town's medieval defensive walls and the area's association with horse-racing and breeding.

Sport

The town is also known in the thoroughbred horse racing industry as the home of Coolmore Stud and of the stables of Michael "Mouse" Morris. McCarthy's Hotel was the home of Dick McCarthy, a professional jockey of the early 20th century, who rode Savernake in the 1930 Grand National.

Fethard GAA Club plays at Fethard GAA Park, formerly known as the Barrack Field. The club holds 21 senior county Gaelic football titles, more than any other team in the county.

Transport

The Thurles-Clonmel bus route, operated by Bernard Kavanagh & Sons/The Shamrock Bus Company, serves Fethard.

The nearest station is Clonmel railway station, approximately 13 kilometres away.

Culture

The Fethard Medieval Festival takes place annually in June. A parade runs through the main street that culminates in Valley Park centred on the River Clashawley, next to the town's medieval walls. Activities in the festival include amusements, workshops, craft demonstrations, archery, live music, and food stalls.

Fethard was used as a location for the 2011 film Stella Days, based on a book by Michael Doorley about life in Borrisokane during the 1950s.

Notable people

  • Thomas Francis Bourke (1840-1889), Fethard-born Irish soldier who fought for the Confederacy in the American Civil War and was later a figure in the Fenian Brotherhood.
  • Thomas Bray, Archbishop of Cashel (1792–1820)
  • John Butler, 12th Baron Dunboyne was buried in the Augustinian friary, Fethard
  • John J. Cantwell, Archbishop of Los Angeles, attended the Patrician Brothers Monastery National School, and the nearby Classical Academy
  • John Magnier, owner of Coolmore Stud, is based in Fethard
  • Mouse Morris, Irish racehorse trainer, is based in Fethard
  • Patrick Mary O'Donnell, Archbishop of Brisbane, Australia (1965–73), born in Fethard
  • George Plant (1904-1942), Irish Republican Army member executed in 1942.
  • William Tirry (1609–1654), executed during the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland and buried in the former Augustinian Priory at Fethard, he was beatified by Pope John Paul II in 1992 as one of the Irish Catholic Martyrs.

See also

  • List of towns and villages in County Tipperary
  • Fethard (County Tipperary) (Parliament of Ireland constituency)
  • Kiltinan Castle

References

  • Fethard website