Cahirmee Horse Fair
Encyclopedia
Cahirmee Horse Fair is held on 12 July every year in the town of Buttevant
, County Cork
, Ireland
.
The ancient horse fair was originally held at the Fair Field of Cahirmee, some two miles to the East of the town. In 1921 it was transferred into the town and is still held on 12 July every year.
M. P. Linehan in My Heart Remembers How notes the following:
Coincidentally, the Duke of Wellington
's horse at the Battle of Waterloo
, an Irish black named Copenhagen, was also purchased at Cahirmee.
The tradition of equine excellence continues in the person of Vincent O'Brien olim of Clashganiv, Churchtown, but now of Cashel fame.
Buttevant
Buttevant is a medieval market town, incorporated by charter of Edward III, situated in North County Cork, Ireland.While there may be reason to suggest that the town may occupy the site of an earlier settlement of the Donegans, Carrig Donegan, the origins of the present town are clearly and...
, County Cork
County Cork
County Cork is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and is also part of the province of Munster. It is named after the city of Cork . Cork County Council is the local authority for the county...
, Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
.
The ancient horse fair was originally held at the Fair Field of Cahirmee, some two miles to the East of the town. In 1921 it was transferred into the town and is still held on 12 July every year.
M. P. Linehan in My Heart Remembers How notes the following:
Cahirmee fair has a history, but I fear it is history that has never been written, or written so long ago that it has been lost. I have told already how the fair green straddles a hill under which Boherbwee, 'the yellow road' of Manaan MacLir'sManannán mac LirManannán mac Lir is a sea deity in Irish mythology. He is the son of the obscure Lir . He is often seen as a psychopomp, and has strong affiliations with the Otherworld, the weather and the mists between the worlds...
cows, passes; how it looks across to the bloody battlefield of Cnocanaar; how it is crowned with a mighty lios which is credited with being the burial ground of the FiannaFiannaFianna were small, semi-independent warrior bands in Irish mythology and Scottish mythology, most notably in the stories of the Fenian Cycle, where they are led by Fionn mac Cumhaill....
. It was part of the ancient parish of Cahirduggan in the still more ancient Barony of Fermuighe.
I have pointed out that a few miles to the north-east is Rossach, traditionally the burial groundBurial GroundBurial Ground is the ninth studio album by Swedish death metal band Grave, released in June 2010.-Track listing:# "Liberation" - 3:40# "Semblance In Black" - 7:50# "Dismembered Mind" - 6:10# "Ridden With Belief" - 7:57# "Conquerer" - 4:44...
of the Kings of Fermuighe. Was Cahirmee the stone fort of these same kings and is "mee" in Cahirmee the same word as "moy" in Fermoy? Duggan is supposed to have been a direct descendant of Mogh Ruith and a Duggan, King of FermoyFermoyFermoy is a town in County Cork, Ireland. It is situated on the River Blackwater in the south of Ireland. Its population is some 5,800 inhabitants, environs included ....
, was one of Brian BoruBrian BoruBrian Bóruma mac Cennétig, , , was an Irish king who ended the domination of the High Kingship of Ireland by the Uí Néill. Building on the achievements of his father, Cennétig mac Lorcain, and especially his elder brother, Mathgamain, Brian first made himself King of Munster, then subjugated...
's lieutenantLieutenantA lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
s to be killed at the battle of ClontarfBattle of ClontarfThe Battle of Clontarf took place on 23 April 1014 between the forces of Brian Boru and the forces led by the King of Leinster, Máel Mórda mac Murchada: composed mainly of his own men, Viking mercenaries from Dublin and the Orkney Islands led by his cousin Sigtrygg, as well as the one rebellious...
. O'Duggan held that kingship until he was ousted from it by the Eoganacht O'Keeffes.
We know that the old Irish aonachs began as funeral games when the heroes of a battle were buried, and that horse-racing was a feature of these games; that the games tended to become annual events at which courts of justice were held and laws enacted embodying the traditional customs of the clan or sept or petty kingdom; that at them marriages were solemnised and goods exchanged and bartered.
Did Cahirmee Fair begin in the halcyon day when the victims of the bloody contest of Cnocanaar were laid to rest on the brow overlooking the valley of the Awbeg? It would be plausible to give an affirmative answer. Perhaps that answer will be verified some day when our archaeologists will dig into and examine Mee's Cahir.
It is also worth remembering that in pre-Christian Ireland the last days of July were great days of hill pilgrimages and that changes in the calendar might well mean that Cahirmee Fair once fell at the end, and not in the middle, of the seventh month. However, there is no doubt that this fair was a recognised institution prior to the Cromwellian WarsOliver CromwellOliver Cromwell was an English military and political leader who overthrew the English monarchy and temporarily turned England into a republican Commonwealth, and served as Lord Protector of England, Scotland, and Ireland....
, because references to the Fair Field of Cahirmee are to be found in ancient documents dating from the reign of Charles IICharles II of EnglandCharles II was monarch of the three kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland.Charles II's father, King Charles I, was executed at Whitehall on 30 January 1649, at the climax of the English Civil War...
.
It would be interesting, if one could, to trace the history of many of the young colts and fillies that started out on their career of fame when they were brought to the fair-field of Cahirmee. One at least of them has achieved immortality, for he served as the throne from which a great captain-general brought a continent to his feet. He is the white charger MarengoMarengoMarengo may refer to:* The Battle of Marengo, in 1800 in northern Italy* French ship Marengo* Chicken Marengo, a food dish* Marengo , a genus of jumping spiders* Marengo , Napoleon's horse...
, which Napoleon is shown as riding in MeissonierJean-Louis-Ernest MeissonierJean-Louis Ernest Meissonier was a French Classicist painter and sculptor famous for his depictions of Napoleon, his armies and military themes. He documented sieges and manoeuvres and was the teacher of Édouard Detaille.-Biography:Ernest Meissonier was born at Lyon...
's masterpiece The Retreat from MoscowMoscowMoscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
.
Coincidentally, the Duke of Wellington
Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington
Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, KG, GCB, GCH, PC, FRS , was an Irish-born British soldier and statesman, and one of the leading military and political figures of the 19th century...
's horse at the Battle of Waterloo
Battle of Waterloo
The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815 near Waterloo in present-day Belgium, then part of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands...
, an Irish black named Copenhagen, was also purchased at Cahirmee.
The tradition of equine excellence continues in the person of Vincent O'Brien olim of Clashganiv, Churchtown, but now of Cashel fame.