Trim, County Meath
Encyclopedia
Trim is the traditional county town
of County Meath
in Ireland
, although the county town is now Navan
. The town was recorded in the 2006 census to have a population of 6,870.
Trim won the Irish Tidy Towns Competition
in 1972, 1984 and was joint winners with Ballyconnell
, County Cavan
in 1974.
) of the Cenél Lóegairi. It is traditionally thought to have been founded by St. Patrick and left in the care of its patron saint Lommán, also locally known as Loman, who flourished sometime between the 5th and early 6th century. When domestic politics endangered the position of Lommán's foundation, the church of Armagh
assimilated Lommán into the dossier of St. Patrick, making him a disciple of that saint. Attackers burned the church several times in the twelfth century, during which it was refounded as an St. Mary's Abbey
under Augustinian rule. The abbey church was the sanctuary for "Our Lady of Trim", a wooden statue reported to work miracles. The statue made Trim a major pilgrimage site from at least 1397. During the Reformation
, the statue was burned and Henry VIII
dissolved the abbey. The abbey's bell tower, the "Yellow Steeple", is the primary remnant of St. Mary's.
Lying 61 m above sea level on the River Boyne
, Trim became one of the most important Hiberno-Norman
settlements in the Middle Ages
. In the 15th century the Norman-Irish
parliament
met in Trim. Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington
is reputed to have been born in Dangan Castle between Trim and Summerhill
, and a large column to him was erected in the town in 1817. The town's main feature is Ireland's largest castle, Trim Castle
; other features include two ruined church complexes, the Boyne River for fishing and the Butterstream Gardens, visited by Charles, Prince of Wales
in the mid-nineties (no longer open to the public).
The town is home to Western Europe's largest Norman
castle
, Trim Castle (or King John's Castle), which was built in the late 12th century following the Norman invasion of Ireland
's eastern seaboard. Trim and the surrounding lands were granted to Hugh de Lacy, a Norman knight. Richard II of England
stayed there before being ousted from power. Once a candidate to be the country's capital, the town has also occupied a role as one of the outposts of the Pale
. It was also designated by Elizabeth I of England as the planned location for a Protestant Dublin University (known as Trinity College, Dublin
). However this was revised by Sir Francis Drake, who advocated the case for locating the University in Dublin. In 1649 after the sacking of Drogheda
, the garrison of Trim fled to join other Irish forces
and the town was occupied by the army
of Oliver Cromwell
. There were many local disturbances in neighbouring villages in the Irish Rebellion of 1798
, most infamously the massacre on the Hill of Tara
, following the dispersal of the Wexford rebellion. Trim was represented by Arthur Wellesley
in the Irish Parliament from 1790 to 1797.
The 19th century saw the construction of Trim Courthouse, St. Loman's Catholic church, St. Patrick's Anglican church, the Wellington column, the current Bank of Ireland
building, and Castle Street by Lord Dunsany
, a major landowner. Following the Great Irish Famine of 1846–1849, the practices of agriculture in the hinterland altered, with a change in emphasis from tillage to stock raising. This resulted in a change in the business life of Trim. Trim developed as a market town for the productive agricultural hinterland. Some small-scale local industries were developed including envelope, and leather product manufacturing. Trim was also chosen as location for the Timoney Engineering company to make Fire Tenders. However in the main the town continued to mainly be a service centre for its immediate area.
During the Irish War of Independence
, local companies of the Irish Republican Army
took Trim RIC Barracks, a large structure located on the current site of the Castle Arch Hotel, secured the arms from the barracks and then burnt down the Barracks. A large part of the town was burned as a reprisal by the British Crown forces on 26 September 1920. The local members were drawn from Trim, Longwood, Ballivor and South Meath in general. The Lalor brothers form Castle St. were prominent members as well as the Duignans from High St and the Proctors. Records of the adventures of the Lalors rest in Navan library and recount the tales of one of the Bothers hiding in the recently dug grave of Fr. woods in the church yard. Local memories remember the townspeople sheltering down by the Boyne for a few nights as the Black 'n' Tans and Auxiliaries burnt out prominent business and the Town Hall. Footage of the burning of J&E Smyth can be viewed on the 'Pathe' website. Many of the townspeople were traumatised for the rest of their lives; many children in Trim were not allowed play with guns; memories of the B'n'Ts dangling grenades outside their windows as the Town Hall burnt and peeled the paint off their doors at Castle St. remained for a long time. The New York Times reported the burning of the barracks and the subsequent looting and burning of the town and follow up operations by the local IRA.
In later years the Lalors who moved to the house across the road from the old Brothers school had a collection of memorabilia from those years including, letters from Collins sent from Frongoch (they kept the originals and forward duplicates to HQ), Devs slippers and a Tricolour made by Constance Markievic (with her name embroidered) that was to fly over the GPO during the Rising. Their whereabouts now are unknown but photographs of their existence are on file in Navan library.
While other parts of Meath were particularly quiet during the War Of Independence, the men from South Meath took the war to the British; one ambush by one of the Lalor bros took place at the Wellington Monument, where he single-handedly took on a truckload of British with his rifle and grenade, the monument to the British PM still stands.
A new bridge was built on the Boyne
in the 1980s to divert heavy traffic from the town. This was then enhanced by the construction, in a series of stages, of an inner relief road, which now makes it possible for heavy traffic to achieve a complete by-pass of the town. The Watergate bridge was replaced in 2005. The local town council purchased a field beside the new bridge in 2004, as it was expected to be of archaeological significance.
As part of the Civil Service decentralization plan of the Irish government, Trim was chosen as the location of the headquarters for the state body known as the Office of Public Works
. The movement of this state administration function to Trim resulted in Trim being the first location outside of Dublin to complete a satisfactory decentralization move. Trim has seen some growth in recent years with growth as a tourist and business centre.
's residence near Trim after 1700, a satirical
festival is held in his honour.
's broadcasting station was situated in Trim throughout the 1990s. The station's former buildings are now home to Trim Town Council and Trim Area Committee, two of the administrative bodies within the County of Meath.
The RTÉ Radio 1 longwave
transmitter
at Clarkstown, some 11 km southeast of Trim, now broadcasts the AM version of Radio 1 (sometimes known as RTÉ Europe) on 252 kHz (1190.4 m). Prior to this date, RTÉ's main AM transmission centre had been near Athlone.
The town has been used as the location for some film productions, including the use of Trim Castle to depict York Castle
in Mel Gibson
's Braveheart
.
Trim was also the setting for the first full-length Irish martial arts
movie Fatal Deviation
. (A low-budget production from 1998 that tells the story of a young man trying to rebuild his life after returning from reform school only to be harassed by a gang of local drug dealers.)
The 1980 movie The Big Red One, starring Lee Marvin
and Mark Hamill
, was also partially shot in Trim and in particular Trim Castle.
footballers such as Jack Quinn
and Darren Fay
and in recent times Brendan Murphy has emerged as the county team's star goalkeeper.
Trim GAA
Club have won the Meath Senior Football Championship on one occasion, in 1962. Trim is one of the two most successful teams (the other being Kilmessan) in the Meath Senior Hurling Championship, with both clubs between them winning almost half the championships played.
aircraft including microlight
s.
both stated that they were not aware of any activity over Trim.
On Thursday the 30 July 2009 an "armada" of UFO's were spotted once again. This time there were several witnesses and video footage was obtained from a camera phone. As before a local politician claimed to have seen the UFO's and said that he tried to chase to find out what they were. Again The Irish Aviation Authority and The Irish Defence Forces
both claim that they had no aircraft in the sky at the time of the sightings.
This event was reported in the Meath Chronicle
on 5 August 2009. Comments from readers seem to indicate that the UFO's were in fact Chinese lantern
s released at a nearby wedding party.
with:
County town
A county town is a county's administrative centre in the United Kingdom or Ireland. County towns are usually the location of administrative or judicial functions, or established over time as the de facto main town of a county. The concept of a county town eventually became detached from its...
of County Meath
County Meath
County Meath is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Mid-East Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the ancient Kingdom of Mide . Meath County Council is the local authority for the county...
in Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
, although the county town is now Navan
Navan
-People:Navan was the childhood home of Pierce Brosnan, who appeared in the television series Remington Steele and was the fifth film actor to play James Bond. TV personality Hector Ó hEochagáin, and comedians Dylan Moran and Tommy Tiernan also hail from Navan....
. The town was recorded in the 2006 census to have a population of 6,870.
Trim won the Irish Tidy Towns Competition
Irish Tidy Towns Competition
Tidy Towns is an annual competition, first held in 1958, organised by the Irish Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government in order to honour the tidiest and most attractive cities, towns and villages in the Republic of Ireland...
in 1972, 1984 and was joint winners with Ballyconnell
Ballyconnell
Ballyconnell is a town in County Cavan, Ireland. It is situated on the N87 national secondary road at the junction of four townlands Annagh, Cullyleenan, Doon and Derryginny in the parish of Tomregan, Barony of Tullyhaw. The town has an altitude of 55 metres above sea level...
, County Cavan
County Cavan
County Cavan is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Border Region and is also located in the province of Ulster. It is named after the town of Cavan. Cavan County Council is the local authority for the county...
in 1974.
History
At an early date, a monastery was founded at Trim, which lay within the petty kingdom (tuathTuath
Túath is an Old Irish word, often translated as "people" or "nation". It is cognate with the Welsh and Breton tud , and with the Germanic þeudō ....
) of the Cenél Lóegairi. It is traditionally thought to have been founded by St. Patrick and left in the care of its patron saint Lommán, also locally known as Loman, who flourished sometime between the 5th and early 6th century. When domestic politics endangered the position of Lommán's foundation, the church of Armagh
Armagh
Armagh is a large settlement in Northern Ireland, and the county town of County Armagh. It is a site of historical importance for both Celtic paganism and Christianity and is the seat, for both the Roman Catholic Church and the Church of Ireland, of the Archbishop of Armagh...
assimilated Lommán into the dossier of St. Patrick, making him a disciple of that saint. Attackers burned the church several times in the twelfth century, during which it was refounded as an St. Mary's Abbey
St. Mary's Abbey, Trim
St. Mary's Abbey in Trim, County Meath, Ireland is a former Augustinian Abbey dedicated to the Blessed Virgin. The abbey was situated on the north bank of the River Boyne, opposite Trim Castle, on land given to St. Patrick who is often credited with founding the abbey...
under Augustinian rule. The abbey church was the sanctuary for "Our Lady of Trim", a wooden statue reported to work miracles. The statue made Trim a major pilgrimage site from at least 1397. During the Reformation
Reformation
- Movements :* Protestant Reformation, an attempt by Martin Luther to reform the Roman Catholic Church that resulted in a schism, and grew into a wider movement...
, the statue was burned and Henry VIII
Henry VIII of England
Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...
dissolved the abbey. The abbey's bell tower, the "Yellow Steeple", is the primary remnant of St. Mary's.
Lying 61 m above sea level on the River Boyne
River Boyne
The River Boyne is a river in Leinster, Ireland, the course of which is about long. It rises at Trinity Well, Newbury Hall, near Carbury, County Kildare, and flows towards the Northeast through County Meath to reach the Irish Sea between Mornington, County Meath and Baltray, County Louth. Salmon...
, Trim became one of the most important Hiberno-Norman
Hiberno-Norman
The Hiberno-Normans are those Norman lords who settled in Ireland who admitted little if any real fealty to the Anglo-Norman settlers in England, and who soon began to interact and intermarry with the Gaelic nobility of Ireland. The term embraces both their origins as a distinct community with...
settlements in the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
. In the 15th century the Norman-Irish
Hiberno-Norman
The Hiberno-Normans are those Norman lords who settled in Ireland who admitted little if any real fealty to the Anglo-Norman settlers in England, and who soon began to interact and intermarry with the Gaelic nobility of Ireland. The term embraces both their origins as a distinct community with...
parliament
Parliament
A parliament is a legislature, especially in those countries whose system of government is based on the Westminster system modeled after that of the United Kingdom. The name is derived from the French , the action of parler : a parlement is a discussion. The term came to mean a meeting at which...
met in Trim. Arthur Wellesley, 1st 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...
is reputed to have been born in Dangan Castle between Trim and Summerhill
Summerhill, County Meath
Summerhill is a village in County Meath, Ireland. It is located at the intersection of the R156 and R158 regional roads. The Irish version of the town's name means "Lynch's Hill", and it was the ancestral home of the Norman-Irish Lynch family, whence came the Galway merchant family of the same...
, and a large column to him was erected in the town in 1817. The town's main feature is Ireland's largest castle, Trim Castle
Trim Castle
Trim Castle , Trim, County Meath, Ireland, on the shores of the Boyne has an area of 30,000 m². It is the remains of Ireland's largest Anglo-Norman castle...
; other features include two ruined church complexes, the Boyne River for fishing and the Butterstream Gardens, visited by Charles, Prince of Wales
Charles, Prince of Wales
Prince Charles, Prince of Wales is the heir apparent and eldest son of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. Since 1958 his major title has been His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales. In Scotland he is additionally known as The Duke of Rothesay...
in the mid-nineties (no longer open to the public).
Norman architecture
About|Romanesque architecture, primarily English|other buildings in Normandy|Architecture of Normandy.File:Durham Cathedral. Nave by James Valentine c.1890.jpg|thumb|200px|The nave of Durham Cathedral demonstrates the characteristic round arched style, though use of shallow pointed arches above the...
castle
Castle
A castle is a type of fortified structure built in Europe and the Middle East during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars debate the scope of the word castle, but usually consider it to be the private fortified residence of a lord or noble...
, Trim Castle (or King John's Castle), which was built in the late 12th century following the Norman invasion of Ireland
Norman Invasion of Ireland
The Norman invasion of Ireland was a two-stage process, which began on 1 May 1169 when a force of loosely associated Norman knights landed near Bannow, County Wexford...
's eastern seaboard. Trim and the surrounding lands were granted to Hugh de Lacy, a Norman knight. Richard II of England
Richard II of England
Richard II was King of England, a member of the House of Plantagenet and the last of its main-line kings. He ruled from 1377 until he was deposed in 1399. Richard was a son of Edward, the Black Prince, and was born during the reign of his grandfather, Edward III...
stayed there before being ousted from power. Once a candidate to be the country's capital, the town has also occupied a role as one of the outposts of the Pale
The Pale
The Pale or the English Pale , was the part of Ireland that was directly under the control of the English government in the late Middle Ages. It had reduced by the late 15th century to an area along the east coast stretching from Dalkey, south of Dublin, to the garrison town of Dundalk...
. It was also designated by Elizabeth I of England as the planned location for a Protestant Dublin University (known as Trinity College, Dublin
Trinity College, Dublin
Trinity College, Dublin , formally known as the College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, was founded in 1592 by letters patent from Queen Elizabeth I as the "mother of a university", Extracts from Letters Patent of Elizabeth I, 1592: "...we...found and...
). However this was revised by Sir Francis Drake, who advocated the case for locating the University in Dublin. In 1649 after the sacking of Drogheda
Siege of Drogheda
The siege of Drogheda at the outset of the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland. The town of Drogheda in eastern Ireland was held by a combined English Royalist and Irish Catholic garrison when it was besieged and stormed by English Parliamentarian forces under Oliver Cromwell...
, the garrison of Trim fled to join other Irish forces
Confederate Ireland
Confederate Ireland refers to the period of Irish self-government between the Rebellion of 1641 and the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland in 1649. During this time, two-thirds of Ireland was governed by the Irish Catholic Confederation, also known as the "Confederation of Kilkenny"...
and the town was occupied by the army
New Model Army
The New Model Army of England was formed in 1645 by the Parliamentarians in the English Civil War, and was disbanded in 1660 after the Restoration...
of Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell
Oliver 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....
. There were many local disturbances in neighbouring villages in the Irish Rebellion of 1798
Irish Rebellion of 1798
The Irish Rebellion of 1798 , also known as the United Irishmen Rebellion , was an uprising in 1798, lasting several months, against British rule in Ireland...
, most infamously the massacre on the Hill of Tara
Battle of Tara Hill
The Battle of Tara Hill was fought on the evening of 26 May 1798 between British forces and Irish rebels involved in the Irish Rebellion of 1798, resulting in a heavy defeat for the rebels and the end of the rebellion in County Meath.-Background:...
, following the dispersal of the Wexford rebellion. Trim was represented by Arthur Wellesley
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...
in the Irish Parliament from 1790 to 1797.
Bank of Ireland
The Bank of Ireland is a commercial bank operation in Ireland, which is one of the 'Big Four' in both parts of the island.Historically the premier banking organisation in Ireland, the Bank occupies a unique position in Irish banking history...
building, and Castle Street by Lord Dunsany
Baron Dunsany
The title Baron of Dunsany or, more commonly, Lord Dunsany, is one of the oldest dignities in the Peerage of Ireland, one of just a handful of 13th to 15th century titles still extant, having had 20 holders to date...
, a major landowner. Following the Great Irish Famine of 1846–1849, the practices of agriculture in the hinterland altered, with a change in emphasis from tillage to stock raising. This resulted in a change in the business life of Trim. Trim developed as a market town for the productive agricultural hinterland. Some small-scale local industries were developed including envelope, and leather product manufacturing. Trim was also chosen as location for the Timoney Engineering company to make Fire Tenders. However in the main the town continued to mainly be a service centre for its immediate area.
During the Irish War of Independence
Irish War of Independence
The Irish War of Independence , Anglo-Irish War, Black and Tan War, or Tan War was a guerrilla war mounted by the Irish Republican Army against the British government and its forces in Ireland. It began in January 1919, following the Irish Republic's declaration of independence. Both sides agreed...
, local companies of the Irish Republican Army
Irish Republican Army
The Irish Republican Army was an Irish republican revolutionary military organisation. It was descended from the Irish Volunteers, an organisation established on 25 November 1913 that staged the Easter Rising in April 1916...
took Trim RIC Barracks, a large structure located on the current site of the Castle Arch Hotel, secured the arms from the barracks and then burnt down the Barracks. A large part of the town was burned as a reprisal by the British Crown forces on 26 September 1920. The local members were drawn from Trim, Longwood, Ballivor and South Meath in general. The Lalor brothers form Castle St. were prominent members as well as the Duignans from High St and the Proctors. Records of the adventures of the Lalors rest in Navan library and recount the tales of one of the Bothers hiding in the recently dug grave of Fr. woods in the church yard. Local memories remember the townspeople sheltering down by the Boyne for a few nights as the Black 'n' Tans and Auxiliaries burnt out prominent business and the Town Hall. Footage of the burning of J&E Smyth can be viewed on the 'Pathe' website. Many of the townspeople were traumatised for the rest of their lives; many children in Trim were not allowed play with guns; memories of the B'n'Ts dangling grenades outside their windows as the Town Hall burnt and peeled the paint off their doors at Castle St. remained for a long time. The New York Times reported the burning of the barracks and the subsequent looting and burning of the town and follow up operations by the local IRA.
In later years the Lalors who moved to the house across the road from the old Brothers school had a collection of memorabilia from those years including, letters from Collins sent from Frongoch (they kept the originals and forward duplicates to HQ), Devs slippers and a Tricolour made by Constance Markievic (with her name embroidered) that was to fly over the GPO during the Rising. Their whereabouts now are unknown but photographs of their existence are on file in Navan library.
While other parts of Meath were particularly quiet during the War Of Independence, the men from South Meath took the war to the British; one ambush by one of the Lalor bros took place at the Wellington Monument, where he single-handedly took on a truckload of British with his rifle and grenade, the monument to the British PM still stands.
A new bridge was built on the Boyne
River Boyne
The River Boyne is a river in Leinster, Ireland, the course of which is about long. It rises at Trinity Well, Newbury Hall, near Carbury, County Kildare, and flows towards the Northeast through County Meath to reach the Irish Sea between Mornington, County Meath and Baltray, County Louth. Salmon...
in the 1980s to divert heavy traffic from the town. This was then enhanced by the construction, in a series of stages, of an inner relief road, which now makes it possible for heavy traffic to achieve a complete by-pass of the town. The Watergate bridge was replaced in 2005. The local town council purchased a field beside the new bridge in 2004, as it was expected to be of archaeological significance.
As part of the Civil Service decentralization plan of the Irish government, Trim was chosen as the location of the headquarters for the state body known as the Office of Public Works
Office of Public Works
The Office of Public Works is a State Agency of the Department of Finance in the Republic of Ireland...
. The movement of this state administration function to Trim resulted in Trim being the first location outside of Dublin to complete a satisfactory decentralization move. Trim has seen some growth in recent years with growth as a tourist and business centre.
Places of interest
- The Town Castle, in front of the rear view of the courthouse, was used in the film "Braveheart" and is the largest Norman Castle in Europe. It was built by Hugh De Lacy.
- The Town Hall, known locally as the Market House, is reputed as one of Thin Lizzy's first concert venues, and has seen U2 and several other noted bands play there over the years.
- The yellow steeple (named so for the way the sun sets and rises on it in the giving it a yellow colour), the remains of a 14th century abbey on a hillside near the town centre, is the tallest building in Trim and can be seen for kilometres around the town.
- St. Patrick'sTrim CathedralThe Cathedral Church of St Patrick, Trim is a cathedral of the Church of Ireland in Trim, County Meath in Ireland. It is in the ecclesiastical province of Dublin....
Church of IrelandChurch of IrelandThe Church of Ireland is an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. The church operates in all parts of Ireland and is the second largest religious body on the island after the Roman Catholic Church...
Cathedral, This church located on Loman Street on the north side of the town is reputed to be the oldest Anglican Church in Ireland (disputed by a church in Armagh which claims its 20 years older than the Trim Church). The original church lies in ruins behind the current newer church which faces onto Loman Street from behind a large boundary wall.
- Trim Town Walls - Though not much remains of the original walls of Trim, the "sheep's gate" stands near the 'yellow steeple' and the castle. The wall in this area is in ruins but it marks the original town boundary, the only intact part of the wall stands on Loman Street It is not marked by any signs but it starts around the front of St. Patrick's Anglican church and runs down to 'The Priory Pub'.
- The Boyne river walk is a walkway along the river Boyne starting at the castle park and running along the Boyne to Newtown abbey. The total walk to Newtown and back takes about 40mins.
- Newtown Abbey lies on the banks of the Boyne about 15min walk from Trim Castle. It once was the largest Abbey of its kind in Ireland. It is still used as a graveyard for the town so there are no guided tours but there are lots of Information boards with pictures of what certain areas used to look like.
- St. John the Baptist hospice lies across the Boyne from Newtown abbey. This structure is again free access. At the entrance there is a defence tower which used to form part of the walls of the hospice.
- Trim Circuit Courthouse - Built in the 19th century, the courthouse overlooks the main street of the town. Recently extended with an award winning design, the courthouse is located next to the main entrance of the castle.
Trim Car Show
An annual classic car show takes place in Trim every July, Trim Veteran and Vintage Rally has been running since 1985. It started in a small yard on Loman Street with just 23 cars. The founder, Norman Pratt, determined to expand the show, approached the Roundtree family who very kindly allowed The Porchfields to be used on the day. It has grown each year since then and there are now in excess of 500 cars and motor cycles on show.Trim Haymaking Festival
Trim Haymaking Festival is held in the town every mid-June. The Porchfields, an amenity space rich in historic value, are home to a fair, market, and cultural displays. The main event is the traditional making of the first hay of the year by hand and by old-style machinery.Trim Swift Festival
Because of Jonathan SwiftJonathan Swift
Jonathan Swift was an Irish satirist, essayist, political pamphleteer , poet and cleric who became Dean of St...
's residence near Trim after 1700, a satirical
Satire
Satire is primarily a literary genre or form, although in practice it can also be found in the graphic and performing arts. In satire, vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ideally with the intent of shaming individuals, and society itself, into improvement...
festival is held in his honour.
Media
Longwave radio station Atlantic 252Atlantic 252
Atlantic 252 was a long wave radio station broadcasting to Ireland and the United Kingdom on 252 kHz from its 1988 purpose built transmission site Clarkstown radio transmitter, which provided service to Atlantic 252 from 1989 until 2002. The station's studios were located just 12 km away in...
's broadcasting station was situated in Trim throughout the 1990s. The station's former buildings are now home to Trim Town Council and Trim Area Committee, two of the administrative bodies within the County of Meath.
The RTÉ Radio 1 longwave
Longwave
In radio, longwave refers to parts of radio spectrum with relatively long wavelengths. The term is a historic one dating from the early 20th century, when the radio spectrum was considered to consist of long, medium and short wavelengths...
transmitter
Transmitter
In electronics and telecommunications a transmitter or radio transmitter is an electronic device which, with the aid of an antenna, produces radio waves. The transmitter itself generates a radio frequency alternating current, which is applied to the antenna. When excited by this alternating...
at Clarkstown, some 11 km southeast of Trim, now broadcasts the AM version of Radio 1 (sometimes known as RTÉ Europe) on 252 kHz (1190.4 m). Prior to this date, RTÉ's main AM transmission centre had been near Athlone.
The town has been used as the location for some film productions, including the use of Trim Castle to depict York Castle
York Castle
York Castle in the city of York, England, is a fortified complex comprising, over the last nine centuries, a sequence of castles, prisons, law courts and other buildings on the south side of the River Foss. The now-ruinous keep of the medieval Norman castle is sometimes referred to as Clifford's...
in Mel Gibson
Mel Gibson
Mel Colm-Cille Gerard Gibson, AO is an American actor, film director, producer and screenwriter. Born in Peekskill, New York, Gibson moved with his parents to Sydney, Australia when he was 12 years old and later studied acting at the Australian National Institute of Dramatic Art.After appearing in...
's Braveheart
Braveheart
Braveheart is a 1995 epic historical drama war film directed by and starring Mel Gibson. The film was written for the screen and then novelized by Randall Wallace...
.
Trim was also the setting for the first full-length Irish martial arts
Martial arts
Martial arts are extensive systems of codified practices and traditions of combat, practiced for a variety of reasons, including self-defense, competition, physical health and fitness, as well as mental and spiritual development....
movie Fatal Deviation
Fatal Deviation
Fatal Deviation is a low-budget cult film produced and set in Trim, County Meath, Ireland. Produced in 1998, it enjoys the distinction of being Ireland's first full-length martial arts film. The film stars real-life martial arts enthusiast James Bennett. The movie went straight to video without a...
. (A low-budget production from 1998 that tells the story of a young man trying to rebuild his life after returning from reform school only to be harassed by a gang of local drug dealers.)
The 1980 movie The Big Red One, starring Lee Marvin
Lee Marvin
Lee Marvin was an American film actor. Known for his gravelly voice, white hair and 6' 2" stature, Marvin at first did supporting roles, mostly villains, soldiers and other hardboiled characters, but after winning an Academy Award for Best Actor for his dual roles in Cat Ballou , he landed more...
and Mark Hamill
Mark Hamill
Mark Richard Hamill is an American actor, voice artist, producer, director, and writer, best known for his role as Luke Skywalker in the original trilogy of Star Wars. More recently, he has received acclaim for his voice work, in such roles as the Joker in Batman: The Animated Series, Firelord...
, was also partially shot in Trim and in particular Trim Castle.
Sport
The town is home to Meath Gaelic Athletic AssociationGaelic Athletic Association
The Gaelic Athletic Association is an amateur Irish and international cultural and sporting organisation focused primarily on promoting Gaelic games, which include the traditional Irish sports of hurling, camogie, Gaelic football, handball and rounders...
footballers such as Jack Quinn
Jack Quinn (Gaelic footballer)
Jack Quinn is a retired inter-county Irish Gaelic footballer for County Meath in Ireland. He enjoyed much success play inter-county football in the sixties on the Meath team. For Meath he usually played Full Back. Sometimes he played at midfield, and often when Meath were chasing games he was moved...
and Darren Fay
Darren Fay
Darren Fay is a former successful Meath Gaelic Footballer. He is regarded the latest in a long line of Great Meath Full Backs, following the likes of Mick Lyons, Jack Quinn, Paddy O'Brien & Tommy "The Boiler" McGuinness and Brendan Murphy. He plays club football for Trim...
and in recent times Brendan Murphy has emerged as the county team's star goalkeeper.
Trim GAA
Trim GAA
Trim GAA is a Gaelic Athletic Association club based in Trim, in County Meath, Ireland. The club fields both Gaelic football and hurling teams. It competes in Meath GAA competitions...
Club have won the Meath Senior Football Championship on one occasion, in 1962. Trim is one of the two most successful teams (the other being Kilmessan) in the Meath Senior Hurling Championship, with both clubs between them winning almost half the championships played.
Transport
Trim railway station was opened on 26 April 1864, closed for goods and passenger traffic in 1947 and finally closed altogether on 1 September 1954.Trim Aerodrome
Trim Flying Club, a Registered Training Facility (RTF), is based at the aerodrome and operate two aircraft. As well as Trim Flying Clubs' aircraft, the airfield is also home to other general aviationGeneral aviation
General aviation is one of the two categories of civil aviation. It refers to all flights other than military and scheduled airline and regular cargo flights, both private and commercial. General aviation flights range from gliders and powered parachutes to large, non-scheduled cargo jet flights...
aircraft including microlight
Ultralight aviation
The term "ultralight aviation" refers to light-weight, 1- or 2-person airplanes., also called microlight aircraft in the UK, India and New Zealand...
s.
Hot air ballooning
Both commercial and private hot air balloon flights take place from the town, and Trim resident Pauline Baker holds nine world records in hot air ballooning. Irish Balloon Flights is a commercial ballooning company based in Trim. The Irish Hot Air Ballooning Championships, the longest running ballooning championships in the world, was hosted in Trim in 2001 and 2002.Notable people
Ordered chronologically by date of birth- Lommán of Trim, patron of Trim and disciple of Saint PatrickSaint PatrickSaint Patrick was a Romano-Briton and Christian missionary, who is the most generally recognized patron saint of Ireland or the Apostle of Ireland, although Brigid of Kildare and Colmcille are also formally patron saints....
- Hugh de Lacy, Lord of MeathHugh de Lacy, Lord of MeathHugh de Lacy, Lord of Meath was an Anglo-Norman magnate granted the lands of the Kingdom of Meath by Henry II in 1172, during the Norman Invasion of Ireland.-Early life:Hugh de Lacy was born before 1135...
, built Trim CastleTrim CastleTrim Castle , Trim, County Meath, Ireland, on the shores of the Boyne has an area of 30,000 m². It is the remains of Ireland's largest Anglo-Norman castle...
with his son Walter de LacyWalter de LacyWalter de Lacy was Lord of Meath in Ireland and Ludlow in Shropshire in the Welsh Marches.- Life :With his father Hugh de Lacy, Lord of Meath he built Trim Castle , Trim, County Meath.... - Egidia de LacyEgidia de LacyEgidia de Lacy, Lady of Connacht , was a Hiberno-Norman noblewoman, the wife of Richard Mór de Burgh, 1st Baron of Connaught and Strathearn , and the mother of his seven children, including Walter de Burgh, 1st Earl of Ulster. She was also known as Gille de Lacy...
, Lady of Connacht, born at Trim CastleTrim CastleTrim Castle , Trim, County Meath, Ireland, on the shores of the Boyne has an area of 30,000 m². It is the remains of Ireland's largest Anglo-Norman castle... - Jonathan SwiftJonathan SwiftJonathan Swift was an Irish satirist, essayist, political pamphleteer , poet and cleric who became Dean of St...
, poet - Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of WellingtonArthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of WellingtonField 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...
, whose family owned much of the town - Sir William Rowan Hamilton, physicist
- Lord Dunsany, writer
- Noel DempseyNoel DempseyNoel Dempsey is a former Irish Fianna Fáil politician. He was a Teachta Dála for the Meath and Meath West constituencies from 1987 to 2011...
, politician - Darren FayDarren FayDarren Fay is a former successful Meath Gaelic Footballer. He is regarded the latest in a long line of Great Meath Full Backs, following the likes of Mick Lyons, Jack Quinn, Paddy O'Brien & Tommy "The Boiler" McGuinness and Brendan Murphy. He plays club football for Trim...
, footballer - Tracy CooganTracy CooganTracy Elizabeth Coogan is an Irish actress most widely noted for her leading role in the 2004 independent film Zombie Honeymoon.-Career:Coogan was born and raised in Trim, County Meath, Ireland, one of five children of Michael and Ann Coogan. She first acted in many theatrical productions at school...
, actress - Tim ClancyTim Clancy (footballer)Tim Clancy is an Irish professional football player who currently plays for Motherwell in the Scottish Premier League. A defender, he counts among his former clubs Millwall, Walton & Hersham, Weymouth and Fisher Ath....
, professional footballer
UFO Sightings
On 3 August 2008, at 10.35pm, an unidentified flying object (UFO) was spotted by a senior Garda official, a local politician and a pilot claimed to have seen an UFO. The Irish Aviation Authority and the Irish Defence ForcesIrish Defence Forces
The armed forces of Ireland, known as the Defence Forces encompass the Army, Naval Service, Air Corps and Reserve Defence Force.The current Supreme Commander of the Irish Defence forces is His Excellency Michael D Higgins in his role as President of Ireland...
both stated that they were not aware of any activity over Trim.
On Thursday the 30 July 2009 an "armada" of UFO's were spotted once again. This time there were several witnesses and video footage was obtained from a camera phone. As before a local politician claimed to have seen the UFO's and said that he tried to chase to find out what they were. Again The Irish Aviation Authority and The Irish Defence Forces
Irish Defence Forces
The armed forces of Ireland, known as the Defence Forces encompass the Army, Naval Service, Air Corps and Reserve Defence Force.The current Supreme Commander of the Irish Defence forces is His Excellency Michael D Higgins in his role as President of Ireland...
both claim that they had no aircraft in the sky at the time of the sightings.
This event was reported in the Meath Chronicle
Meath Chronicle
The Meath Chronicle is a local newspaper serving County Meath, Ireland and based in the town of Navan. Publication is weekly and the circulation as of 2008 was 14,651.- External links :* * at Irish Newspaper Archives...
on 5 August 2009. Comments from readers seem to indicate that the UFO's were in fact Chinese lantern
Paper lantern
Paper lanterns come in various shapes and sizes, as well as various methods of construction. In their simplest form, they are simply a paper bag with a candle placed inside, although more complicated lanterns consist of a collapsible bamboo or metal frame of hoops covered with tough paper.-In Asian...
s released at a nearby wedding party.
Twin towns — Sister cities
Trim, County Meath is twinnedTown twinning
Twin towns and sister cities are two of many terms used to describe the cooperative agreements between towns, cities, and even counties in geographically and politically distinct areas to promote cultural and commercial ties.- Terminology :...
with:
| Country | Place | County / District / Region / State | Date | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| France France The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France... ! style="background: #FFFFCF; co>or: #000000" ! | .svg.png) |
Étrépagny Étrépagny Étrépagny is a commune in the Eure department in the Haute-Normandie region in northern France.-Population:-International relations:Since 1989, the town has been twinned with the Irish town of Trim which has a significant Norman heritage.-References:*... ! style="background: #>FFFEF; color: #000000" ! |  |
Haute-Normandie Haute-Normandie Upper Normandy is one of the 27 regions of France. It was created in 1984 from two départements: Seine-Maritime and Eure, when Normandy was divided into Lower Normandy and Upper Normandy. This division continues to provoke controversy, and some continue to call for reuniting the two regions... |
1989 |
See also
- List of towns and villages in Ireland
- Market Houses in IrelandMarket Houses in the Republic of IrelandMarket houses are a notable feature of many Irish towns with varying styles of architecture, size and ornamentation making for a most interesting feature of the streetscape. Originally there were three, four or even five bays on the ground floor which were an open arcade. An upper floor was...
- Wellington Monument, DublinWellington Monument, DublinThe Wellington Monument is an obelisk located in the Phoenix Park, Dublin, Ireland.The testimonial is situated at the southeast end of the Park, overlooking Kilmainham and the River Liffey...
- Wellington MonumentWellington MonumentWellington Monument may refer to any one of the monuments to Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, a leading British political and military figure of the 19th Century, particularly noted for his defeat of Napoleon in the Battle of Waterloo....
(disambiguation page) - other monuments to Wellington - Trim CastleTrim CastleTrim Castle , Trim, County Meath, Ireland, on the shores of the Boyne has an area of 30,000 m². It is the remains of Ireland's largest Anglo-Norman castle...