The Boyne River
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The Boyne We could take the whole journey from Dublin to Monahan, and further, and just talk about this river. But we’ll just put up five bits, in reverse order: 1. In 2013, the bridge was named the Mary McAleese Boyne Valley Bridge, after the first (and to date) only female President of Ireland. Why after a living person? Because no other bridges in the South, the Republic, the 26 Counties are named after a woman. Was it controversial, yes, because locals wanted a local name, hence the Boyne Valley bit.
Down the river in Drogheda is the head of St Oliver Plunkett, in St Peters Church. He was the Catholic Archbishop of Armagh, in the time of Charles II, and had by all accounts spent his time tending his flock. In 1681, he was framed in Ireland for treason, insurrection and rebellion, he was tried in Ireland. The case collapsed. He was then tried in London, in a trial no-one believed, not the prosecution, not the English Lord Chief Justice, not even King Charles himself. He was hung, drawn and quartered at Tyburn in London, just down from Marble Arch, if you know it.
As you cross the bridge – to the west you can see the site of the 1693 Battle of the Boyne. Where the English King James II lost to the Dutch William of Orange, and Ireland lost either way. Luckily there’s a café and an interpretation centre there so it’s worth a visit if a) your hungry, and b) you don’t know anything about it
The river has been a highway for since people came to live in Ireland after the Ice Age. In the last ten years or so, when the river was low, twelve hollowed tree-trunk boats were found along the banks. They dated from the megalithic to the medieval.
Newgrange, the iconic megalithic tomb, is only six miles up the river, it is over 5000 years old. It has a chamber aligned with dawn on the winter solstice on 21st December. At that time the light of the sunshines directly into the middle of the tomb. You can enter a raffle to be there. There are others up and down the valley, from the same period, but they don’t have cafés, and interpretation centres. And I haven’t even told you how lovely it is to walk along it. There is too much to say about this river
