Ardee

Sister cities

• Nettuno

History

Originally called Atherdee, the town's name is from (the Ford of Ferdia) which itself is derived from the fabled four-day battle between Cúchulainn and Ferdia, for the defence of Ulster from Queen Maeve of Connacht. It is said Ferdia fell after four days of battle, and is buried on the southern banks of the river alongside the Riverside Walk. A depiction of the pair is located on Bridge Street in the town as a bronze statue. The River Dee was originally named in but took on the final element of the town's name in English usage. Ardee is an example of a medieval "walled town", a number of which can be found across Ireland. The town itself is situated in the ancient territory known as Crích Rois or Fir Rois. The town lies along the 15th-century Pale frontier between Dundalk and Kells. The town comprises the townlands or town parks – the greater portion of which is made up of Ardee bog, and a small portion of Dawson's Demesne, which takes in the southeastern quadrant of the town on the northern side of the River Dee. Ardee received its royal charter from King Henry V in 1414. A philanthropic trust founded by Erasmus Smith in the 17th century funded the establishment of a boys' school in 1806 and a girls' school in 1817. Both Protestant and Catholic children were allowed to attend. At the time there were other schools but in 1824 they became the sole schools in the area. The Smith schools amalgamated into a combined-sex establishment by 1858, by which time the National School movement was leading to the creation of denominational schools there. The school remained a non-denominational institute but the school decreased in numbers and in 1868 had a roll of only 16 Protestant boys. It was fully integrated into the National School system in 1954, when it became known…