Granard

Infobox Irish Place
name = Granard
gaeilge = An Gránard
crest

motto = Is glas iad na cnoic i bhfad uainn.
map

pin coords = left: 60px; top: 55px
north coord = 53.78
west coord = 7.5
irish grid = N324814
area =
elevation = 82 m
province = Leinster
county = County Longford
town pop =
rural pop =
census yr = 2006
web = www.longfordcoco.ie
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Granard ( _ga. Gránard) is a town in the north of County Longford, Ireland and has a traceable history going back to 236 A.D.. It is situated just south of the boundary between the watersheds of the Shannon and the Erne, at the point where the N55 national secondary road and the R194 regional roads meet.

The town has been a centre of population since Celtic times, probably because of its elevated position offering a view over the surrounding countryside. It is mentioned in the ancient Irish epic, the "Táin Bó Cuailgne", as being one of the places where Queen Medb and her army stopped on their journey to take the "Donn Cuailnge" (the "Brown Bull of Cooley"). The name of the town is itself so ancient as to be unclear even in Irish; the eleventh-century writers of the "Lebor na hUidre" (containing the oldest written version of the "Táin") refer to it by means of a gloss as "Gránairud Tethba tuaiscirt .i. Gránard indiu" ("Gránairud of northern Teathbha, i.e. Gránard of today"). According to the "Tripartite Life of Saint Patrick", Patrick appointed Guasacht, a son of his former master Milchú, as first bishop of Granard, but the diocese did not survive as a separate entity.

Granard is known for the motte built by Richard Tuite. It stands 166 m (543 ft) above sea level, located at the head of the town. Due to the location between the three rivers and near Lough Sheelin, it is also a centre for trout and coarse fishing. The Gaynors were once the Gaelic lords of Granard.

Controversy struck the town when, on the 31st January 1984,15 year-old Granard native, Ann Lovett, was discovered in front of a grotto just outside the town by a passer-by. She had just given birth to a baby boy who had died and Ann was suffering from shock. She died later that day in hospital. News of Ann Lovett's tragic death was made known to the nation after her funeral and that of her baby son. The manner of her death shocked the nation and started a national debate on an abortion referendum and the role of the Catholic Church in Irish society.

The song "Anne Lovett", by Christy Moore was written in the wake of her death. It includes the line “It was a sad, slow, stupid death for them both, Everybody knew - nobody said,”. Many locals in Granard resented the media portrayal of the town as cold and uncaring. Three months after Ann Lovett died, her younger sister, Patricia, died from an overdose of a drug prescribed for anxiety and blood pressure.

Well known personalities associated with Granard include:
*Kitty Kiernan was born in Granard (1892-1945) and was the fiancee of Michael Collins
* National Hunt champion Frank Berry lived in Granard
* International show jumper Eddie Macken lived in Granard
*Irish television presenter Brendan O'Reilly was born in Granard

ee also

*List of towns and villages in Ireland
* Market Houses in Ireland