Conna

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For the town of ancient Phrygia, see Conna (Phrygia).

Conna
Conaithe
Village
Conna Castle viewed from the east
Conna Castle viewed from the east
Conna is located in Ireland
Conna
Conna
Location in Ireland
Coordinates: 52°05′34″N 08°06′36″W / 52.09278°N 8.11000°W / 52.09278; -8.11000Coordinates: 52°05′34″N 08°06′36″W / 52.09278°N 8.11000°W / 52.09278; -8.11000
CountryIreland
ProvinceMunster
CountyCounty Cork
Population
 (2016)[1]
 • Total526
Time zoneUTC+0 (WET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC-1 (IST (WEST))

Conna (Irish: Conaithe)[2] is a village in County Cork, Ireland. It is situated on the River Bride, not far from the town of Fermoy. The village contains several pubs, a shop, a post office, a Roman Catholic church and a nearby Church of Ireland chapel. The village is dominated by Conna castle, a five-story tower house situated on a limestone outcrop near the river.

History of the castle[]

In 1554, the Fitzgeralds, Earls of Desmond, began building Conna Castle on a high limestone rock overlooking the River Bride.[3]

Construction was completed ten years later. The castle and its estate was seized by the English and passed into the hands of Walter Raleigh, the English settler. The rightful heir to the castle, James FitzThomas (The Sugán Earl) staged a rebellion to capture the castle. He failed, was captured and imprisoned in the Tower of London.[citation needed]

The castle then went through a series of different owners before ending up in the hands of the Earl of Cork. It is believed that Oliver Cromwell passed by the castle and fired cannons at it before moving on.[4]

In 1653, the castle suffered a fire in which three of the steward's daughters were killed.[5][6] The castle continued to move from owner to owner until Hilary L’Estrange purchased the castle in 1851. He passed it on to his son, Rev A. G. K. L'Estrange, on whose death in 1915, the castle was willed into the care of the state, the first such property to be so willed.[citation needed]

Residents[]

In 1970, actress Angela Lansbury and her husband Peter Shaw moved to a farmhouse, named Knockmourne Glebe and originally constructed in the 1820s, that was located near Conna.[7]

See also[]

  • List of towns and villages in Ireland

References[]

  1. ^ "Census 2016 - Small Area Population Statistics (SAPMAP Area) - Settlements - Conna". Census 2016. Central Statistics Office.
  2. ^ Placenames Database of Ireland. Conaithe Verified 2011-03-20.
  3. ^ "Conna Castle, County Cork". libraryireland.com.
  4. ^ The Illustrated Dublin Journal. Volume 1, Number 24. 15 February 1862.
  5. ^ "Search what is available in Ireland". Ireland.com.
  6. ^ "Conna Castle, County Cork". libraryireland.com.
  7. ^ Gottfried, Martin (1999). Balancing Act: The Authorized Biography of Angela Lansbury. New York: Little, Brown & Company. pp. 205–208. ISBN 0-316-32225-3.
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