Arklow (Irish: An tInbhear Mór, meaning "The great estuary"), also known as Inbhear Dé from the Avonmore river's older name Abhainn Dé, is a historic town located in County Wicklow on the east coast of Ireland. Founded by the Vikings in the ninth century, Arklow was the site of one of the bloodiest battles1798 rebellion. It is now a thriving commuter town with a population of 11,759 at the 2006 census, making it the third largest town in the county.

Arklow is situated at the mouth of the River Avoca (formerly Avonmore), the longest river entirely within County Wicklow. The town is divided by the river, which is crossed by the Nineteen Arches bridge, a stone arch bridge linking the south or main part of the town with the north part, called Ferrybank. The Nineteen Arches bridge is the longest hand made stone bridge in Ireland and is considered a famous landmark. The plaque which is situated on the south end of the bridge is testimony to this.

History

The town's English name derives from Arnkell's Lág (Arnkell was a Viking leader; a "lág" (low) was an area of land). Its Irish name means the large estuary. Historically it was a major seafaring town, with both the shipping and fishing industries using the port, with shipbuilding also being a major industry. The town has a long history of industry.

After the arrival of the Anglo-Normans, their leader Theobald Walter, ancestor of the Earls of Ormonde, was granted the town and castle of Arklow by King Henry II. In 1264 the Dominicans were granted a large tract of land, which is now known as Abbeylands, and they built an abbey, which became known as the Priory of the True Cross or Holy Cross.

Some time after 1416, the Manor of Arklow came into the control of the MacMurrough Kings of Leinster, possibly after the death of the 4th Earl of Ormonde in 1452. In 1525, Muiris Kavanagh (McMurrough, King of Leinster 1522-31) returned the manor and castle of Arklow and its lands to his nephew Piers Butler, the Earl of Ormonde.

During the Wars of the Three Kingdoms in September 1649, Oliver Cromwell arrived at Arklow on his way to Wexford and took the surrender of the town. In 1714 James, Duke of Ormonde, sold the Manor of Arklow to John Allen of Stillorgan, County Dublin. In 1750 Allen’s eldest granddaughter Elizabeth Allen married John Proby who was raised to the peerage in 1752 as Baron Carysfort of County Wicklow, and came into possession of the Arklow Estate.

On June 9 1798, the town was the scene of one of the bloodiest battles of the 1798 rebellion when a large force of Wexford rebels attacked the town in an attempt to spread the rising to Dublin but were repulsed by the entrenched British forces with huge slaughter.

Transport and Communications

Arklow's proximity to Dublin and its consequent attractiveness to commuters have led to much recent expansion. The town is situated near the N11 route from Rosslare to Dublin, as well as having rail connections provided by Iarnród Éireann along the same route, including commuter services in and out of the capital. There is also a connection available to and from Waterford Monday to Friday. Arklow railway station opened on 16 November 1863.

Arklow is served by three Bus Éireann routes. These consist of the 002 service which operates between Dublin Airport and Rosslare Harbour,day and night, the 006 service which links Dublin, Arklow, New Ross and Waterford, and the 133 service, which operates between Arklow and Wicklow via Avoca. In addition, Wexford Bus operates several services day and night linking Arklow with Dublin Airport, the bus stop for which is located on the old Dublin road just off the bypass junction at the north end of the town.

Industry

In 1884. Charles Stewart Parnell rented Big Rock townland from his cousin William Proby, Earl of Carysfort, and commenced quarrying. Parnell was also a supporter of the Arklow harbour scheme. The Parnell quarries closed in the 1920s.

In the early part of the 20th century, a large munitions factory, Kynoch, was established on the north side of the town. This factory employed several thousand workers during the First World War but closed shortly after it, all production being moved to South Africa. 17 workers were killed in an explosion at Kynoch in 1917. The town is also famous for its pottery (which eventually closed after first being taken over by Noritake) and for its shipbuilding industry.

In the 1960s, a state-owned fertiliser factory, Nitrogen Éireann Teoranta, later Irish Fertiliser Industries, was established on the outskirts of the town. This factory complex comprised a number of chemical plants and manufactured a range of fertilisers from basic raw materials. It was one of the first major chemical plants in Ireland and contributed to the present-day success of the Irish chemical industry. It closed in 2002.

There is still a good industry base in Arklow, with Servier and Allergan still remaining, just two of the biggest manufacturers in Arklow. Allergan confirmed on the 30 January 2008 that they will move their production to Costa Rica. This will take place over the next two years.

Sports

Arklow has many sporting clubs, associations, and facilities, including:

• Arklow Geraldines Ballymoney GAA Club
• Arklow Sea Scouts.
• Arklow Golf Links.
• Arklow Rowing Club.
• Arklow Rugby Club.
• Arklow Sailing Club.
• Arklow United Football Club.
• Arklow Town Football Club.
• A public swimming pool, operated by Coral Leisure.
• Arklow Lawn Tennis Club.
• Arklow Rock Parnells Hurling Club.

Arklow holds an annual festival during July, called the Sea Breeze Festival. Which contains music acts, a carnival, varied entertainment events such as a burger eating competition and is ended by a firework display on the last night of the festival.

To many foreign music fans, Arklow is most known as the title setting for Van Morrison's 1974 song "Streets of Arklow", one of eight songs he wrote on a three week vacation back to Ireland, and featured on his album Veedon Fleece. The "Battle of Arklow" is a well-known hornpipe and non-traditional set dance tune, and is often played at feiseanna and other Irish dance competitions. Arklow is also the home town of pop group Moloko's lead singer Róisín Murphy.

World Pipe Band Champions (2007)Aklow Pipe band (or as known to locals st. Colmcilles Pipe band ) is based in the town.Arklow pipe band are the second most respected pipe band in southern Ireland (as a band in grade 2)following St. Laurence O'Toole Pipe band in Dublin who are a grade 1 band.

The Arklow Shipping Silver Band also hails from the town. Founded in 1968 by Michael Byrne this band has been at the pinnacle of the brass band scene in Ireland for many years indeed they won the National Brass Band Championships for an unprecedented 7 years in a row from 2000 to 2006 inclusive. They have a very popular and informative website at www.ArklowSilverBand.com

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