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RAT
situated on the confines of the county of Tipperary, and
contains a constabulary police station. It is a vicarage,
in the diocese of Lismore, forming part of the union of
Mothell; the rectory is impropriate in the Duke of
Devonshire. The tithes amount to £408. 7. 6. of which
£241. 4. is payable to the impropriator, and £167. 3. 6.
to the vicar. In the R. C. divisions it is part of the
union of Mothell, or Rathgormuck, and contains a
chapel. About 10 children are taught in a school sup-
ported by an annual donation from Lady Osborne; and
there are two private schools, in which are about 130
children.
RATHGRAFF, or CASTLE-POLLARD, a parish,
in the barony of DEMIFORE, county of WESTMEATH,
and province of LEINSTER, on the road from Dublin
to Granard, and on the river Glore; containing, with
the post-town of Castle-Pollard, 3612. inhabitants.
This parish, also called Rathgarth and Rathgarrue,
comprises 5181¾- statute acres of land, chiefly ara-
ble and producing good crops: limestone abounds,
for working which there are some large quarries:
there is very little bog. Within the parish are the
hills of Sliebuoy and Loughanstown. Fairs for live
stock are held at Castle-Pollard, and petty sessions
every Wednesday. Kinturk is the seat of W. D. Pol-
lard, Esq. The living is a vicarage, in the diocese of
Meath, united by act of council, in 1676, to the vicar-
ages of Liekbla, Faughley and Mayne, and to the cu-
racies of St. Feighan-of-Fore, Favoran, Beatae-Marise-
de-Fore,-and Kilpatrick, forming the union of Rathgraff,
in the patronage of the Bishop; the rectory is impro-
priate in the Marquess of Westmeath. The tithes
amount to £187. 9., of which £83. 6. 3½. is payable to
the impropriator; the gross value of the benefioe is
£609. 11. 4., including £42, the value of 31 acres com-
prised in three glebes. The glebe-house is a good com-
fortable building in Castle-Pollard. The church is a
handsome building, surmounted with a spire, in the
Gothic style, and in excellent repair, having been rebuilt
in 1821, at a cost of £2769, being a loan from the late
Board of First Fruits, one third of which is repayable
in annual instalments by the Earl of Longford and W.
D. Pollard, Esq., the remainder by the united parishes:
there is also a church in the parish of Mayne. In the
R. C. divisions the parish is the head of a union or
district, called Castle-Pollard, comprising the parishes of
Rathgraff, Lickbla, and Favoran, in which union are
four chapels, two in Rathgraff, one in Castle-Pollard,
and another at Millcastle. The parochial school, at
Castle-Pollard, in which about 40 boys and 30 girls
are taught, is aided by subscriptions annually from the
vicar, Lord Longford, and Mr. Pollard: there are six
private schools, in which are about 180 boys and 30
girls; and a Sunday school. Ruins exist of the old
church of Rathgraff.
RATHHENDRICK, a village, in that part of the
parish of LOGHAN which is in the barony of UPPER
KELLS, county of MEATH, and province of LEINSTER;
containing 18 houses and 96 inhabitants.
RATHJORDAN, a parish, in the barony of CLAN-
WILLIAM, county of LIMERICK, and province of MUN-
ster, 5 miles (S.) from Cahirconlish, on the road from
Limerick to Hospital; containing 400 inhabitants.
This parish comprises 1063¼ statute acres, as applotted
under the tithe act; some of the land is remarkably
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RAT
good, but, being generally in small holdings, agriculture
as a system is altogether unknown, and the land is cul-
tivated in a very slovenly manner; the chief crops are
oats and potatoes, but wheat is becoming more general
than formerly. It is a rectory and vicarage, in the
diocese of Emly, forming part of the union and corps of
the precentorship of Emly: the tithes amount to £70.
In the R. C. divisions it is part of the union or district
of Herbertstown and Hospital. Not far from the ruins
of the old church is a holy well, dedicated to St. John
the Baptist, much frequented by the peasantry, especi-
ally on the anniversary of the saint.
RATHKEALE, a market and post-town, and a
parish, in the barony of LOWER CONNELLO, county of
LIMERICK, and province of LEINSTER, 14 miles
(S. W. by W.) from Limerick, and 93¾ (W.) from Dub-
lin; containing 8800 inhabitants, of which number,
4972 are in the town. It was a place of importance
from a very early period, being the site of a priory of
Augustinian canons of the order of Aroasia, founded
and endowed with 12 marks annually by Gilbert
Harvey, in 1289, and further endowed by Eleanor
Purcell, a descendent of Harvey, who also caused it to
be dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary. The town
and neighbouring district formed part of the posses-
sions of the Earls of Desmond, who had three strong
castles in the town, one of which was intended to guard
the passage of the Deel. After the battle of Monas-
ternenagh, fought in 1579 between Sir Nich. Malby and
Sir John Desmond, the latter fled to this place, whither
he was pursued and forced to retreat to Askeaton, where
he was again defeated by Sir Geo. Carew. On the
landing of the Spaniards at Smerwick, in 1580, the
queen’s forces, commanded by the Lord-Deputy Grey,
the Earl of Ormonde, and others, assembled here; and on
the Lord-Deputy leaving the place, Capt. (afterwards
Sir Walter) Raleigh remained behind in ambush and
surprised a number of the Irish who had collected to
plunder the deserted camp, for which gallant service
the corporation presented him with the freedom of the
town, and he in return repaired the castles of Rathkeale
and Matrix. In 1654, the town was fixed on for the
place of election for the member to represent the coun-
ties of Limerick, Clare, and Kerry in Cromwell’s parlia-
ment, into which he proposed to introduce 100 members
for Ireland: but though the corporation is frequently
noticed in history, nothing is known of its origin,
charter, or constitution, further than that it was dis-
franchised by Cromwell, on the ground that the town
had refused his army a sufficient supply of provisions,
and its privileges were never after restored.
The town is situated on the mail road from Limerick
to Tralee, on both sides of the river Deel; in population
it is second only to Limerick in the county; it consists
principally of a single street, a mile in length, with
smaller streets and lanes branching from it. The river
passes through the middle of the main street, and is
crossed by a bridge now in a dilapidated and dangerous
state. There are several large and handsome houses,
most of which are uninhabited, and a few good shops;
but the town in general presents a poor and mean
appearance: a number of Palatines settled in the town
and neighbourhood, whose neat cottages and farm-steads
form a striking contrast to most of the adjacent dwell-
ings. The market, which is large and well supplied, is
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