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Aghavannagh

*Achadh Mheánach*
Aghavannagh Achadh Mheánach
Village
Irish transcription(s)
• Derivation:	Aughavanna, Revells
• Meaning:	"Hilly field"
	Former military barracks, youth hostel at Aghavannagh
	Aghavannagh Aghavannagh shown within Ireland
	Coordinates: 52°54′55″N 6°25′28″W / 52.915277°N 6.424550°W
Country	Ireland
County	County Wicklow
Barony	Ballinacor South
Area
• Total	1,119.72 ha (2,766.89 acres)
Irish grid ref	T 03468 89452

Aghavannagh (Irish: Achadh Mheánach, meaning 'hilly field')^[2] is a small village and townland in south County Wicklow, Ireland. It is located in the barony of Ballinacor South on the Military Road originally constructed between 1804 and 1809, in the wake of the 1798 rebellion. It is so remote that inhabitants say that "Aghavannagh is the last place God made".^[3]

Location

The village is situated near the base of the Lugnaquilla massif, the highest mountain in eastern Ireland, and within a few miles of Aughrim, Glenmalure and Tinahely to the east and south, and Kiltegan, Hacketstown and Baltinglass to the west. The area is mainly surrounded by forests and is composed of mountains and mountain land. This fact may indicate an original name in Irish as achadh mbeannach whose meaning is "hilly field".^[4] This mountainous terrain is where the Ow river rises on the southern slopes of Lugnaquilla, flows through a glacial valley and passes the outskirts of the village meeting the Aghavannagh river, which is much smaller and flows through the village, a short distance to the south.^[5]

One of the earliest references to the place is in 1623 to "Aghavanny" in the Calendar of Patent Rolls of James I, followed by five other 17th century references with three different spellings of "Aghamanagh", "Aghamannagh" "Aghavannagh", and lastly "Aghavanagh" on A.R. Neville's Map of County Wicklow dated c 1810.^[4]

There is no commercial centre to the village that only comprises residences and a school (on map— no longer in use). Between 1896 and 1899 a sub-post office was opened in Aghavannagh under the nearby post town of Aughrim but this was already closed by 1909.^[6]

Military barracks

Aghavannagh Barracks, along with similar structures in Glencree, Laragh and Glenmalure,^[7] was one of a series of barracks built along the route of the military road, to house British forces and give them access to the Wicklow Mountains where many 1798 rebels, such as Michael Dwyer,^[8] sought refuge. The barracks each accommodated 100 men, while a larger 200-man barracks was built in the Glen of Imaal, that together cost of £26,500 with an additional £1,500 for a bridge at Aghavannagh.^[9]

The property came into the ownership of Charles Stewart Parnell's grandfather after the British War Office vacated it in 1825 because he was the ground landlord and was used by him as a hunting lodge. The Parnell family shared the building with up to 50 men of the Irish Constabulary. Several of the outhouses were totally ruined at this time as were the two redoubts.^[10] Upon Parnell's death, John Redmond bought the barracks.^[11]

Later, An Óige ran the building as a youth hostel for several years before acquiring ownership in 1944. They closed it in 1998 when a tower of the structure was declared unstable by engineers.^[12] Síle de Valera, then Minister for Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands, answered a question in the Dáil whether the property would be acquired by the government as a heritage building saying that Dúchas, the heritage service of the department, did not have the resources to protect or preserve the building.^[13]

After 20 years, in 2010, a restoration project extensively restored the building's interior and exterior. It is now privately owned and used as a family home and guesthouse.^[14]

References and sources

^ "Aghavannagh (Revell) Townland, Co. Wicklow - Area". townlands.ie. Archived from the original on 28 April 2024. Retrieved 5 February 2016.
^ "Achadh Mheánach (Revell) / Aghavannagh (Revell)". logainm.ie. Irish Placenames Commission. Archived from the original on 28 April 2024. Retrieved 28 March 2020.
^ Nolan, Winefride (1952). The New Invasion. St. Martin's Press. p. 142. Archived from the original on 28 April 2024. Retrieved 5 February 2016.
^ ^a ^b Price, Liam (1945). The Place-names of Co. Wicklow: The Barony of Ballinacor South, Volume 2. Dublin: Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies. p. 142. ISBN 0901282359. Archived from the original on 28 April 2024. Retrieved 28 April 2024.
^ Ordnance Survey Map of The Wicklow Way, Dublin: Ordnance Survey of Ireland, 1981, p. 1
^ Frank, Harald; Stange, Klaus (29 September 1990). Irish Post Offices and their Postmarks 1600-1990: Irische Postämter und ihre Stempeltypen 1600-1990. Vol. 13. FAI Schriftenreihe (Forschungs- und Arbeitsgemeinschaft Irland e.V. im Bund Deutscher Philatelisten e.V.). p. 294. OCLC 465046577.
^ Dillon, Paddy (2004). The Irish Coast to Coast Walk: Dublin to Bray Head (2nd ed.). Milnthorpe: Cicerone Press. p. 58. ISBN 9781852844332. Archived from the original on 28 April 2024. Retrieved 5 February 2016.
^ Gerard-Sharp, Lisa; Perry, Tim (2013). DK Eyewitness Travel Guide: Ireland. Penguin. p. 142. ISBN 9781465414939. Archived from the original on 28 April 2024. Retrieved 5 February 2016.
^ "The Great Military Road". Wicklow Mountains National Park. National Parks and Wildlife Service. Archived from the original on 28 March 2020. Retrieved 28 March 2020.
^ Power, Pat (2004). "The County Wicklow Military Road (Part 8): Aughavannagh Barrack". Greystones Archaeological & Historical Society Journal. 4. Archived from the original on 5 February 2016. Retrieved 5 February 2016.
^ Gwynn, Stephen (1934). The Charm of Ireland. G.G. Harrap & co., Ltd. p. 89. ISBN 9787220010781. Archived from the original on 28 April 2024. Retrieved 23 October 2016.
^ O'Doherty, Caroline (23 October 1998). "Business figures asked for help in saving historic youth hostel". Business News. The Examiner. Archived from the original on 14 May 2005. Retrieved 4 April 2008.
^ "Dáil Éireann – Volume 495 – 20 October 1998 Written Answers – Youth Hostels". Parliamentary Debates. Oireachtas. 20 October 1998. Archived from the original on 15 November 2012. Retrieved 27 June 2017.
^ "Aghavannagh Barracks". Projects. Rory McArdle Design Construction Project Management Ltd. Archived from the original on 28 March 2020. Retrieved 28 July 2020.