To explore more of the history, topography and development of #Kells, you can access Irish Historic Towns Atlas, no. 4 by Anngret Simms with Katharine Simms freely here:
@ihtaria.bsky.social
@ihtaria.bsky.socialTo explore more of the history, topography and development of #Kells, you can access Irish Historic Towns Atlas, no. 4 by Anngret Simms with Katharine Simms freely here:
@ihtaria.bsky.socialThe Round Tower remains the dominant monument of the monastic site. Visible across the surrounding countryside, it acted as a landmark within the urban landscape and emphasised the centrality of the church enclosure in the life of the town
#IHTA #MapMonday
![Kells, view from the east. Watercolour. Artist unknown, inscribed 'Kells, L.E.W.; July 18:[18]?03. Courtesy of Cooke Antiques, Dublin](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_fullsize/plain/did:plc:h2qy4l5l7aiil4zs4cjddn6b/bafkreicqc7e22mqp7zeld5x6cwgbzg2ir7fsne5ia75zfapikjpyewu3oy@jpeg)
@ihtaria.bsky.socialThe boundaries of monastic Kells were marked by monumental sculpture. The High Crosses stood at key points around the precinct and helped define sacred space. They served as visual markers for residents, travellers and pilgrims moving through the settlement
#IHTA #MapMonday
@ihtaria.bsky.socialUnlike many medieval towns which developed around markets or castles, Kells grew around a religious foundation. The monastery acted as a centre of worship, learning, administration and exchange, which attracted people to settle around its precinct and created the nucleus of an urban community
#IHTA
@ihtaria.bsky.socialAccording to tradition, St Columba founded a monastery in the 6th cent. Significantly, the monastery occupied an earlier enclosed site whose boundaries continued to influence the layout and curved streets of the later town
#IHTA #MapMonday
@ihtaria.bsky.socialKells derives from the Irish Ceanannas, a name possibly connected with an earlier royal fort or "head fort" (ceann lios). Long before it became a medieval town, the site was an important secular & ecclesiastical centre whose elevated position helped shape later settlement patterns.
#IHTA #MapMonday
@ihtaria.bsky.socialWe're back for #MapMonday and this week we're in the Co. Meath town of #Kells
Irish Historic Towns Atlas no. 4, Kells by Anngret Simms with Katharine Simms was published by @ria.ie in 1990
@ihtaria.bsky.socialTo freely access Irish Historic Towns Atlas, Fethard by Tadhg O'Keeffe and to compare with other Anglo-Norman towns, follow this link
@ihtaria.bsky.socialFethard's walls are more than monuments. They define a medieval landscape where market, church, streets and gateways still tell the story of an ambitious Anglo-Norman borough and the community that sustained it for over 800 years
#MapMonday #IHTA
@ihtaria.bsky.socialWithin the walls stood some of Fethard's most impressive medieval buildings.
Holy Trinity parish church, the Augustinian friary, Court Castle and Edmond's Castle reveal a wealthy urban community whose commercial and religious life was concentrated inside the walled enclosure
#MapMonday #IHTA
@ihtaria.bsky.socialThe only surviving medieval town gate is North Gate, built in the 15th century.
Other gates once punctuated the circuit, including Water Gate, Pierce's Gate, Sparrow Gate and Madam Castle, a fortified gate tower at the western entrance that survived until the 19th century.
#MapMonday #IHTA
@ihtaria.bsky.socialVisitors approaching the market had to pass through gates and negotiate deliberately angled streets. Routes from North Gate, Water Gate and Sparrow Gate did not lead directly to the market but guided people through the town's controlled urban space.
#MapMonday #IHTA
@ihtaria.bsky.socialFethard was established on an elevated site within a loop of the River Clashawley. The location offered natural protection, fertile agricultural land and commanding views of the surrounding countryside.
Its Irish name, Fiodh Aird, means "the high wood".
#MapMonday #IHTA
@ihtaria.bsky.socialFethard is one of Ireland's finest surviving medieval walled towns. Founded in the early 13th cent as an Anglo-Norman borough, Fethard was laid out as a planned settlement whose streets, market place and walls still shape the town today.
#MapMonday #IHTA
@ihtaria.bsky.socialThis week we are in #Fethard for our #MapMonday thread.
Irish Historic Towns Atlas no. 13, Fethard by Tadhg O'Keeffe was originally published by the @ria.ie in 2003
@ihtaria.bsky.socialThe #IHTA was represented in the recent International Commission for the History of Towns by Sarah Gearty and Michael Potterton in Kaunas, Lithuania from the 10-13 Sep 2026.
This year's theme was 'Forgetting and remembering the past in urban history'.
Read more: www.ria.ie/2026/09/15/i...
#ICHT
@ihtaria.bsky.socialTo discover more on #Kilkenny's urban history you can freely access Irish Historic Towns Atlas no. 10 Kilkenny by John Bradley.
Kilkenny is one of 29 atlases that are freely available on #IHTAOnline
#MapMonday #IHTA
@ihtaria.bsky.socialKilkenny was never one place but several connected settlements. Irishtown, the Anglo-Norman Hightown, and the suburb of St John's were linked by bridges, roads and markets while retaining distinct identities still evident today
#MapMonday #IHTA
@ihtaria.bsky.socialAt the centre stood the Tholsel. Located near Crokker's Cross, where High St, Patrick St and Rose Inn Str converged, the Tholsel functioned as courthouse, treasury, council chamber and custom house.
#MapMonday #IHTA
@ihtaria.bsky.socialBy the 13th cent. Kilkenny was enclosed by one of Ireland's most substantial town wall systems.
The walls enclosed c. 28 hectares linking directly with the castle defences. Seven gates controlled movement through the town, including St Patrick's Gate, Walkin's Gate and St James's Gate.
#IHTA
