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The IHTA is a research programme of the Royal Irish Academy & produces historic atlases of towns on the island of Ireland from earliest times to 1900
Go deeper: https://www.ria.ie/research-programmes/irish-historic-towns-atlas//

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The 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
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Plate 2. Cannon Street, Kells, c. 1900 (Lawrence collection, National Library of Ireland)Plate 1 Kells, from the air, 1971 (Leo Swan)Kells, view from the east. Watercolour. Artist unknown, inscribed 'Kells, L.E.W.; July 18:[18]?03. Courtesy of Cooke Antiques, DublinBlack and white etching looking towards the round tower and church of Kells
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The 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
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Extract from the topographical information on the High Crosses and market crossExtract from Fig. 1 Medieval Kells, largely based on Kells val., HEM, Swan. Black and white text map showing the alignment of the Columban monastery and walled townExtract from Map 3 Kells, 1974, Ordnance Survey of Ireland, scale 1:5000
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Unlike 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
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Map 4 Part of 'A map of the town and lands of Kells in the co. Meath, part of the estate of the Rt Hon. Thos Ld Visct Headfort', 1762 by John O'Brien (Hedafort papers, National Library of Ireland, courtesy of eary of Bective) original scale ten Irish perches to one inch (1:2520)extract from the topographical information on 11 Religion
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According 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
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Kells, 1837 Ordnance Survey town plan at a scale of 1:2500 Coloured reconstructed map of Kells showing individual plots, pink as private, red as public, shades of green for gardens, meadows, orchards, water sources in blue and roads in whiteFig. 1 Medieval Kells, largely based on Kells val., HEM, Swan. Black and white text map showing the alignment of the Columban monastery and walled town
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Kells 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.
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Kells and its surroundings, Ordnance Survey of Ireland, 1860-65 at a scale of 1:50000 Black and white hachured map showing routeways and built-up areas Extract from the topographical information showing the origin of the placenameExtract from the Kells essay with a header of a painting of a street view facing up to the church
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Fethard'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
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Map 7 Part of Fethard, 1708 by Redmond Grace. Redrawn by Tadhg O'Keeffe, original scale 1:5040 enlarged by approximately one quarterMap 2, Fethard 1840, Ordnance Survey reconstruction of the manuscript town plan at a scale of 1:2500 Coloured map showing walls, river, principal and residential buildings. Public in red, private in pink. Gardens and arable in green, water sources in blueMap 3 Fethard, Ordnance Survey Ireland, 2000 at scale of 1:5000Plate 4 Fethard from the air, looking north-west, 1990, by Joe Kenny Plate 5 Fethard from the air, 2000 (Ordnance Survey Ireland, appox. 1:5000) (c) Government of Ireland, 2003
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Within 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
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Plate 1. Artist's impression of Holy Trinity churchyard and adjoining buildings, Fethard, looking south-east, c. 1650, pencil drawing by Tadhg O'KeeffeFig 2. Fethard c. 1250 to c. 1700 Black and white text map showing the medieval town overlaid on a modern Ordnance Survey baseExtract from the topographical information on the Holy Trinity Church
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The 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.
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Extract from the topographical information of the mural gates in FethardMadam castle from the west, 1840 by G.V. Du Noyer. Bridge and gateway of Fethard, Co. Tipperary. Pencil drawing. RIA, SR/12.T.2 (79)
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Visitors 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.
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Extract of Map 2, Fethard 1840, Ordnance Survey reconstruction of the manuscript town plan at a scale of 1:2500 Coloured map showing walls, river, principal and residential buildings. Public in red, private in pink. Gardens and arable in green, water sources in blue
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By the late 13th cent. Fethard was prosperous enough to seek royal funding to enclose the town. A murage grant of 1292 raised money through taxes on goods sold in the town, including wine, hides, timber, fish and grain. The walls enclosed an oval area of c. 7.5 hectares and stretched for c. 1.1km.

Fig 2. Fethard c. 1250 to c. 1700 Black and white text map showing the medieval town overlaid on a modern Ordnance Survey baseMap 7 Part of Fethard, 1708 by Redmond Grace. Redrawn by Tadhg O'Keeffe, original scale 1:5040 enlarged by approximately one quarter
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Fethard 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".
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Map 1 Fethard and its surrounds, Ordnance Survey of 1893-5 at a scale of 1:50,000 Historic map showing Fethard positioned within a loop of the River Clashawley. The town occupies a raised site above surrounding lowlands, with fertile farmland and distant hills visible in the wider landscape that helped shape the town's developmentExtract ofMap 1 Fethard and its surrounds, Ordnance Survey of 1893-5 at a scale of 1:50,000 Historic map showing Fethard positioned within a loop of the River Clashawley. The town occupies a raised site above surrounding lowlands, with fertile farmland and distant hills visible in the wider landscape that helped shape the town's developmentExtract from the essay of IHTA no. 13 Fethard, with an illustration of the Holy Trinity Abbey
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Fethard 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.
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Map 2, Fethard 1840, Ordnance Survey reconstruction of the manuscript town plan at a scale of 1:2500 Coloured map showing walls, river, principal and residential buildings. Public in red, private in pink. Gardens and arable in green, water sources in blue
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