History of Dublin To 795 - Early Roads

Early Roads

It is also hardly a coincidence that four of the five great highways, or slighte of ancient Ireland converged on the site of the medieval city, and not on Tara, as early Irish historians spuriously claimed:

• Slige Midluachra – this road ran southeast from Ulster, and passed through Tara, the seat of the High Kings of Ireland in County Meath. It crossed the Liffey at the ford of hurdles, and came to an end just south of Áth Cliath. Parts of the Slige Midluachra may still be made out in some of Dublin's modern streets: e.g. Bow Street on the north side of the city, and St Augustine Street and Francis Street on the south side.

• Slige Mhór – this was the "great highway" that ran from east to west across the entire country, dividing it into two symbolic halves (Leth Cuinn and Leth Moga). Its eastern terminus lay just beyond Áth Cliath. In the modern city, James's Street and Thomas Street still follow its course.

• Slige Chualann – this road ran south from Áth Cliath. It took its name from Cualu, the district in which Dublin was situated and which lay between the mouths of the Liffey and the Avoca (in County Wicklow). Long stretches of the Slige Chualann – or Wicklow Way, as it is now called – survive to this day. In the modern city its early course is followed by New Street, Clanbrassil Street, Harold's Cross Road and Terenure Road North.

• Slige Dála – the fourth great highway was the "highway of the assemblies". It approached Áth Cliath from the southwest, following the course of the Commons' Water, a small tributary of the river Poddle, which in turn is a tributary of the Liffey). Its terminus was at the southern end of the ecclesiastical settlement of Dubhlinn (see below). It survives today in Cork Street, Ardee Street and The Coombe.

These four highways linked Dublin with the five provinces of ancient Ireland: Ulster and Mide to the north, Connacht to the west, Munster to the southwest and Leinster to the south. Although it is not known when these roads were first constructed, a tract dating from around 700 testifies to their early existence. A fifth, unnamed road may have linked Áth Cliath with Tara, County Meath, the seat of the High Kings of Ireland. It is possible that traces of this road are preserved in the modern thoroughfare that runs northwest from Stoneybatter (i.e. the Stoney bóthar, or "cow-track") through Ratoath Road in the general direction of Tara. The existence of this unnamed road suggests that the Slige Midluachra originally by-passed Tara, running north from Dublin to Emain Macha.

Áth Cliath was centred on the crossroads formed by the intersection of the Slige Midluachra and Slige Mhór. After the introduction of Christianity a wayside chapel dedicated to St Mo Lua appears to have been erected at this junction, though the earliest reference to such a church is of a much later date. Another early church, dedicated to St Columba, occupied the site of the present Church of St Audoen, which is thought to be the city's oldest surviving church site. The existence of a market place to the east of the junction is suggested by the modern street name of Cornmarket. The southwestern approaches of Áth Cliath may have been protected by a ditch, which is mentioned in two 13th century documents.

In addition to the urban settlement at Áth Cliath, the early inhabitants of Dublin may also have constructed a ringfort, or ráth, on the present site of Dublin Castle. This would have been a relatively easy place to defend, being the highest point in the area and surrounded by water on three sides. It could also explain why the eastern terminus of the Slige Mhór lay several hundred metres beyond Áth Cliath. If such a rath did exist, it may have been the source of the placename Druim Cuill-Choille, or "Hazelwood Ridge": according to Harris (1736), this was the city's original name, though no ancient references to such a name are now extant.

The name Baile Átha Cliath itself was first written down in the Annals of Ulster in 1365, some 200 years after the Norman invasion of Ireland in 1169, and the Irish word "baile" (meaning a town), often anglicized as "bally", derives from Norman-French "bailee" or "ville". It remains unproven that it was called Áth Cliath before 795, but for convenience the western of the two settlements is usually referred to by historians and archaeologists as "Áth Cliath" to distinguish it from "Duiblinn" (see below).

The existence of other early ringforts in the vicinity of Áth Cliath may be deduced from the names of several of the modern city's suburbs: Rathmines, Rathgar, Rathfarnham and Raheny, though no firm dates can be assigned to any of these.