Editing Slane Castle (section)

==History ==
[[File:Slane Castle by paride.JPG|thumb|250px|left|The former main gate into Slane Castle]]

On the eastward side of the castle [[demesne]], directly between the [[River Boyne]] and the village's [[Church of Ireland]] church in Slane, lay the ruins of [[St. Erc's Hermitage]], a 15th-century multi-storey chapel, and with some 500 metres westward of [[St. Erc's Hermitage]] an ancient [[Water well|well]] can also be found. In one of the central texts of [[Irish mythology]], the ''{{lang|ga|[[Cath Maige Tuireadh]]}}'', this well is said to have been blessed by the God {{lang|ga|[[Dian Cecht]]}} so that the {{lang|ga|[[Tuatha Dé Danann]]}} could bathe in it and be healed, allegedly healing all mortal wounds except decapitation.<ref name="CMT">''[[Cath Maige Tuireadh]]''. [http://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/cmt/cmteng.htm Elizabeth A. Gray (trans.)]</ref> However, with the arrival of [[Christianity in Ireland]], and the policy of [[Interpretatio Christiana|Christian reinterpretation]] for traditionally pagan sites, the well is now more commonly referred to as ''[[Mary (mother of Jesus)|Our Lady's]] Well.''

Prior to the [[Glorious Revolution|1688 overthrow]] of the [[House of Stuart]], Slane Castle had been in the possession of the [[Baron Slane|Flemings]], [[Hiberno-Norman]]s who had aligned themselves with the  [[Jacobitism|Jacobites]] in the [[War of the Grand Alliance]], and thus after the [[Williamite]] victory, their property was chosen for confiscation. [[Christopher Fleming, 17th Baron Slane|Christopher, 17th Baron Slane]] (1669 – 14 July 1726; created [[Earl of Longford|The 1st Viscount Longford]] by [[Anne, Queen of Great Britain|Queen Anne]] in 1713), was the last Fleming Lord of Slane. 

Overlooking the [[River Boyne]], just a few kilometres upstream from [[Newgrange]] and the site of the famous [[Battle of the Boyne]], Slane Castle in its existing form was constructed under the direction of [[William Conyngham|William Burton Conyngham]], together with his nephew [[Henry Conyngham, 1st Marquess Conyngham|The 1st Marquess Conyngham]]. The reconstruction dates back to 1785 and is principally the work of [[James Gandon]], [[James Wyatt]] and Francis Johnston. [[Francis Johnston (architect)|Francis Johnston]] was also the architect responsible for the gothic gates on the Mill Hill, located to the east of the castle.

The Conynghams are originally a [[Scottish people|Scottish]] [[Protestant]] family, who [[Plantations of Ireland|planted]] in Ireland in 1611, during the [[Plantation of Ulster]] in [[County Donegal]]. With that, the family asserted control over lands around the village of ''{{lang|ga|[[Mountcharles|Tamhnach an tSalainn]]}}'', near [[Donegal Town]] in the south of [[County Donegal]]. Concurrently, the then head of the family, Charles Conyngham, renamed the village in his own honour as [[Mountcharles]] (pronounced locally in South Donegal as 'Mount-char-liss').<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.welovedonegal.com/tv-mountcharles.html|title=TV Mountcharles|website=www.welovedonegal.com|access-date=17 April 2018}}</ref> The family also controlled an extensive [[country estate|estate]] in West Donegal, especially in [[The Rosses]] district.

The association between the [[Ulster-Scots people|Ulster-Scots]] Conynghams and the Slane Estate in [[County Meath]] dates back over 300 years, ever since the property was taken by the family following the [[Williamite War in Ireland|Williamite Confiscations]] in 1701. Around that time, the family moved their main [[ancestral seat]] south from [[County Donegal]] in west [[Ulster]] to Slane.

The present owner of the castle is Henry Conyngham, [[Henry Conyngham, 8th Marquess Conyngham|the 8th Marquess Conyngham]]<ref>Article 40.2 of the [[Irish Constitution]] makes two points 1° Titles of nobility shall not be conferred by the State. 2° No title of nobility or of honour may be accepted by any citizen except with the prior approval of the Government. Hereditary titles are incorporeal hereditaments, therefore do not need permission from the state and although are not recognised officially by the Irish state they are accepted in society as [[Courtesy title|courtesy titles]]. {{citation |title=40.2 |work=Constitution of Ireland |url=http://www.taoiseach.gov.ie/attached_files/Pdf%20files/Constitution%20of%20Ireland.pdf |archive-url=http://webarchive.loc.gov/all/20050415121010/http://www.taoiseach.gov.ie/attached_files/Pdf%20files/Constitution%20of%20Ireland.pdf |archive-date=2005-04-15 |url-status=dead |location=Dublin |publisher=Stationery Office}}</ref> - the eldest son of Lord Conyngham is Alex, [[Earl]] of Mount Charles.

In 1984, Irish band [[U2]] took up residence at the castle to write and record their album ''[[The Unforgettable Fire]]''.

In 1991, a fire in the castle caused extensive damage to the building and completely gutted the eastern section facing the River Boyne. The castle reopened in 2001 after the completion of a ten-year restoration programme. In 2003, a cannon associated with the castle was found in the nearby [[River Boyne]].<ref>[http://newsfile.photoshelter.com/image/I0000tTDlF8bd8AY Slane Cannon find] ''Newsfile''; Retrieved 31 May 2011</ref>