Editing Slane

{{Short description|Village in County Meath, Ireland}}
{{Other uses}}
{{EngvarB|date=November 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2019}}
{{Infobox settlement
|name                   = Slane
|native_name            = {{Irish place name|Baile Shláine}}
|native_name_lang       = ga
|settlement_type        = Village
|image_skyline          = Hill of Slane 001.jpg
|image_caption          = The ruins of the friary church on the hill of Slane.
|pushpin_map            = Ireland
|pushpin_label_position = right
|pushpin_map_caption    = Location in Ireland
|coordinates            = {{coord|53.7086|-6.5434|dim:100000_region:IE|display=inline,title}}
|blank_name_sec1        = Irish Grid Reference
|blank_info_sec1        = {{iem4ibx|N959742}}
|subdivision_type       = Country
|subdivision_name       = Ireland
|subdivision_type1      = [[Provinces of Ireland|Province]]
|subdivision_name1      = [[Leinster]]
|subdivision_type2      = [[Counties of Ireland|County]]
|subdivision_name2      = [[County Meath]]
|unit_pref              = Metric
|elevation_m            = 64
|population_as_of       = [[2022 census of Ireland|2022]]
|population             = 1445
|population_footnotes   =<ref name="cso2022">{{cite web|url =https://data.cso.ie/ | publisher = Central Statistics Office | work = Census 2022 | title = Data | date = June 2023 | access-date = 29 June 2023 }}</ref>
}}
'''Slane ''' ({{Irish place name|Baile Shláine|Town of [[Sláine mac Dela]]}})<ref name=logainm>{{cite web|url = https://www.logainm.ie/1923.aspx|publisher = Irish Placenames Commission | website = logainm.ie | title = Baile Shláine / Slane }}</ref> is a village in [[County Meath]], in Ireland. The village stands on a steep hillside on the left bank of the [[River Boyne]] at the intersection of the [[N2 road (Ireland)|N2]] ([[Dublin]] to [[Monaghan]] road) and the [[N51 road (Ireland)|N51]] ([[Drogheda]] to [[Navan]] road). As of the 2022 census, Slane's population was 1,445.<ref name="cso2022"/> The village and surrounding area contains many historic sites dating back over 5,000 years. The village centre, as it is laid-out today, dates mainly from the 18th century. The village is in a [[townland]] and [[Civil parishes in Ireland|civil parish]] of the same name.<ref name=logainm/>

==History==
[[File:House - geograph.org.uk - 166686.jpg|thumb|right|One of the four private [[Georgian architecture|Georgian]] houses at the centre of the village.]]

The area and its surroundings have been inhabited since at least the [[Prehistoric Ireland|Neolithic era]]. Habitation at the Hill of Slane settlement and upon the introduction of Christianity is attested in the [[Annals of Inisfallen]] and hagiography of [[Saint Patrick]]. The earliest surviving structures within the boundaries of the modern-day village were built by the invading [[Normans|Norman]] family of the Flanders (now Fleming), during the [[Norman invasion of Ireland]]. The most relatively undisturbed structure, built under the [[Lordship of Ireland|feudal lordship]] of this family, is a [[motte and bailey]], which is in close proximity to the Hill of Slane settlement.

Following the [[Treaty of Limerick#The Williamite Settlement forfeitures|Williamite confiscations]], which saw the Flemings dispossessed, the present form of the Castle and the village centre were re-cast and in the latter case, laid out as a model British village by the Ulster [[Mountcharles#Name|plantation family]] of the Conynghams, in what is considered a typical example of 18th-century town planning.

As part of this remodelling, today in the centre of the village stand four nearly identical [[Georgian architecture|Georgian]] houses. The four houses stand at the intersection of the two main streets in the village.  While the four faces of the houses and the four ''open'' streets form an [[octagon]]. The feature is known as ''The Square'' due to what is seen as the [[vertex (geometry)|vertex]] position, that each house occupies. The southwesternmost house that forms the square, served as the [[Royal Irish Constabulary]] barracks and [[gaol]], up until the founding of the [[Irish War of Independence|Irish State]]. The two main streets in the village feature 18th-century grey limestone buildings with slate roofs, [[oriel windows]] and archways.<ref name="Trench">{{cite book | author = Trench, C.E.F.| year=1995 | title=Slane | publisher=An Taisce – the National Trust for Ireland | isbn=0-903693-09-7}}</ref>

The village centre also incorporates "Gallows hill",<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://iafs.ie/archives/637 |title=Irish Archaeology Site assessment, field survey and reportin |access-date=16 October 2017 |archive-date=17 October 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171017042115/http://iafs.ie/archives/637 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://blackfriary.wordpress.com/page/3/ |title=Hill of Slane – field school open day |access-date=16 October 2017 |archive-date=16 October 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171016230123/https://blackfriary.wordpress.com/page/3/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> the foot of which is essentially the location of the present day "Slane [[Credit Union]]" and a hill so named for the [[United Irishmen]] who were publicly executed there on a [[gallows]] in an attempt to deter further agitations for independence, following the [[Irish Rebellion of 1798|failed 1798 uprising]].

In 2007 [[Meath County Council]] proposed that both Slane village and the mill be recognised as Architectural Conservation Areas and protected accordingly.<ref name="MeathPlan07">{{cite web | url = http://meathtourism.ie/LocalAuthorities/Publications/PlanningandDevelopmentPublications/CountyMeathPlanningPublications/DraftCountyMeathDevelopmentPlan2007-2013/File,7098,en.pdf | title = Appendix III – Architectural Conservation Areas | access-date = 10 October 2007 | year = 2007 | work = Draft Meath County Development Plan 2007–2013 | publisher = [[Meath County Council]] | pages = 389–390 | archive-date = 20 November 2007 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20071120010013/http://meathtourism.ie/LocalAuthorities/Publications/PlanningandDevelopmentPublications/CountyMeathPlanningPublications/DraftCountyMeathDevelopmentPlan2007-2013/File,7098,en.pdf | url-status = dead }}</ref>

==Population and demographics==
{{Historical populations
|state = collapsed
|1991|699
|1996|688
|2002|823
|2006|1099
|2011|1349
|2016|1369
|source=<ref name="citypop">{{cite web|url = https://www.citypopulation.de/en/ireland/towns/meath/0857__slane/ | website = citypopulation.ie | title = Slane (Ireland) Census Town | access-date = 17 February 2020 }}</ref>
}}
In the 20 years between the 1996 and 2016 census, Slane doubled in population, from 699 to 1,369 inhabitants.<ref name="citypop"/><ref name="cso2016">{{cite web | url = http://census.cso.ie/sapmap2016/Results.aspx?Geog_Type=ST2016&Geog_Code=681C1DC0-9A29-4299-BAC1-19ABA6C34F8A | publisher = Central Statistics Office | work = Census 2016 | title = Sapmap Area - Settlements - Slane | date = April 2016 | access-date = 17 February 2020 | archive-date = 2 March 2022 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220302145459/http://census.cso.ie/sapmap2016/Results.aspx?Geog_Type=ST2016&Geog_Code=681C1DC0-9A29-4299-BAC1-19ABA6C34F8A | url-status = dead }}</ref>

As of the 2006 census, there were 1,099 people living in Slane, having grown from a population of 823 in 2002. The population of the village and the surrounding rural area was 1,587 in 2006, up from 1,336 in 2002.<ref name="cso2006">{{cite web | title = Census 2006 – Volume 1 – Population Classified by Area | work = Central Statistics Office Census 2006 Reports | publisher = [[Central Statistics Office (Ireland)|Central Statistics Office Ireland]] |date=April 2007 | url = http://www.cso.ie/census/documents/census2006_volume_1_pop_classified_by_area.pdf | access-date = 24 June 2011}}</ref>

According to the [[2016 census of Ireland|2016 census]], of those who commute to work or school, 77% (658 of 854 respondents) had a commute of less than 1 hour.<ref name="cso2016"/>

==Sport==
The earliest recorded inter-county match of ''[[caid (sport)|caid]]'', equivalent to modern [[Gaelic football]], in the entirety of Ireland; was one between Louth and Meath, in the fields of Slane, in 1712, about which the poet Séamas Dall Mac Cuarta wrote a poem of 88 verses beginning ''"Ba haigeanta"''.

The modern-day Slane Gaelic Football Club comprises the local parish [[Gaelic Athletic Association]] [[Gaelic football]] teams for the urban and rural areas of Slane. Teams play their home games in Toddy Harding Park, located {{convert|5|km|0}} north of the village. Slane Wanderers is the village's local football club, whose home games are played in Wheatfield Park.

In [[1979 FIM Motocross World Championship|1979]], the inaugural Irish [[Motocross World Championship|Motocross Grand Prix]] was held in Slane.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.motocross.ie/?select=3&id=651 |title=Fairyhouse To Host The Irish Motocross Grand Prix |publisher=motocross.ie |access-date=6 March 2017 }}</ref>

== Places of Interest ==

===The Hill of Slane===
[[File:Hill of slane 1.jpg|thumb|left|Ruins on the hill of Slane, facing East.]]
[[File:NEWENHAM(1830) p209 MEATH - CASTLE AND CHURCH AT SLANE.jpg|thumb|left|The ruins on the hill of Slane as it appeared in 1830.''Picturesque views of the Antiquities of Ireland. Drawn on stone by J. D. Harding, from the sketches of R. O'C. Newenham.'' Since 1830, the [[battlement]]s on the tower to the left are now unrecognizable.]]
[[File:Hill of Slane ruins.jpg|thumb|left|Ruins on the Hill of Slane in 2008, facing North West. The tower on the top right, was capped with [[battlement]]s, up to at least 1830.]]

To the north of the village rises the Hill of Slane, which stands {{convert|158|m}} above the surroundings. There are a number of historic sites located around the top of the hill.<ref>"From this beautiful hill, a vast prospect of Ireland is afforded on a clear day. Eastwards can easily be seen the mounds of [[Newgrange]] and Knowth, with the town of Drogheda and the Irish Sea beyond, while the view northwards extends as far as [[Slieve Gullion]] (well into Northern Ireland), southwards as far as the Sugarloaf Mountain in Wicklow, and westwards to the midlands of Ireland." ([http://www.mythicalireland.com/ancientsites/slane/index.html Noted at MythicalIreland.com]).</ref> In the [[Metrical Dindshenchas]], a collection of [[bard]]ic verse, the ancient [[Fir Bolg]] king [[Sláine mac Dela]] was said to have been buried here, in the place that had been called ''Druim Fuar'' that came to be known in his memory ''Dumha Sláine''.<ref>[http://www.mythicalireland.com/ancientsites/slane/ancient.html Mythical Ireland: Slane in ancient times]</ref>{{better source needed|date=December 2013}} There is an artificial mound on the western end of the hilltop. The hill may have been chosen as the site of a Christian abbey due to the presence of an existing [[Tuatha Dé Danann]] shrine, the remains of which may be two standing stones in the burial yard.<ref>Lewis, "Notes on Some Irish Antiquities" ''The Journal of the Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland'' '''9''' (1880:137–145) p. 142 "if such a [pagan] shrine were there, on the top of the lofty hill of Slane, it might have led to the building of the abbey: a circumstance which needs explanation, as abbeys were usually built in valleys, where land is fertile and water near at hand."</ref>

[[Muirchu moccu Machtheni]], in his highly mythologised seventh-century Life of Patrick, says that [[Saint Patrick]] lit a [[Paschal Full Moon|Paschal]] fire on this hilltop in A.D. 433 in defiance of the [[High King of Ireland|High King]] [[Lóegaire mac Néill|Laoire]] who forbid any other fires while a festival fire was burning on the [[Hill of Tara]]. Historians and archaeologists agree that Muirchu has moved to Slane a fire lit elsewhere;<ref>In the syncretic fashion suggested for Tara by Alan Gailey and G. B. Adams, "The Bonfire in North Irish Tradition" ''Folklore'' '''88'''.1 (1977:3–38) p. 13</ref> The Hill of Slane can be seen from the Hill of Tara which is about {{convert|16|km}} away.<ref name="Trench" /><ref name="Rice">{{cite web|author=Rice, ''V.Rev.'' G. |title=The History of Christianity in Slane |url=http://community.meath.ie/slanehistoricalsociety/index.php?option=displaypage&Itemid=80&op=page&SubMenu= |work=Slane Historical Society |access-date=20 May 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070117193651/http://community.meath.ie/slanehistoricalsociety/index.php?option=displaypage&Itemid=80&op=page&SubMenu= |archive-date=17 January 2007 }}</ref> According to Muirchu, Logaire was so impressed by Patrick's devotion that, despite his defiance (or perhaps because of it), he let him continue his missionary work in Ireland. It is somewhat more certain that Patrick appointed a bishop of Slane, [[Saint Erc]].

The Hill of Slane remained a centre of religion and learning for many centuries after Saint Patrick. The [[Annals of the Four Masters]] record that in A.D. 948 "The belfry of Slaine [an [[Irish round tower]]] was burned by the foreigners [Vikings], with its full of relics and distinguished persons, together with Caeineachair, Lector of Slaine, and the crozier of the patron saint, and a bell which was the best of bells." Nothing remains of the tower today, although the ruins of a [[friary]] church and college can be seen on the top of the hill. It is known that Slane Friary was restored in 1512. The ruins include a {{convert|19|m|adj=on}} high early [[Gothic architecture|gothic]] tower. The friary was abandoned in 1723.<ref name="Trench" />

The traditional Christian [[hymn]] ''[[Be Thou My Vision]]'' is set to an early [[medieval]] Irish [[folk song]] named ''Slane'' which is about the Hill of Slane.<ref name="McKim">{{cite book | last = McKim | first = Lindajo H. | title = The Presbyterian Hymnal Companion | edition = 1st |date=June 1993 | publisher = Westminster John Knox Press | isbn = 0-664-25180-3 | page = 340}}</ref>
[[File:Slanehill-Aug-2005.jpg|thumb|right|The cemetery and [[Chilean pine]] tree on the Hill of Slane.]]
Approximately 150 meters west of the college and friary church, hidden by trees, lay the steeply inclined remains of a twelfth-century [[Norman architecture|Norman]] [[motte and bailey]], built by Richard Fleming in the 1170s. This was the seat of the Flemings of Slane, [[Baron Slane|barons of Slane]]. The Flemings moved to a castle on the left bank of the River Boyne, the current location of [[Slane Castle]]. The Flemings were lords of Slane from the twelfth century until the seventeenth century, when the [[Marquess Conyngham|Conyngham family]] replaced them as lords of Slane during the [[Williamite War in Ireland|Williamite Confiscations]].<ref name="Cockagne">{{cite book | last = Cokayne | first = George Edward | author-link = George Cokayne | title = [[The Complete Peerage]] }}</ref>

===Slane Castle===
[[File:Slane Castle - geograph.org.uk - 1658887.jpg|thumb|right|Slane Castle.]]
[[Slane Castle]] stands on the river about {{convert|1|km|sigfig=1}} upstream from the centre of the village. There is an ancient [[Water well|well]] in the grounds of the castle near the river. In [[Irish mythology]] (specifically the account found in the [[Cath Maige Tuired|Cath Maigh Tuireadh]]), the well was blessed by [[Dian Cecht]] so that the [[Tuatha Dé Danann]] could bathe in it and be healed, allegedly, healing all wounds but decapitation.<ref name="CMT">''[[Cath Maige Tuireadh]]''. [http://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/cmt/cmteng.htm Elizabeth A. Gray (trans.)]</ref> However upon the arrival of [[Christianity in Ireland]], and the policy of [[Interpretatio Christiana|Christian reinterpretation]] for pagan sites, the well is now known as ''[[Mary (mother of Jesus)|Our lady's]] well''. [[Legion of Mary]]–led pilgrimages to the site are hosted every August.

The castle grounds have been the site of [[Slane Concert|large rock concerts]] since 1981.

Also within the grounds of Slane Castle ([[demesne]]) are the ruins of [[St. Erc's Hermitage]]. This consists of a late 15 to 16th century [[chapel]], an earlier dwelling,<ref name="Trench" /> a stone arched footbridge over a stream/[[tributary]] that feeds into the Boyne and the stone quarry face from where the materials for construction were taken. Local folklore has it that during the 19th-century move of the ''apostle's stone'', a stone carving of the crucifixion of Christ, which was taken from this chapel to be placed in the modern church in the village, the 200&nbsp;kg stone carving was to mysteriously find its way back to the Hermitage in the still dead of night. A portion of a [[celtic cross]] carving, that was also initially part of St. Erc's Hermitage is now housed in an Iron frame beside the altar within Saint Patrick's Church on Chapel street. A catholic church was built c.1805.<ref>[http://www.buildingsofireland.ie/niah/search.jsp?type=record&county=ME&regno=14315004 Saint Patrick's Roman Catholic Church, Chapel Street, Slane, County Meath]</ref> Not to be confused with the similarly named Saint Patrick's [[Church of Ireland]], on main street, built 1797 "[[Roman numerals|M.DCC.XCVII.]]"<ref>[http://www.buildingsofireland.ie/niah/search.jsp?type=record&county=ME&regno=14315027 Saint Patrick's Church of Ireland Church, Main Street Lower, Slane, County Meath]</ref>

In 2009 "Slane Castle Whiskey", began to be bottled and labelled, a [[blended whiskey]], it was created by Noel Sweeney and made at the [[Cooley Distillery|Cooley mountain distillery]] outside [[Dundalk]].<ref>[http://www.whiskyintelligence.com/2013/03/slane-castle-distillery-goes-ahead-new-irish-distillery-to-be-built-irish-whiskey-news/ Slane Castle Distillery Goes Ahead – New Irish Distillery To Be Built -Irish Whiskey News]</ref><ref name="Slane Castle Distillery">[http://www.whisky-distillery.net/www.whisky-distilleries.net/Ireland_R-Z/Seiten/Slane_Castle.html#18 Slane Castle Distillery]</ref>

Following a change in ownership, the Cooley distillery ceased further collaboration.<ref name="Slane Castle Distillery"/> Resulting in the financing and construction by [[Brown Forman]] of  "Slane Castle Distillery", completed in 2017, it is owned and operated by Henry and Alex Conyngham.<ref>[https://www.boynevalleytours.com/boyne-valley-whiskey.htm Boyne Valley Whiskey Tours – Coming Soon]</ref><ref>[https://www.irishtimes.com/business/agribusiness-and-food/jack-daniel-s-firm-to-build-44m-distillery-at-slane-castle-1.2235658 Jack Daniel’s firm to build €44m distillery at Slane Castle]</ref> The whiskey that is intended to be produced in the distillery, carries the label, "SLANE Irish Whiskey", with the placename of "Slane", since 2018, now a registered trademark, controversially held by the owner of "Slane Castle Irish Whiskey Limited".<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20180808112625/https://www.slaneirishwhiskey.com/ ''"SLANE and SLANE CASTLE are trademarks of Slane Castle. ©2018 Slane Castle Irish Whiskey Limited."'']</ref><ref name="thetrademarkninja.com">[http://www.thetrademarkninja.com/2017/01/07/slane-trademark/ Trade Mark investigation into "Slane"]</ref>

===Slane Mill===
[[File:Slane Mill, Co. Meath - geograph.org.uk - 455609.jpg|thumb|left| The "Old mill" resides next to 20th-century adjacent factory buildings that were built before the rate of the textile industry at the site, outgrew the capacity of the area. It is referred to as the "old mill" to distinguish it from the "new mill" or "factory" that was built slightly uphill from this site, due to the area's land constraints. The main mill building "displays a level of carved detail that is unusual for an industrial building and more typically found in country houses of the period".<ref>[https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/455609|Andrew Billinger. geograph website]</ref>]]
In the 1760s [[Boyne Navigation]] opened between Slane and [[Oldbridge]], approximately {{convert|10|km}} down river. This is a series of [[canals]] which made the River Boyne navigable to small boats from Slane to the port in Drogheda. A canal which is part of the navigation runs parallel to the river on the south bank near Slane. [[David Jebb]] was the engineer in charge of the construction. Once the navigation was opened as far as Slane, Jebb himself built a [[flour mill]] at Slane.<ref name="IWAI">{{Cite journal | last = Wheeler | first = Ed | year = 2005 | title = Restoring the Boyne | journal = Inland Waterways News | volume = 32 | issue = 2 | pages = 20–25 | publisher = Inland Waterways Association of Ireland | location = Ireland | issn = 1649-1696 | url = http://iwn.iwai.ie/v32i2/index.shtml#features | access-date = 8 October 2007 | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20071119123436/http://iwn.iwai.ie/v32i2/index.shtml#features | archive-date = 19 November 2007 | df = dmy-all }}</ref> Slane Mill stands on the north bank of the River Boyne beside the N2 bridge. The mill is a five-storey cut-stone building. When the mill was completed in 1766, it was the largest flour mill in Ireland.

By channelling the water of the Boyne through the [[weir]] that passes under the five-storey building, the [[watermill|water-powered mill]] in the building ground flour until the 1870s, at which point [[roller mill]]s replaced [[grindstone]]s. The mill building was later converted to processing Irish [[wikt:scutch|scutch]] [[flax]] for clothing.<ref name="Fitzpatrick">{{cite book |author1=Fitzpatrick, David  |author2=Fitzpatrick, Maureen  |name-list-style=amp | title=The Old Frequented Ways | publisher=Slane Historical and Archaeological Society | chapter=The Old Mill}}</ref>

With competition in the textile industry, the mill began to transition from [[primary sector]] to more [[secondary sector of the economy|secondary finished goods]], and to that end, the workforce largely moved to the "new mill" in the early-mid-20th century, which could house the longer lines of [[Rapier loom|power loom]]s. A concrete walkway cutting through the forest that separates the two mills was similarly built to allow a quicker exchange of personnel. The now increasingly idle water-powered mill in what became the "old mill", was converted into a dedicated [[low head hydro power]] [[run-of-the-river hydroelectricity]] generating station. Its operators received a cheque from the [[Electricity Supply Board|ESB]] for a number of decades until it fell into disrepair.

By the late 20th century, both mills shared the fate of most others in the [[Textile industry|textile industry of western Europe]]; repeated downsizing brought about by a failure to innovate a desirable and unique [[Brand|design signature]], competition from businesses with greater supply-chain [[vertical integration]], the need to upgrade to more modern [[air-jet loom]]s and cheaper labour in the far East have all conspired to ensure the "new mill" likewise has all but left the textile industry that was once the primary employer in Slane.

===Slane Bridge===
[[File:SlaneBridgebyJimmyHarris.jpg|thumb|left|The hill and dangerous bend approaching Slane bridge.]]
[[File:Francis Ledwidge memorial - geograph.org.uk - 455605.jpg|thumb|left|225px| Memorial plaque on Slane bridge commemorating poet, [[Irish Volunteers|Irish]] and [[National Volunteers]] member, [[Francis Ledwidge]], who was to serve and die in [[World War I]].]]
[[File:Slane - Baile Shláine.jpg|alt=Signposts showing the entry to Slane, as well as the 30km/h speed limit|thumb|Road signposts on the N2 as northbound traffic enters Slane from [[Ashbourne, County Meath|Ashbourne]]. A 30 km/h speed limit has been adopted in Slane since 2009 in an effort to prevent further collisions. The signs are located nearly a kilometre from the notorious black spot.]]
The N2 crosses the River Boyne south of the village. The road descends a steep hill from the village and makes an almost ninety-degree turn onto the 14th-century bridge.<ref name="Trench" /> This bend was the scene of at least 22 fatalities in the late 20th century.<ref name="Keogh">{{cite news | last=Keogh | first=Elaine | url=http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2004/0724/4048233660HM2SLANE.html | archive-url=https://archive.today/20130127013415/http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2004/0724/4048233660HM2SLANE.html | url-status=dead | archive-date=27 January 2013 | title=Councillor angered at lack of progress on Slane bypass | newspaper=The Irish Times | date=4 July 2004 | access-date=20 May 2006 }}</ref> As you climb the hill towards Slane village the wall on the right-hand side of the road has a number of small white crosses, each representing a death on this stretch of road. Most of the crashes have involved [[heavy goods vehicles]] which are not able to slow down sufficiently to make the sharp bend after picking up speed on the hill. [[Meath County Council]] and the [[National Roads Authority]] have installed a number of [[traffic calming]] measures over the years in an attempt to make the bend onto the bridge safer. These include separate traffic signals for heavy goods vehicles and cars, as well as a [[Road speed limits in the Republic of Ireland|30km/h speed limit]] throughout the village.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Crowley|first=Sorcha|title=New traffic controls for Slane black spot|url=https://www.irishtimes.com/news/new-traffic-controls-for-slane-black-spot-1.1099784|access-date=2020-08-14|newspaper=The Irish Times|language=en}}</ref> Since their installation, fatal accidents have ceased. It was hoped that the opening of the [[M1 motorway (Republic of Ireland)|M1 motorway]] would divert a lot of the heavy traffic from the village but there is evidence that many heavy goods vehicles still use the N2 (and thus Slane bridge) to avoid paying the [[Toll bridge|toll]] on the [[Boyne River Bridge|M1 bridge]].<ref name="Keogh" /><ref name="HoganKeogh">{{cite news | last=Hogan | first=Treacy |author2=Keogh, Elaine  | url=https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/speeding-trucks-pose-major-safety-risk-on-death-bridge-26088346.html | title=Speeding trucks pose major safety risk on death bridge | work=The Irish Independent | date=29 May 2001 | access-date=20 May 2006}}</ref> Planning permission for a 3.5&nbsp;km bypass of Slane was refused by [[An Bord Pleanála]] in 2012, due to heritage concerns regarding the nearby [[Newgrange|Newgrange monument]]. An Bord Pleanála said that due to the proposed road being in the "viewshed" of the Newgrange [[UNESCO]] site, approval would only be considered if no alternative route was possible.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Proposed Slane Bypass - Brú na Bóinne Heritage Sites|url=https://www.newgrange.com/news35.htm|access-date=2020-08-30|website=www.newgrange.com}}</ref>

The bridge has not always been the source of tragedy, the evening of 18 May 1969 is fondly remembered by many of the community when a truck laden with [[Old Bushmills Distillery|Bushmills]] and Cream of Barley Whiskey was travelling from [[County Antrim]] to Dublin when its brakes failed coming down the hill and it rolled over the bridge wall into the river some 3 meters or so below, the driver{{who|date=December 2013}} survived and was brought to Hospital but the entire loot of liquor was strewn across the river bottom. Most of the town of Slane were quick on the scene, vans and truck were seen spiriting away from the wreck of the truck in the dead of night. Several prosecutions followed, but the actual quantity of whiskey taken away is still known only to the management of Bushmills and perhaps to the Insurance Company that followed up the claim. The following day five Irish Divers, Brian Cusack, Sean Sheridan, Joe Murray, Fergus McKenna and Sean Donohoe arrived and while the local people of Slane were still [[dredging]] for bottles they collected 408 bottles in total, the local butcher in Slane at the time was apparently still drinking Bushmills Whiskey four years later.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.irishsac.org/drupal/node/6 |title=The Boyne Water This article was written by Brian Cusack for a booklet commemorating the Irish Sub-aqua Club's twenty-fifth anniversary. |access-date=13 December 2013 |archive-date=4 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304091738/http://www.irishsac.org/drupal/node/6 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

==Near Slane==
{{See also|Dunmoe Castle}}
There are many other historical sites in the area around Slane. The [[Brú na Bóinne]] complex of [[Neolithic]] [[chamber tomb]]s lies on the River Boyne, {{convert|5|km|0}} downstream from the village. This includes [[Newgrange]], a [[passage tomb]] built c. 3200 BC.<ref name="OKelly">{{cite book | author=O'Kelly, Michael J. | year=1982 | title=Newgrange | publisher=Thames and Hudson | isbn=0-500-27371-5}}</ref>

[[File:Ledwidge Cottage Museum, Slane County Meath.jpg|thumb|Ledwidge Cottage Museum, Slane, County Meath<br />where Francis Ledwidge lived and grew up as a young poet.]]
Across the river from the old mill stand the ruins of Fennor Castle/[[tower house|Tower House]], adjacent to Fennor Church and its graveyard.<ref>[http://slanehistoryandarchaeologysociety.com/index.php/slane-in-local-history/3-fennor FENNOR CASTLE (in its historical context).Slane history and archaeology society]</ref><ref name="Ryle">{{cite book | author=Ryle, John | title=The Old Frequented Ways | publisher=Slane Historical and Archaeological Society | chapter=Fennor Castle and its Historical Context}}</ref>

The ruins of Castle Dexter which was built circa the 12th century, lay approximately 2 kilometres (1.3 miles) west of Slane Castle and it is likewise sited near the banks of the River Boyne. 18th-century drawings and watercolours of how this castle appeared are held in the [[National Library of Ireland]].<ref>[http://www.tara.tcd.ie/xmlui/handle/2262/18462 a view of Carrick Castle (or Castle Dexter), near Slane, County Meath, Ireland. drawings by Austin Cooper and watercolours by Gabriel Beranger]</ref>

In common with the town of Drogheda and the area around the adjacent limestone quarry of [[Rail transport in Ireland#Freight|Platin]], a number of now overgrown [[lime kiln]]s dot the hills of Slane, with the most visible being behind the only service station remaining in the village and to the rear of Ledwidge Cottage.

[[Rosnaree]] Mill and its accompanying [[Sheela na gig|Sheela na Gig]], a stone carving which has been taken indoors to prevent further weathering, can be viewed upon request to the owner at George's Patisseries on Chapel Street, Slane.
  
The site of the [[Battle of the Boyne]] is {{convert|10|km}} downriver, east, from Slane.

==Transport==
[[Bus Éireann]] route '''190''' links Slane to [[Drogheda]], [[Navan]], [[Trim, County Meath|Trim]], [[Mullingar]] and [[Athlone]]. There is a bus in each direction every hour to/from [[Navan]], [[Trim, County Meath|Trim]] and [[Drogheda]] and every two hours to [[Athlone]].<ref>{{cite web | url=https://buseireann.ie/inner.php?id=406&form-view-timetables-from=Drogheda+%28Bus+Station%29+-+%5B135951%5D&form-view-timetables-to=&form-view-timetables-route=190&form-view-timetables-submit=1 | title=Bus Éireann Timetable Route 190, Drogheda - Navan - Trim - Mullingar - Athlone - Bus Éireann - View Ireland Bus and Coach Timetables & Buy Tickets }}</ref> The bus to [[Duleek]] was withdrawn in November 2013.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://buseireann.ie/news_timetable.php?id=1402&month=Nov| url-status = dead| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20131203021138/http://buseireann.ie/news_timetable.php?id=1402&month=Nov| archive-date = 2013-12-03| title = Route 190/190A Laytown-Drogheda-Navan-Trim/Athboy effective Sunday, 24 November 2013 - Timetable News - Bus Éireann - View Ireland Bus and Coach Timetables & Buy Tickets}}</ref> Collins Coaches operate a route linking Slane to [[Dublin]], [[Collon]], [[Ardee]] and [[Carrickmacross]] with one journey each way to/from [[Ballybay]].<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.collinscoaches.ie/index.php/dublin-commuter-service| url-status = dead| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130314084821/http://www.collinscoaches.ie/index.php/dublin-commuter-service| archive-date = 2013-03-14| title = Dublin Commuter Service}}</ref> McConnons also serve Slane with a few services a day.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.mcconnonsbuses.com/?p=timetable| title = McConnons Buses - Daily return bus service from Monaghan to Dublin. M1 and N2 routes. WiFi on Board}}</ref> The Sunday only [[Bus Éireann]] route 177 providing a single journey each way via Slane on the [[Monaghan]] to [[Dublin]] route was withdrawn in November 2013.

==Slane local electoral area==
Slane is also the name of a [[local electoral area]] encompassing a large area of eastern County Meath from Lobinstown to the [[Irish Sea]]. This area includes other towns larger but not older than Slane in the modern day, such as [[Duleek]], [[Stamullen]] and the portions of the environs of [[Drogheda]] which are in County Meath. The population of Slane Local Electoral Area was 32,126 in 2006.<ref name="cso2006" /><ref name="mccMap">{{cite web | url = http://meathtourism.ie/LocalAuthorities/Maps/MeathElectoralAreasMap/ | title = Meath Electoral Areas Map | access-date = 3 May 2007 | format = JPG | publisher = [[Meath County Council]] | archive-date = 27 October 2007 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20071027125034/http://meathtourism.ie/LocalAuthorities/Maps/MeathElectoralAreasMap/ | url-status = dead }}</ref>{{update inline|date=March 2022}}

=="Slane" trademark controversy==
An application by "Slane Castle Whiskey" to both the EU [[Intellectual Property]] Office and the US [[United States Patent and Trademark Office|Patent and Trade Mark Office]], to [[trademark]] the placename of "Slane" was filed in 2015. This trademarking became known after a business in the village, which had desired to use "Slane" in its title, discovered it was blocked from doing so.<ref name="irishtimes.com">[https://www.irishtimes.com/business/slane-registered-as-trademark-by-us-multinational-1.2928296 ‘Slane’ registered as trademark by US multinational, ''The Irish Times'']</ref> The controversy, around the trademarking includes that this application was designed to cast a very wide net, over a range of goods and services, not limited to alcohol, resulting in the trademark-holders controlling an array of other categories.<ref name="irishtimes.com"/><ref name="thetrademarkninja.com"/> In the EU jurisdiction, the attempt had been granted,<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://tmdb.eu/trademark/EU014252845-slane.html |title=European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) |access-date=16 October 2017 |archive-date=16 October 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171016175137/https://tmdb.eu/trademark/EU014252845-slane.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> without the prerequisite of a simple web-search being conducted on the name,<ref name="irishtimes.com"/> raising issues of corruption and reassessment being required, as an earlier EU-trademark-ruling exists, that explicitly prohibits businesses from trademarking the name of historical places.<ref name="irishtimes.com"/>

In the still ongoing US case,<ref>{{cite web| url = https://inventively.com/search/trademarks/86658395| url-status = dead| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20171016225712/https://inventively.com/search/trademarks/86658395| archive-date = 2017-10-16| title = Slane - Trademark #86658395, Owner: Slane Castle Irish Whiskey Limited}}</ref> the attempt to trademark "Slane" was refused in 2015 on the grounds that, upon doing a web-search, the word is both the name of a place and there are other local businesses with a long-standing use of "Slane" as part of their name.<ref name="irishtimes.com"/>

==Notable people==
{{See also|Category:People from Slane}}
* [[John Cassidy (artist)|John Cassidy]] (1860–1939), painter and sculptor
* [[Dean Cogan]] (1826–1872) Catholic historian, author of ''[[The Diocese of Meath]]''.
* [[John Connolly (bishop)|John Connolly]] (1750–1825), second Bishop of the [[Roman Catholic Diocese of New York]]
* [[Francis Ledwidge]] (1887–1917), poet killed in action during [[World War I]].
* [[Denis Nulty]] (1963-), current Catholic Bishop of Kildare and Leighlin
* [[John Boyle O'Reilly]] (1844–1890), poet, publisher, and member of the [[Irish Republican Brotherhood]]

==See also==
* [[List of towns and villages in the Republic of Ireland|List of towns and villages in Ireland]]
* [[List of abbeys and priories in the Republic of Ireland#County Meath|List of abbeys and priories in the Republic of Ireland, (County Meath)]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons|Slane}}
* [http://www.visitslane.ie/ Visit Slane]  – Slane's Official Website
* [http://www.mythicalireland.com/ancientsites/slane/ancient.html Slane in Ancient Times]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20071223123053/http://www.slanetourism.com/ Slane Tourism] – information on sights, activities and accommodation in and around the village.

{{Towns and villages in County Meath}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Towns and villages in County Meath]]
[[Category:Townlands of County Meath]]
[[Category:Civil parishes of County Meath]]
[[Category:Tourist attractions in County Meath]]
[[Category:Planned communities in the Republic of Ireland]]
[[Category:History of Catholicism in Ireland]]