Clonmel

Clonmel is the county town of South Tipperary in Ireland. It is the largest town in the county. While the borough had a population of 15,482 in 2006, another 1526 people were in the rural environs of Clonmel comprising Marlfield, Ardgeeha Upper (Cashel Rd), Boherduff (Fethard Rd) in County Tipperary and in County Waterford the area between the Dungarvan Rd and Mountain Rd. The town is noted in Irish history for its resistance to the Cromwellian army which sacked both Drogheda and Wexford. It is in the former barony of Iffa and Offa East.

Etymology
The name Clonmel is derived from the anglicisation of the Irish name Cluain Meala meaning honey meadow or honey vale. It is not clearly known when it got this name and many suppose that it come from fertility of soil and richness of country in which it is situated.

Town walls
Clonmel grew significantly in medieval times, and many remainders of this period can be found in the town. A small section of the town walls remain in place near Old St. Mary's Church. This building is one of the main architectural features of the town. It was originally built in the 13th century or earlier but has been reconstructed or renovated on numerous occasions. The church was fortified early in its history, the town being strategically important, initially for the Earls of Ormonde, and later the Earl of Kildare. Some fortified parts of the church were destroyed or damaged during the Cromwellian occupation.One of the former entry points into the town is now the site of the 'West Gate', a 19th century reconstruction of an older structure. There were originally three gates in the walled town, North, East and West - with the South being protected by the river Suir and the Comeragh Mountains. The 'West Gate' is now an open arched entrance on to O'Connell street, the main street of the town.

Corporation regalia
Under a charter granted by James I of England, Clonmel became a Free Borough on 5 July 1608, and the Mayor and officers of the town were granted power to "name, elect and constitute one Swordbearer and three Sergeants-at-Mace". The present sword and two silver maces date only from Cromwellian times. The sword, of Toledo manufacture, was donated by Sir Thomas Stanley in 1656 and displays the Arms and motto of the town. The larger mace is stamped 1663.

Cromwellian period
Oliver Cromwell, who is infamous in Ireland, laid siege to Clonmel in May 1650 during his campaign in Ireland. The walls were eventually breached, but Hugh Dubh O'Neill, the commander of the town's garrison, inflicted heavy losses on the New Model Army when they tried to storm the breach. That night, O'Neill, deciding that further resistance was hopeless due to a lack of ammunition, led his soldiers and camp followers out of the town under cover of darkness. The story is told that Cromwell became suspicious of O'Neill's desperate situation when a silver bullet was discharged by the townspeople at his troops outside the walls. The following morning, 18 May 1650, mayor John White was able to surrender the town on good terms as Cromwell was still unaware of the garrison's escape just hours before. Although feeling deceived, he did not put the inhabitants 'to the sword' as occurred elsewhere.



19th century
Following the failed attempt at rebellion near Ballingarry in 1848, the captured leaders of the Young Irelanders were brought to Clonmel for trial. The event was followed with great interest internationally and for its duration brought journalists from around the country and Britain to the overcrowded courthouse. Standing in the dock in the image opposite are Thomas Francis Meagher, Terence MacManus and Patrick O'Donoghue. Their co-defendant, William Smith O'Brien was also sentenced to be hanged, drawn and quartered, the last occasions such a sentence was handed down in Ireland. When delivering the guilty verdict, the foreman of the Grand Jury, R.M. Southcote Mansergh, great grandfather of the academic Nicholas Mansergh stated: We earnestly recommend the prisoner to the merciful consideration of the Government, being unanimously of opinion that for many reasons his life should be spared. The sentences of O'Brien and other members of the Irish Confederation were eventually commuted to transportation for life to Van Diemen's Land. A conspiracy to rescue the prisoners on 8 November led by John O'Leary and Philip Gray was betrayed, and resulted in the arrest at 'The Wilderness' of seventeen armed rebels led by Gray.

20th century
Clonmel was the location of the foundation of the Labour Party in 1912 by James Connolly, James Larkin and William O'Brien as the political wing of the Irish Trade Union Congress.

Local
Under the provisions of the Local Government Act (2001) the Borough Council was given a status in law that is equivalent to that of 'town councils that would previously have been styled as "urban district councils". Clonmel is one of five Borough Councils in Ireland; the others are Drogheda, Kilkenny, Sligo and Wexford. Unlike Sligo and Drogheda, Clonmel does not use a ward system. Clonmel Borough Council has 12 elected representatives (councillors). Elections to the council take place every 5 years. A mayor is elected by the councillors every year; the incumbent is Cllr. Darren Ryan, a member of the Labour party. A voting pact exists which rotates the mayoral office between Fine Gael, Fianna Fáil, Labour and the sole independent councillor Niall J Dennehy.

National
Clonmel belongs to the Tipperary South constituency which elects three TDs to Dáil Eireann (the Irish Parliament). The three TDs who won seats in the Dáil following the 2011 General Election were Tom Hayes ( Fine Gael) who has served in the post since 2001, Mattie McGrath (now an Independent) and Séamus Healy (Workers and Unemployed Action Group), who regained the seat that he lost to Fianna Fáil's Martin Mansergh in the 2007 election.

Geography
The town covers a land area of approximately 11.59km2. It lies mainly on the northern bank of the River Suir. In 1896, a smaller section south of the river was transferred from County Waterford to the county of Tipperary (South Riding) and given to the borough. The lower Suir valley is surrounded by the Comeragh Mountains to the south with Slievenamon northeast of the town.

Flood defenses
The River Suir floods the local area after very heavy rainfalls in the up-river catchment area of 2,173 km2. The Office of Public Works (OPW) completed and installed a Flood Forecasting System which was used for the flood events of January 2008 and January 2009. The flooding of January 2009 was a 1 in 5 year event. The flood of 2004 was the worst since the 1940s. Phase 1 of the Clonmel Flood Defence (planned to cope with a 100-year flood) started in 2007. It was scheduled to be completed by late 2009. Phases two and three are scheduled for completion by 2011/2012. The flood defence consists of demountable barriers, walls and earth banks. By mid-2009, flooding occurred at the Gashouse Bridge, Coleville Road, Davis Road, the Quays and the Old Bridge. Clonmel is not tidal as the tide turns above the Miloko chocolate crumb factory in Carrick-on-Suir. Flood waters spill onto the land above Miloko on the County Waterford side of the river.

Commerce
In recent times Clonmel environs has become the home to many large multi-national companies, particularly in the medical area. The two biggest medical companies in the town are Abbott and Boston Scientific, both of which manufacture implantable devices. Bulmers cider, also known as Magners outside of Ireland, is brewed in a complex two kilometres east of the town, and the extensive orchards serving the brewery can be seen from the road when approaching Clonmel from that direction.

Radio
TippFm's main offices are located in Clonmel. In 2010, Tippfm had a reach of 44%, a drop of 8% from the previous year, having around 83,000 listeners listening each week. It broadcasts on 95.3fm, 97.1fm, 97.6 and 103.9.

Print
Clonmel is home to three newspapers: two broadsheets and one tabloid free sheet.

The Nationalist, founded in 1890, is a Clonmel based broadsheet newspaper that appears weekly, covering both Clonmel town and South Tipperary. It has a circulation of 14,375. It was formed to represent the views of the nationalist community in Tipperary, which led to the first editor been jailed under the Coercion Act on charges that he had intimidated a cattle dealer for taking a farm from which tenants had been evicted. It is now run by Johnston Press. Also owned by Johnston Press is the tabloid free sheet, South Tipp Today. It was founded in 1995 and is delivered free to residents in the town and the surrounding area. It is supported by advertising revenue.

The Sporting Press is published and printed in Clonmel, it covers news related to the greyhound community in Ireland. It has a circulation of 7,500.

The short lived Premier People was launched in Clonmel in October 2010. It was a weekly (tabloid) free sheet with a focus on news, local notes and sports and was published on Tuesday evenings. It was delivered door to door in Clonmel and to all shops in South Tipperary. It was founded by Ann Commins, who co-founded South Tipp Today in 1995. The Premier People stopped publishing in 2011.

Museums
Tipperary County Museum tells the history of County Tipperary from the Stone Age to the present. It is also host to many special exhibitions each year. It is the first custom built county museum in Ireland.

The Main Guard was a civic building until 1810 when it was converted to shops. During recent restoration, some of its sandstone columns were found to have been 'reclaimed' from the now demolished abbey of Inislounaght at Marlfield. It has been used in the past as an office to collect tolls, duties and customs dues, a place for civic gatherings and as a court. It now houses an exhibition showing the historic development of Clonmel, including a model of the town as it appeared in the 13th century. The South Tipperary Arts Centre opened in 1996. The centres program mixtures arts and cultural events. It hosts 12 exhibitions per year and presents a classical music season in Spring and Autumn. It holds a number of adult and child based art and music course during the course of the year. It is also home to several groups who meet there in an informal setting, including a local writer's guild.

Theatre and cinema
The White Memorial Theatre building is a former Weslyan/Methodist Chapel and was designed and built by local architect William Tinsley in 1843. The building was purchased in 1975 by St. Mary's Choral Society, who put on an average of 2 shows a year in the building. The building also host shows by the Stage Craft Youth Theatre group and special event during the year.

The Omniplex, with five screens and located on Kickham Street, is the town's only remaining cinema. Several other cinemas formerly operated in the town including the Ritz, which opened in 1940 and was located on the site of the present Credit Union. The first cinema in the town opened in January 1913 as the Clonmel Cinema Theatre, soon to be re-named the Clonmel Electric Picture Palace. It was located at the rear of No. 35 Gladstone Street. It was soon followed by John Magner's Theatre at the Mall, which burned to the ground in 1919, to be re-built in 1921 with an increased capacity of over a thousand seats. It was eventually named the Regal Theatre and remodeled as a 850-seat theatre ,which finally closed in 2001. It was in the Regal Theatre where the tenor Frank Patterson made his stage debut. The Oisin, in O'Connell Street, was of a similar scale and was also built in 1921. It was on the site of the present day Heatons but burned to the ground in 1965. The last film to be shown there was A Patch of Blue.

Festivals
For nine days from the first week-end of July, the town hosts the annual Clonmel Junction Festival. It consists of a mix of street theatre, rock, traditional and world music. Several international acts visit the festival each year. In the last few years, young local bands have also had an opportunity to showcase their talents. Children from local schools and community groups are encouraged to participate with support from local artists.

Clonmel is home to the International Film Festival Ireland, which focuses on independent films. Its inaugural event was during September 2009 and ran for five days. It has become an annual event, with the third festival planned for September 2011. The 2010 event expanded to included a Youth Film Festival, that showcased locally made short films.

Music
Banna Chluain Meala (literally translating as 'Clonmel band') was founded in 1971. Originally a brass band, Banna Chluain Meala later developed as a brass and reed band, which included concert, marching and fieldshow performances. The band also has a colour guard section which enhances marching and fieldshow performances. The total complement of the band has ranged from 100 to 150 members throughout the years. The band has travelled widely abroad to the United Kingdom, Holland and France and represented Ireland at an International Festival in Cheb in the Czech Republic in 2004 to celebrate the new entrants to the European Union. Banna Chluain Meala is one of Ireland's most honoured bands. They hold concert band championship titles on national and international levels. As a marching band they have had unparalleled success nationally, being crowned IMBA Irish champions in the highest division on eleven occasions (1991, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011). They have also had success abroad, most notably as Open Class champions at the British Youth Band Championships at Wembley in 1994.

Clonmel has hosted the Irish traditional music festival, the Fleadh Cheoil, on five occasions from 1992-94 inclusive, and again in 2003 and 2004. Indeed, the pubs of Clonmel are still excellent hosts of Irish traditional music sessions, the best of these being in Liam Dalys Bar on O' Connell Street every Friday night. Other traditional music sessions are held in Bakers Bar(Parnell Street, Monday night), The Post House(Gladstone St., Wednesday night) and the Railway Bar(Wednesday & Saturday nights).

One of the better known songs concerning Clonmel is The Gaol of Clúain Meala written by a Cork man, Jeremiah Joseph Callanan at the turn of the 19th century. It was revived by the celebrated balladeer Luke Kelly in the 1960s.

Music Venues in Clonmel include The Piper Inn famous for hosting a show for Irish Rock legends Thin Lizzy.

Some Clonmel bands include, Let's Run to the Philosophers, Responsible Looking Freaks, Broken Glass on Broadway, Crow Black Chicken, Radio Caroline and Alphonsus. The most acclaimed however, would be the Joy Division tribute band, "Transmission" which consists of twin brothers Brian and Shane Donnelly.

Clonmel in literature
Vertue rewarded, or The Irish princess, (1693), one of the earliest romance novels written in the English language, tells the story of 'Merinda' from High Street, Clonmel and a Williamite officer stationed in the town during the Jacobite war.

Raymond Chandler's 1939 novel The Big Sleep, features Rusty Regan as a main character: "A big curly-headed Irishman from Clonmel, with sad eyes and a smile as wide as Wilshire Boulevard."

Association Football
Clonmel is home to Clonmel Celtic, Old Bridge, Wilderness Rovers, Redmondstown and Clonmel Town who play in the TSDL League.

Rugby
Clonmel Rugby Club plays in the Munster Junior League in the top flight, 1st Division. The rugby club was founded in 1892. In 1990 the club opened their new Club House coinciding with the first ever Soviet Union rugby team visit to Ireland. In their centenary year, 1992, they hosted London Irish RFC against Shannon RFC in a memorable game played at the club grounds.

Cricket
Clonmel's cricket club plays teams in the Munster Cricket Union Senior 2 and Senior 3 leagues. The cricket club currently fields 1 adult teams and 2 youth teams. All play their home games in the Presentation Convent Field. Clonmel's cricket Club was originally started by a group of friends who originally played the game socially, however the club has been playing competitive cricket for the last 20 years.

Coursing
Clonmel is noted in greyhound circles for being the home of the annual National Hare Coursing Meeting in early February. Included in this event is the prestigious Ladies’ International Open Meeting and the coursing derby. At this time each year, Clonmel's population is swollen by a large influx of sports people from Ireland, the UK, and from as far afield as Australia, New Zealand, the United States and the Middle East.

Also at this time many people come to make plain their objections to what they see as appalling cruelty.

Rowing and boat building
Clonmel has two clubs associated with recreational activity on the river Suir, both of which are based in Irishtown.

Clonmel Rowing Club (CRC)
Clonmel Rowing Club (CRC), was founded in 1869 and is one of the oldest sporting clubs in the town. It is located on Moor's Island, on the Suir, about 500 meters west of the town centre. The club colours are Royal Blue and White. Sporting success in the early 1900s culminated in the winning of the Senior Men's 'eight' championships in 1920. The club is affectionately known locally as "The Island". In winter, training takes place on a 4-mile stretch of the river to the west of the town, from the clubhouse to Knocklofty bridge. In the summer months this stretch is reduced to 2 miles as far as Sandybanks, near Marlfield village.

Flooding has become a perennial problem, especially noticeable in recent years. The flow becomes so fast that rowing in January is not possible on this part of the Suir. Within a 25-mile radius there are two locations where the club can still train satisfactorily, Cappoquin and Fiddown.

CRC has a newly constructed, purpose built boat house since 1979, with boat storage on the ground floor. Upstairs are two squash courts, a function hall and dressing rooms. Currently one squash court is being used as the gym.

In the new millennium, the club's veterans are still competing strongly. Women's rowing in Clonmel has developed culminating in Junior Women's 'double scull' and Junior women's 'eight' championship wins in 2003 and 2005.

Workmen's Boat Club
The Workmen's Boat Club was established in 1883. The property was leased from the Bagwell estate until 1999, when it was finally purchased by the club. One of the major undertakings of the club in recent years has been the restoration of the historic racing craft Cruiskeen, which was built in the 1840s by GAA founder member Maurice Davin. The project, outsourced to 'Conservation | Letterfrack', took several years of meticulous cleaning, treatment and repair and the 38 ft./11.6m timber boat is now on permanent display in the County Museum, Clonmel.

GAA Clubs
Clonmel is home to several Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) clubs such as Clonmel Commercials Gaelic Football Club (football|). Affiliated to the GAA in 1934, Commercials have enjoyed frequent success in all grades of football since. It has won South and County titles in all grades including 21 senior divisional titles and 14 senior county titles.St. Mary's Hurling Club is a hurling club in the town which recently set up its camogie club.(hurling and camogie). Clonmel Óg the most recently established GAA club in the town was set up in 1984 and it competes in the senior division after only twenty seven years after being formed. Moyle Rovers GAA club is just outside the town.

Primary schools

 * Gaelscoil Chluain Meala has around 200 students. Located at Irishtown and originally the Free School, the building was designed by two pupils of the renowned architect John Nash. It was for a number of years the offices of South Tipperary County Council.
 * St Mary's Parochial School, Clonmel, also known as the Model School, traces its roots to the Incorporated Society School of 1832. It is located on the Western Road. (Church of Ireland)
 * St Oliver's national school was founded in 1982. It is situated at Heywood Road.
 * St.Mary's CBS is located in Irishtown directly beside the Gaelscoil.
 * St.Peter and Paul's CBS.
 * Sisters Of Charity Girls School.
 * Presentation Primary School.

Secondary schools

 * Presentation Convent, for girls, (Roman Catholic)
 * Loreto Convent, for girls, (Roman Catholic)
 * CBS High School, for boys, (Roman Catholic)
 * Gaelcholáiste Chéitinn, co-educational. Part of the Clonmel Central Technical Institute. Established in 2004, the school teaches through the medium of Irish. It was established as an autonomous school within the Vocational Education Committee  system in response to a demand for second level education through the medium of Irish.
 * Coláiste Chluain Meala, co-educational. Formerly known as The Clonmel Central Technical Institute Secondary School which traces its history back to 1842. Under the control of the local Vocational Education Committee.
 * CTI Senior College, co-educational. Part of the Clonmel Central Technical Institute and under the control of the local Vocational Education Committee. There is an official website listing PLC courses.

Third level
Clonmel is home to one third-level college, LIT Tipperary (formerly TRBDI), which was established in 1998. It is a dual campus institute, with its sister campus in Thurles. The campus is located along the Clonmel Inner Relief Road, but it is proposed that it will move to a new location in the near future.

Transport
Clonmel is located on the N24, the national primary roadway that links the cities of Limerick and Waterford. The N24 westbound connects Clonmel to junction 10 of the Cork to Dublin M8 motorway, while eastbound it links the town with Kilkenny via the N76. Clonmel railway station opened 1 May 1852. Today, there are four trains daily to Waterford and four to Limerick Junction which has main-line connections to Dublin. The River Suir had been made navigable to Clonmel from 1760 when completion of the River Suir Navigation in the 19th century allowed large vessels to reach the town's quays. Charles Bianconi, onetime mayor of Clonmel, ran his pioneering public transport system of horse-drawn carriages from Clonmel.

People associated with Clonmel

 * Symon Semeonis was a 14th century Franciscan friar who left Clonmel in 1323 on pilgrimage to the Holy Land
 * Francis Bryan (1490–1550), English courtier and diplomat during the reign of Henry VIII. died at Conmel in 1550
 * Bonaventura Baron (1610–1696), a distinguished Franciscan humanist, philosopher and writer was born in Clonmel
 * Laurence Sterne (1713–68), author of 'The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman', was born in the town, though his family returned to England soon after
 * William J. Duane (1780–1865), American politician and lawyer from Pennsylvania, was born in Clonmel
 * Charles Bianconi (1786–1875),onetime mayor of Clonmel, ran his pioneering public transport system of horse-drawn carriages from Clonmel
 * George Borrow (1803–1881), polyglot, ethnologist of the Romani people and author of Lavengro, in which he briefly writes of his time in Clonmel, lived here in 1815
 * Ramsay Weston Phipps (1838–1923), military historian, born in Clonmel, lived there off and on throughout his life.
 * Anthony Trollope (1815–1852), a noted author, worked in the town for a period
 * Vincent Hanley (1954–1987), a pioneering Irish radio DJ and television presenter, nicknamed "Fab Vinny". He worked mainly for Raidió Teilifís Éireann and was the first Irish celebrity to die from an AIDS-related illness.
 * Frank Patterson (1938–2000), one of Ireland's most famous tenors, was native to the town
 * Mícheál Ó Súilleabháin, an Irish musician, and holds Professorship of Music at the Irish World Music Centre of the University of Limerick
 * Adi Roche, co-founder of Chernobyl Children's Project International and 1997 candidate for the Irish Presidency
 * Fred Murray, professional football player, playing in England for Luton Town
 * Thomas Chamney, Irish athlete who ran 800m in Beijing Olympics in 2008
 * Andrea Roche, best known Irish Model
 * Vivian Murray, businessman
 * Pat O'Callaghan, was an Irish athlete and Olympic gold medallist.

Sister towns
Clonmel is twinned with several places: