Some Facts about Portlaois
contributed by Jim Langton
1- During the archaeological excavations for the Portlaois by-pass, seven iron age furnaces for the manufacture of metal implements were discovered.
2- The town of Portlaois was,during the reign of Mary Tudor, called Maryborough when the region was planted by the English. At that time the town was fortified against attack.
3- The dispossessed O Mores rose in rebellion and repeatedly attacked the fortress of
Maryborough.
4- In 1599, the O Mores defeated an English force under Essex at a place called the pass of the plumes. It was so called because of the plumed helmets strewn there after the battle.
5- The rock of Dunamase, 4 miles east of Portlaoise, was once a Celtic hill fort. At the time of the Norman invasion, it was in the possession of Dermot
MacMurrough. The first castle was built here by the Anglo-Normans in the 12th century and it was demolished four hundred years after by Cromwell's army.
6- In 1601, at the time of religious persecution in Ireland, bishop Robert
Lalor, a native of Dysart, Portlaoise, was hung drawn and quartered in Dublin.
7- Dr. Bartholomew Mosse, the founder of the Rotunda hospital, was the son of Rev. Thomas
Mosse, the rector of Portlaoise. Dr. Mosse died in 1759.
8- Dr. Arthur Jacob, Irelands first eye specialist, was born in Knockfin near
Portlaoise, on the 13th of June 1790.
Source: Ireland's Own Magazine
