Province of Leinster

County Kildare

Known as The Thoroughbred County. For the Curragh and the horse country around it: the racecourse, the studs, and the flat limestone grassland that feeds them.

Did you know? A perpetual flame burned for St Brigid at Kildare, tended by nuns for centuries until the Reformation. It was solemnly relit in 1993 and burns again today.

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Through the ages — who held Kildare

8,000 BC – 4,001 BC Mesolithic hunter-gatherers The First Irish

4,000 BC – 2,501 BC Neolithic farming communities The Tomb Builders

2,500 BC – 501 BC Bronze Age Ireland The Age of Gold & Bronze

500 BC – AD 99 Iron Age Ireland The Iron Age

AD 100 – AD 399 Cauci Ptolemy's Ireland

AD 400 – 1013 Laigin (Leinster) The Five Fifths Patrick & the Rise of the Uí Néill Saints & Scholars The Viking Storm Norse Cities & the Rise of Brian

1014 – 1168 Kingdom of Leinster (Mac Murrough) Kings with Opposition

1169 – 1333 Anglo-Norman Lordship of Ireland The Norman Invasion High Tide of the Colony

1334 – 1541 The English Pale The Gaelic Resurgence The Kildare Ascendancy

1542 – 1607 Kingdom of Ireland (Tudor crown) The Tudor Conquest

1608 – 1640 Kingdom of Ireland The Plantation of Ulster

1641 – 1652 Confederate Ireland Confederate Ireland & Cromwell

1653 – 1800 Kingdom of Ireland Ascendancy Ireland

1801 – 1915 United Kingdom of Great Britain & Ireland The Act of Union An Gorta Mór — The Great Famine Land & Liberty

1916 – 1921 Irish Republic (declared, contested) The Revolution

1922 – 1936 Irish Free State Partition — Free State & Northern Ireland

1937 – 1948 Ireland (Éire) Éire

1949 – 2026 Republic of Ireland The Republic & the Troubles Peace & the New Ireland

Clans & surnames of Kildare

Bermingham Mac Fheorais Norman · “from Birmingham, England” Carey Ó Ciardha / Ó Cearaigh Gaelic septs (several) · “descendant of Ciardha, 'the dark one' — among several distinct roots” Cullen Ó Cuilinn Gaelic sept · “descendant of Cuileann, 'holly'” Fitzgerald Mac Gearailt Norman dynasty · “fitz Gerald — son of Gerald (of Windsor)” O'Toole Ó Tuathail Gaelic sept · “descendant of Tuathal, 'ruler of the people'” Woulfe de Bhulbh Norman · “le woulf — 'the wolf'”

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On the ground in Kildare

Castledermot · round tower · complete to cornice · 20 m
Kildare · round tower · complete to cornice · 32 m
Killashee · round tower · incomplete · 7.3 m
Moone High Cross · high cross
Old Kilcullen · round tower · incomplete · 11 m
Oughter Ard · round tower · incomplete · 9.5 m
St. John's Church, Ballymore Eustace · high cross
Taghadoe · round tower · incomplete · 19.8 m
13 castles · Barretstown Castle, Carbury Castle, County Kildare, Grange Castle, Jigginstown Castle, Kildare Castle and more

Every pin is placed by its documented coordinates. All the monuments of Ireland →

Quick answers

What is the Irish name for County Kildare?

Cill Dara. Kildare is one of the 12 counties of Leinster (Cúige Laighean).

Who ruled County Kildare in the Middle Ages?

Around 1014 it was held by Kingdom of Leinster (Mac Murrough); by 1450, The English Pale. The full era-by-era chronology is on this page.

What surnames come from County Kildare?

Names historically associated with Kildare include Bermingham, Carey, Cullen, Fitzgerald, O'Toole, Woulfe.

Trace your ancestors in Kildare

Free, from the holding institutions. How to begin: the six-step guide → · Spotted an error on this page? Suggest a correction.