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Temair Luachra

Temair Luachra is described as follows in the METRICAL DINDSHENCHAS:

Poem 44
Temair Luachra

1. The Luachair!
if I remember aright, O boy,
it was a fair wide level plain,
with many a raid and onset.
2. The Luachair!
it was a bright choice teeming home;
at the time when it changed its seeming
it was fairer than the Land of Promise.
3. The Luachair!
it was a home of hero and bride;
it was a flowery plain, set with thorn,
till the date of the sons of Ugaine.
4. The Luachair!
many a spear was in its hostel;
in the time of Dedad son of Sen,
its clover-flowers were beneath their feet.
5. It was comely for the children of Dedad,
when their home was at Temair;
comely was Temair round their house
in the time of Dedad son of Sen.
6. There was given to the daughter of fierce Lugaid,
for her journey from the land beneath the wave,
every holding she chose for live-stock,
for advancing on the journey.
7. Eremon's wife was she;
it is she that dwelt at Temair Breg,
and all that was here:
from her it is called Temair Luachra.
8. The night Conn was born
great Erin was glad to welcome him;
on that night arose
the Suir, the Nore, and the Barrow.
9. The night Conn was born
uprose every prince in his might;
in that night were made known — lasting fame!
Tortan's bole, the yew of Ross.
10. The night Conn was born
Erin was flooded at one blow;
twas then Loch Riach arose
and Loch Lein above Luachair.
11. I am Fintan; I am an aged man;
my date and my era have altered;
I came into noble Inis Fail
fourteen hours before the Flood.
12. When the Flood was spilt on earth
the Flood buried my coevals, — not false the cry!
I abide in sooth at Dun Tulcha
in the north-west of Luachair.

According to this poem, the Clanna Dedad led by Cúrói mac Dári (verses 4 &5) lived in the vicinity of Slieve Luachra. Cúrói mac Dári's wife, Bláthnat of the Isle of Man, was in love with Cuchulainn and helped him to kill Cúrói, only to be slain herself by Ferchertne, Cúrói's loyal poet. The complete story from the Ulster Cycle can be read here.

Luachair in this poem refers either to the area of Slieve Lougher, a mountain range between Limerick and Kerry, or the plain near Temair Luachra. Temair Luachra itself is believed by many historians to be what remains of an ancient fort near the modern town of Castleisland, atop what is today called Tory Hill.

Tory Hill is a well-known landmark, towering 372 feet above the pristine depths of Lough Nagirra and the surrounding boglands. The summit offers a spectacular view of the three surrounding counties, Clare, Cork and Tipperary.

This lofty peak was a natural site for an ancient fortress. Remains of a structure have been found, which was probably once the royal seat of North Munster, 'Temair Luachra'. A gold lunula or royal collar dated from betweeb 2000 to 500BC was found there in the mid 1800s. It is now in the National Museum in Dublin.

The name Tory Hill only dates to the 18th century. Maurice Lenihan's "History of Limerick" explains that the hill was a popular sanctuary during the 17th and 18th centuries for "numbers of freebooters and haters of English power." In Gaelic, Tóraidhe is a word for tory, robber, highwayman or fugitive'.

Before it was known as Tory Hill, this site was called Dromasail or Cnoc Droma Asail (Hill of the Ridge of Asal). According to legend, around 1500 BC the reign of the Firbolgs ended and one of the princes, Asal, took over Drom Asail. The plain that stretches eastward between Tory Hill and Loch Gur used to be called Má Asail (Plain of Asal). Another explanation for the name is that Cnoc Drom Asail simply means 'the hill of the ass's back'.

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