Genealogy in Louth
Louth(Self Catering, Louth, Ireland), a county of Ireland, bounded S and SW by E. Meath, W by Monaghan and Cavan, N by Armagh, NE by the bay of Carlingford, and E by the Irish channel, 27 m. long, and 18 broad. It is in general rich and well cultivated, and has little waste ground. The chief river in Louth is Boyne. The linen manufacture is carried on to a great extent. It sends 1 member to parliament. Before the coming of the Normans, along with Monaghan and Armagh it formed part of the Gaelic kingdom of Oriel. The leading family in the area at that point was the O’Carrolls, though the name is now quite rare in the county. Prince John annexed the area to the English crown in 1185 and from that point on the dominant influences were English and Norman; Louth was part of the Pale, the belt of land surrounding Dublin where the jurisdiction of the English crown remained undefeated. The Norman influence was responsible for the development of two relatively large towns close together, Dundalk and Drogheda.
