Rosnaree

Rossnaree (Irish: Ros na Riogh, meaning "wood of the kings") (Old Irish Ros na Ríg) is a small village in County Meath, Ireland, on the south bank of the River Boyne, near the Brú na Bóinne complex of neolithic monuments on the north bank. It commands a ford that was used by the Williamites at the Battle of the Boyne in 1690. The walls of the mill at Rosnaree once contained a Sheela na Gig, although this has now been removed for safe keeping.

Legends

The legendary High King of Ireland Cormac mac Airt is reputedly buried at Rossnaree, having refused to be buried at a pagan site after converting to Christianity. In the Ulster Cycle tale Cath Ruis na Ríg ("the Battle of Rosnaree"), it is the site of a battle between Conchobar mac Nessa, king of the Ulaid, and his son-in-law Cairpre Nia Fer, king of Tara, during which the Ulaid hero Cú Chulainn kills Cairpre with a spear thrown from a distance, and then decapitates him before his body hits the ground.