THURLES

Irish Durlas (Strong Ring Fort) town, County Tipperary, Ireland, on the banks of the River Suir. The seat of the Roman Catholic archbishopric of Cashel and Emly, the town is a marketing centre for a large agricultural area; it has a sugar beet factory, and it is a well-known sporting centre. The Knights Templars held a 13th-century castle there and founded a preceptory. A Carmelite priory existed from 1300 to 1540; the cathedral (185775) was built in Romanesque style on the priory site. Bridge and Black castles are all that remain of the Butler family castles. The Abbey of Holy Cross, founded for the Benedictines and transferred to the Cistercians about 1182, has been much restored; and its ruins are well preserved. Pop. (1981) 7,352.