WICKLOW

Irish Cill Mhantin seaport and county seat, County Wicklow, Ireland, south-southeast of Dublin. St. Mantan built a church there in the 5th century; and the town later became a settlement of the Vikings, who renamed it Wykingalo (Vikings' Lough). After the Anglo-Norman invasion in the 12th century, it was granted to Maurice Fitzgerald, who built Black Castle. From then until the 17th century the town suffered many attacks. There are remains of a 13th-century Franciscan friary and an ancient fort. The town is now a coastal holiday resort with some light industry. Pop. (1981) 5,178. Irish Cill Mhantin county in the province of Leinster, Ireland. With an area of 782 sq mi (2,025 sq km), it is bounded on the east by the Irish Sea and by Counties Wexford (south), Carlow and Kildare (west), and Dublin (north). County Wicklow includes much of the Leinster Chain mountain range, notably the Wicklow Mountains, and has fertile lowland areas. Much of its coast comprises rocky cliffs and excellent sand beaches. The main summits of the Leinster Chain are above 2,000 ft, with Lugnaquillia Mountain the highest at 3,039 ft (926 m); in places it is marked by waterfalls and river gorges. South of Lugnaquillia the range is not a significant barrier, but the Wicklow Mountains are nowhere crossed at an altitude of less than 1,000 ft; the Military Road through the mountains, built after the 1798 rebellion, runs at a height of more than 1,000 ft for more than 20 mi (32 km). The main valleys of the range are those of the Rivers Glencree and Dargle, the deep Lough (lake) Dan valley, and Glenmacnass, Glendasan, and Glendalough. The Avonmore is joined by the Avonbeg where it becomes the Avoca and is subsequently joined by the Aughrim. On the west side, the basin of the upper Liffey is filled largely with the Pollaphuca reservoir, which serves Dublin. Glaciation has strongly influenced the landscape of the county: some of the valleys have been deepened by ice, and many have moraines. Other glacial features include meltwater channels and deltas. Most of the farmland is on soils of glacial or meltwater origin, and improved land is found up to 1,000 ft or more in some valleys. Containing much wild and inaccessible territory, Wicklow was always a place for fugitives and for those who sought to prey on the inhabitants of the Dublin area. Wicklow town was a Norse harbour, but inland the countryside remained in native hands. MacMurroughs, O'Byrnes, O'Tooles, and others constantly raided the lower lands of the English Pale (territory) until 1601. Wicklow men were involved in the Wexford uprising of 1798. More than half the population lives in towns and villages. Bray's growth occurred mainly after the railway was built in 1851; it is a seaside resort and residence for Dublin commuters, and an industrial centre. Greystones and Delgany are also resorts and residential centres. Wicklow is a coastal market town with some industry. Arklow still has some shipping, a pottery, and a strong market trade. A county council meets in Wicklow town, and there is a county manager. Arklow, Bray, and Wicklow are urban districts. In the mountains the farms are generally small, with a few acres only given to oats and potatoes. Sheep are kept on the mountains. More than half the land is under crops or pasture. In the lower areas, mixed farming is general, with farms averaging about 70 ac (28 ha). Crops include wheat, barley, and oats; beef and dairy cattle are raised, the former for the export trade or for the Dublin market. At Avoca, pyrites and low-grade copper ore have been mined with fluctuating intensity since the 1940s. There is a large fertilizer factory near Arklow. At Pollaphuca on the River Liffey a large hydroelectric project has been established. Pop. (1981) 87,449.