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Sir Hrgh De Lr.cy is generally reputed to have been the 

 founder, if not nnilher of this curious fortificatioii ; but I appre- 

 liend this to be an hafty and ill-founded opinion, like many other 

 errors in our hiiliory, occafioned by' the'Biitifli writers being 

 ignorant of the language and cuftoms of Ireland ; for the bare 

 \ie\v of the fort is fufficient to fhew any man of obfervation that 

 it is an original work of the ancient Irifli, and of very great 

 antiquity, even long before the time of De Licy. 



The forts of Granard in the county of Longford, and of 

 Dnndonald in the county of Down, where the Engliili pale did 

 not extend for three centuries after De Lacy's time, might with 

 as much reafon be attributed to him, fince they are exacflly of 

 the fame kind and luuch larger than that of Ardnorcher. Its 

 vei'y name, indeed, is fufficient to fhew that De Lacy was not the 

 firft founder of it, for it is highly improbable that he, who was of 

 a Norman family and whofe language was a mixture of French 

 and Saxon, fliould give a name of pure old Irifli, fuch as the 

 word Ardnorchor * is, to a fortrefs ere(5led in Ireland for a Britifli 

 garrifon. In this and the like inftances, the Irilh language is 

 of iignal ufe to diftinguilh the works of the ancient Celtas from 

 thofe of the modern Britifli nations in Ireland ; but the old 

 Englifli inhabitants of Meath having no authentic records, attri- 

 bute every work of great labour or antiquity to Sir Hugh De Lacy, 

 as the illiterate modern Irilh do to Fin Mac Cumhal. 



When Sir Hugh De Lacy was made governor of Meath by 

 Henry the Second, he teak every precaution to fecure the new 



* Ardnorcher or Anl-an-orclior, literally thef.rt off.aighter. 



poffeflions 



