North Liberties facts for kids
The North Liberties (which means Na Líbeartaí Thuaidh in Irish) is a special area in County Limerick, Ireland. It's located on the north side of the River Shannon. This area sits between the heart of Limerick City to the east and County Clare to the north and west.
The North Liberties includes parts of 17 smaller areas called townlands. These townlands are spread across three civil parishes: Killeely, St. Munchin's, and St. Nicholas.
What Are the North Liberties?
The North Liberties is a type of historical land division called a barony. Think of it like a district or a region with its own history and boundaries. It's a key part of the geography of County Limerick.
A Shifting History
Originally, the land that became the North Liberties was part of the Bunratty barony in County Clare. But things changed a lot over time!
In 1609, James I of England gave a special document called a royal charter to Limerick. This charter gave the city more land outside its main town area. All this new land, including the North Liberties, became part of a "county of the city of Limerick." This meant it was a special area, separate from the main County Limerick. It even had its own local officials, like a sheriff.
The "liberties" were these rural areas that were part of the city's special county but outside its main town walls. There were three parts:
- The small North Liberties (our topic!).
- The larger South Liberties, located on the other side of the River Shannon.
- Scattery Island, which is much further west near the mouth of the Shannon River.
Changes Over Centuries
In the 1650s, after a period of big changes in Ireland (the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland), the North Liberties were surveyed. Later, in 1840, a law called the Municipal Corporations (Ireland) Act 1840 made another big change. It took all these "liberties" away from the "county of the city" and put them back into the main County Limerick.
For a while, some records treated the North Liberties as if it had joined another barony called Pubblebrien. But by 1881, the census officially recognized the North Liberties as its own barony again.
Today, the entire area of the North Liberties is included within the modern boundary of Limerick City. This change happened in 2008.
