Ardee (/ˈɑːrdiː/; Irish: Baile Átha Fhirdhia, pronounced [ˈbˠalʲə aːhə ˈɪɾʲjiə]) is a town and townland in County Louth, Ireland.

[3] Ardee is on the banks of the River Dee and is equidistant between the county's two biggest towns - approximately 20 kilometres (12 mi) from Dundalk and Drogheda, while it is also close to Slane and Carrickmacross.

[1] Originally called Atherdee, the towns name is from Irish: Áth Fhirdia (the Ford of Ferdia) which itself is derived from the fabled four-day battle between Cúchulainn and Ferdia, for the defence of Ulster from Queen Maeve of Connacht.

It is said Ferdia fell after four days of battle, and is buried on the southern banks of the river alongside the Riverside Walk.

[citation needed] Ardee received its royal charter from King Henry V in 1414.

[9][10] As of the 2024 local elections, the members included:[citation needed] Ardee had a corporation first mentioned in a charter of 1378.

[11] An electorate of 24 burgesses and 80 freemen elected two MPs for the parliamentary borough of Ardee to the Irish House of Commons.

The Dundalk Democrat is the regional edition of the weekly newspaper, which covers Ardee and its surroundings.

Ardee railway station opened on 1 August 1896 and passenger services ended on 3 June 1934.

The line continued as a freight service until finally closed on 3 November 1976,[13] serving the local fertiliser factory, sugar beet and livestock transport.

The N52, which connects the M7 at Nenagh to the M1 at Dundalk, passes through the town serving a southwest-northeast link from Limerick to Belfast without going near Dublin and the M50.

[14][15] In April 2021, the Traditionalist Catholic Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest purchased a former convent building in Ardee, for the use of its own nuns; the Sisters Adorers.

[18] Founded a short time prior to 1487, "Chantry College" consists of a gabled tower, four storeys in height, which has an adjoining two-storey hall to the north.

The southern corner has a projecting turret which houses a spiral stairway to roof level.

A plaque on the site reads:"This wall by its pitch, tilt and position can be seen to have moved three feet from its foundation.

"All that remains at Kildemock today is a small ruin, containing the wall that for a reason unknown moved three feet.

The club, known as "the Blues", has had 12 Louth Senior Football Championship wins in their history - the first in 1914 and the most recent in 2023.

[citation needed] There are five other GAA sides located in Ardee's hinterland - Hunterstown Rovers, Westerns GFC, John Mitchels, Sean McDermotts and Stabannon Parnells.