[3] In a note to an edition of Bishop Richard de Ledrede's account of the Kyteler witchcraft trial, Wright (1843, pp.

In 738 at the Battle of Uchbad (Ballyshannon, Grid reference N78830), Aed Allin defeated the Laigin and established Kildare's hegemony over the kingship of Leinster that would last nearly 300 years.

Guillaume le Maréchal (or William Marshall), Earl of Pembroke and son-in-law of Strongbow, founded an Augustinian Abbey in Kilrush at the start of the thirteenth century, which subsisted until the Suppression of the Monasteries in the 1540s.

[6] On Thursday, 2 July 1903 the Gordon Bennett Cup started at the Ballyshannon crossroads 1 mile (2 km) from the centre of Calverstown.

After some lobbying, several local laws were adjusted and Kildare was chosen as the location – at least partly because the straightness of the roads was seen as a safety benefit.

[7][8][9][10] The route consisted of several loops of a circuit that passed through Kilcullen, Kildare, Monasterevin, Stradbally, Athy, Castledermot, and Carlow.

The 328 miles (528 km) race was ultimately won by the Belgian racer Camille Jenatzy, driving a Mercedes.