New Ross

New Ross stands on the River Barrow, where a medieval port grew upstream from the sea and a bridge linked the river's banks. Its walls and gates protected a prosperous trading town, while the great church of St Mary overlooked the streets. Ships brought merchants and goods to the quays, making the river the town's route to the wider world.

In 1649 Oliver Cromwell's army besieged New Ross. After cannon fired on a gate, the Confederate commander Lucas Taaffe negotiated the town's surrender. More than a century later, on 5 June 1798, rebels attacked the Crown garrison in one of the bloodiest battles of the Irish rising. Fighting swept through the streets, but the defenders held the town and the attackers withdrew with heavy losses.