Leinster
Leinster
Leinster, a traditional province in southeastern Ireland, incorporates the areas of the ancient kingdoms of Leinster and Meath.
It has an area of 19,632 sq km (7,580 sq mi) and a population of 1,852,649 (1986). Leinster contains the counties of CARLOW,
DUBLIN, KILDARE, KILKENNY, LAOIGHIS, LONGFORD, LOUTH, MEATH, OFFALY, WESTMEATH, WEXFORD, and WICKLOW;
these are Ireland's most prosperous and populous counties. DUBLIN is the largest city. Leinster was the most powerful of the
ancient Irish kingdoms until the 11th century. A dispute over the kingship of Leinster was the occasion for the first English
invasion of Ireland in the 12th century, and in the later medieval period, Leinster--particularly the area around Dublin, known
as the Pale--was the only part of the country effectively under English control.
Main Page
