Brefni
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The Kingdom Brefni ( neuirisch Breifne , anglicised Breffny , Brenny ) was an empire of an Irish tribal group Uí Briúin Breifne . The territory included what are now Leitrim , Cavan and parts of Sligo counties .
history
The origin of the name Bréifne is unclear. It should mean hilly and describe the geography of the area. Another origin of the name could be from Brefne, daughter of Beoan mac Bethaig . In the 12th century under the rule of Tigernán Ua Ruairc (Tiernan O'Rourke), Bréifne reached from Kells in County Meath to Drumcliff in County Sligo. In 1256, a battle between the O'Rourkes and the O'Reillys ( Uí Raghallaigh ) near the city of Ballinamore led to the division of the kingdom into East Bréifne and West Bréifne. The O'Reillys became lords of East Bréifne ( Bréifne Ó Raghallaigh ), which mainly includes today's County Cavan, the O'Rourkes ruled over West Bréifne ( Bréifne Ua Ruairc ), today's Leitrim. This lasted until the beginning of the 17th century. At the time of Queen Elizabeth I of England it was divided into what are now Cavan and Leitrim Counties, Leitrim remained part of Connacht Province while Cavan became part of Ulster .