Port Laoise
| Port Laoise Port Laoise |
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| Coordinates | 53 ° 2 ′ N , 7 ° 18 ′ W | ||
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| Basic data | |||
| Country | Ireland | ||
| Leinster | |||
| county | Laois | ||
| ISO 3166-2 | IE-LS | ||
| height | 139 m | ||
| Residents | 22,050 (2016) | ||
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Port Laoise (pronounced: [pɔrtˈliːʃə] , formerly Maryborough , English also Portlaoise , older Irish spelling Port Laoighise , German "The Fort of Laois") is the administrative seat of County Laois in the Republic of Ireland , located in the southeastern interior of Ireland . Port Laoise had 22,050 inhabitants in 2016, making it the place with the largest number of inhabitants in the Irish Midlands before Athlone .
history
The city was founded by Queen Mary in 1556 as "The Fort of Maryborough" and renamed Port Laoise on the occasion of Irish independence in 1922.
The town
The city is the economic center of the Irish Midlands. It is home to both the Portlaoise Jail maximum security prison , where the majority of paramilitary prisoners are held, and the Midlands Prison. Both institutions are among the largest employers in the vicinity.
Traffic situation
Port Laoise is a major hub on the Irish transport network. The recent construction of the M7 motorway, which runs past the city, has reduced traffic in the city itself. The city has a train station with trains to Dublin and Cork.
Surroundings
Very close to the city is the Rock of Dunamase , an ancient Celtic fortress. Emo Court, a holiday home built by James Gandon in the 18th century , Ballyfin House, now a private school, and Mountmellick are in the Portlaoise area.
politics
Rotimi Adebari was elected Mayor of Port Laoise on June 27, 2007. He comes from Nigeria , from where he had to flee for religious reasons. He found asylum in Ireland in 2000 . In 2004 he was elected to the city council as an independent.
sons and daughters of the town
- William Slattery OFM (born 1943), Archbishop of Pretoria
- Stephen Hunt (born 1981), football player
- TJ Doheny (* 1986), professional boxer
- Robert Sheehan (* 1988), actor
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Port Laoise (agglomeration) on citypopulation.de, accessed on August 22, 2018