Trim, County Meath

J. Stirling Coyne & N. P. Willis
c. 1841
Volume I, Chapter V-7 | Start of chapter

After leaving Mullingar, we proceeded by a cross-road to Trim, the assize-town of the county of Meath. Though of considerable antiquity, the town is now of little importance; and with the exception of a handsome Corinthian pillar, erected in commemoration of the victories of the Duke of Wellington, and surmounted by a statue of the hero of Waterloo, it contains nothing of modern date that merits attention. The principal object of curiosity in Trim is its ancient castle, whose venerable ruins, occupying a commanding situation on the banks of the memorable Boyne, bear evidence of its former strength and importance. On the opposite side of the river are the ruins of an extensive abbey, destroyed in the wars of the seventeenth century:—it is said to have been founded by St. Patrick; and the church served as a cathedral to Trim, which was the see of a bishop until it became united with the diocese of Meath.

At a short distance from Trim on the south, is the parsonage of Laracor, occasionally the residence of the eccentric Dean Swift; and during his absence inhabited by the unfortunate and accomplished Esther Johnson—immortalised by his pen under the name of "Stella,"—whose generous attachment to a selfish man, through a life clouded by public reproach, merited a far better fate than she experienced.