Golden, County Tipperary

The bridge at Golden, which straddles an island in the River Suir, was the scene of an event of some significance in 1690, when King William III renewed, by letter in his own hand, the Royal Charter of the city of Cashel as an act of gratitude to the people of Cashel for the hospitality received by his followers following their attack on Limerick. There is a medieval castle on the island, currently in a ruinous state. Located in the castle ruins is a memorial sculptured bust of Thomas MacDonagh (1878–1916), Tipperary-born poet and leader of the Easter Rising in 1916.

Medieval castle on island in the River Suir

The Augustinian Athassel Priory is located south of the village. The abbey was founded by William FitzAdelm de Burgo (William de Burgh) in the last decades of the 12th century. It was once the largest abbey in Ireland and was surrounded by a small town named Athassel which was burned twice, in 1319 by Lord Maurice Fitzthomas and in 1419 by Bryan O'Brien. No fragment of the settlement survives today, though an aerial survey exposes to view, a faint tracery of old foundations close to the Abbey ruin.

Perhaps Golden's most famous son was Father Theobold Mathew, OFM (Cap), who was born at Thomastown Castle, close to Golden on 10 October 1790, though it is sometimes claimed that Rathclogheen House, close to the Castle was the place of his birth – that residence being part of the extensive family estate of the Mathew family, Earls Landaff. Father Mathew was the best known Irish temperance reformer and founded the Abstinence Society in 1838 and became widely known as the "Apostle of Temperance". To mark the centenary of the foundation of the Society, a statue in his honour was raised at Thomastown Cross in 1938 and is a very visible landmark on the N74 road, west of Golden.

One time Cashel Mayor Sir John Judkin-FitzGerald 2nd Bt of Lisheen, & High Sheriff of Tipperary [as was his father, Col Sir Thomas Judkin-FitzGerald (Uniacke) 1st Bt of Lisheen before him during the 1798 United Rebellion] lived at Golden where his 2nd wife Lady Geraldine FitzGerald d/o Preston FitzGerald of Dublin and niece of Major General William Pringle (of 1812 Napoleonic Wars Salamanca Battle) died of infection some days after giving birth to their only child and daughter Geraldine Caroline in 1839.

Main Street, Golden

The village is located in the ancient parish of Relickmurry and is in the modern parish of Golden & Kilfeacle. The village contains a church and a sportsfield, home to the local club of the Gaelic Athletic Association, Golden-Kilfeacle, once called the Golden Fontenoys. The club's facilities include an indoor hall and floodlighting. There are two hamlets close by at Kilfeacle and Thomastown, the latter being an estate village which co-existed with the demesne of Thomastown Castle, home of the Mathew family, Earls of Llandaff.

The valley of the Suir is fertile agricultural terrain and is part of an area known as the "Golden Vale", known for the richness of the sub-soil which has a limestone base, making it suitable for the raising of livestock. In 2016, the village had a population of 267.[1] The N74 connects Golden with Tipperary Town and Cashel, while the L3121 links it with nearby New Inn.

The village is home to a number of local businesses including an agricultural museum, a dog cafe, butchers, a supermarket and several public houses.

• List of museums in the Republic of Ireland

• Tipperary Agricultural & Heritage Museum website