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Ballinasloe October Fair & Festival |
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THE BALLINASLOE FAIR is one of Europe's oldest Horse Fairs. It is held in East Galway's principal town on the first week of October each year.
It has its origins in "The Gathering of the Hostings" dating back to the High Kings of Tara. Its formal charter was granted by King George to the Second Earl of Clancarty in 1722.
The Fair continued each year and gradually evolved into a great agricultural event with the horse at its centre. Records indicate that huge numbers of people and livestock became involved. The popularity of the event in the Calendar of Irish Fairs continued unabated until the advent of the machine on the farm and the tank on the battlefield. These developments reduced the reliance on the Irish horse for civil and military needs.
The Ballinasloe October Fair was still of substantial proportions until the Emergency when, its star began to wane. The business of the Fair however, while reduced from its 19th Century heights, continued to provide the farmers of the hinterland with a trading outlet in the Autumn for' cattle and sheep, and the Country Fair Day tradition survived.
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30/09/2006 -
08/10/2006 |
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