Tlachtga - Hill of Ward

Tlachtga where the Great Fire Festival at Samhain was celebrated

Tlachtga (Hill of Ward) near Athboy, Co Meath lies about 12 miles from the Hill of Tara. The circular earthworks, approximately 150 metres in diameter, are most impressive when viewed from the air. The visible remains date to around 200 AD, although the site itself is likely to be much older. Tlachtga is traditionally associated with the Great Fire Festival held on the eve of Samhain (1st November), marking an important turning point in the ancient calendar.

The festival likely lasted for several days and may have been linked to the god Lugh. The site takes its name from Tlachtga, daughter of the druid Mug Ruith, who is said to have died here giving birth to triplets. Tlachtga is clearly visible from Tara, and the fire lit here on the eve of Samhain is thought to have preceded and perhaps signalled the beginning of the great assembly at Tara.

With the coming of Christianity, the festival was absorbed into the Christian calendar as a time of remembrance for the dead, allowing aspects of the older Samhain traditions to continue. Customs that did not fit within the new religious framework survived as Halloween. Irish emigrants later carried these traditions to North America in the 19th century, where they evolved into the modern celebration.

The Festival of Samhain was the great festival of the dead and marked the beginning of the Celtic New Year, a time when the boundary between this world and the otherworld was believed to be at its thinnest. The winter fires were lit as the sun set on the eve of Samhain, signalling the end of the old year and the beginning of the new. These fires carried both practical and symbolic meaning, offering protection and renewal as the dark half of the year began.

The earthworks visible on the Hill of Ward today represent the final phase of development around 2000 years ago, reflecting the continued importance of the site into the later prehistoric period. The remains of an earlier barrow burial have been incorporated into these earthworks, suggesting that the hill already held significance long before these later changes. It is likely that the hill served as a centre of ritual activity well before the Celtic period, with successive generations reshaping the landscape while preserving its ceremonial role.

Loughcrew is clearly visible from Tlachtga, forming part of a wider prehistoric landscape of interconnected ceremonial sites. The cairns at Loughcrew date to around 3000 BC and are among the oldest monuments in Ireland. At Cairn L on Carnbane East, the passage is aligned so that the rising sun around Samhain and Imbolc illuminates a standing stone within the chamber, demonstrating a clear link between the monument and key dates in the ancient calendar.

How Tlachtga may have looked in Celtic times from John Gilroy's book Tlachtga: Celtic Fire Festival

Tara is also clearly visible from Tlachtga and Tara is also associated with the celebration of Samhain. The Stone Age Mound of the Hostages is also aligned with the Samhain sunrise. The following image was photographed by Martin Dier, it shows the sunbeam illuminating the back of the chamber. The illumination is impaired by the modern gate at the entrance of the passage.

Samhain Sunrise illuminates the back of the Mound of the Hostages - Hill of Tara