Hospital, County Limerick

Hospital (Irish: An tOspidéal) is a town in east County Limerick, Ireland. The town's population, per the 2006 census, was 1206 people but within a 2 km radius that number more than doubles. The town itself is situated in the townland of Barrysfarm, one of 11 in the civil parish of Hospital. It lies on the River Mahore, a tributary of the Camogue. The town acquired its name from the crusading Knights Hospitaller who built the archaeologically significant cathedral here in 1215. This cathedral has the remains of three interesting tombs, dating from the 13th and 14th centuries. An alternative explanation, from the bio of Sir Valentine Browne, Surveyor general of Ireland (who was awarded lands in the area by Queen Elizabeth I of England)...