The Wicklow Mountains (Irish: Sléibhte Chill Mhantáin, archaic: Cualu) form the largest continuous upland area in Ireland. They occupy the whole centre of County Wicklow and stretch outside its borders into the counties of Dublin, Wexford and Carlow. Where the mountains extend into County Dublin, they are known locally as the Dublin Mountains (Sléibhte Bhaile Átha Cliath). The highest peak is Lugnaquilla at 925 metres (3,035 feet). The mountains are primarily composed of granite surrounded by an envelope of mica-schist and much older rocks such as quartzite. They were pushed up during the Caledonian orogeny at the start of the Devonian period and form part of the Leinster Chain, the largest continuous area of granite in Ireland and Britain. The mountains owe much of their present topography to the effects of the last ice age, which deepened the glens and created corrie and ribbon lakes. Copper and lead have been the main metals mined in the mountains and a brief gold rush occurred in the 18th century. Several major river systems have their source in the mountains, such as the Liffey, Dargle, Slaney and Avoca rivers. Powerscourt Waterfall is the second tallest in Ireland at 121 metres (397 feet). A number of these rivers have been harnessed to create reservoirs for drinking water for Dublin and its surroundings. The Wicklow Mountains experience a temperate oceanic climate with mild, damp summers and cool, wet winters. The dominant habitat of the uplands consists of blanket bog, heath and upland grassland. The uplands support a number of bird species, including merlin and peregrine falcon. The valleys are a mixture of coniferous and deciduous woodland. The mountains have been inhabited since Neolithic times and a number of typical monuments, in particular a series of passage tombs, survive to the present day. The monastery at Glendalough, founded in the late 6th century by Saint Kevin, was an important centre of the Early Church in Ireland. Following the Norman invasion in the 12th century, the Wicklow Mountains became a stronghold and hiding place for Irish clans opposed to English rule. The O'Byrne and O'Toole families carried out a campaign of harassment against the settlers for almost five centuries. Later the mountains harboured rebels during the 1798 Rising. Rebel activity died out after the construction of the Wicklow Military Road at the start of the 19th century and the mountains began to attract tourists to the ruins at Glendalough and to admire the mountain scenery. The Wicklow Mountains continue to be a major attraction for tourism and recreation. The entire upland area is designated as a Special Area of Conservation and as a Special Protection Area under European Union law. The Wicklow Mountains National Park was established in 1991 to conserve the local biodiversity and landscape.
Name The Wicklow Mountains take their name from County Wicklow which in turn takes its name from Wicklow town. The origin of the name is from the Old Norse Wykynglo or Wykinlo. The Irish name for Wicklow, Cill Mhantáin, means "Church of Mantan", named after an apostle of Saint Patrick. Wicklow was not established as a county until 1606; before that it had been part of County Dublin. During the medieval period, prior to the establishment of County Wicklow, the English administration in Dublin referred to the region as the Leinster Mountains. An early name for the whole area of the Wicklow Mountains was Cualu, later Cuala. The Irish name for Great Sugar Loaf mountain is Ó Cualann ("lump of Cuala"). There are also historic names for various territories in the mountains held by local clans: the north part of Wicklow and south Dublin was known as Cualann or Fir Chualann ("men of Cuala"), anglicised 'Fercullen', while the Glen of Imaal takes its name from the territory of Uí Máil. A sept of the O'Byrne family called the Gaval Rannall possessed the area around Glenmalure, known as Gaval-Rannall or Ranelagh. The mountains were also formerly known as Sliabh Ruadh or the Red Mountains.
Topography
The Wicklow Mountains are the largest area of continuous high ground in Ireland, having an unbroken area of over 500 km2 (190 sq mi) above 300 metres (980 ft). They occupy the centre of County Wicklow and extend into Counties Dublin, Carlow and Wexford. The general direction of the mountain ranges is from north-east to south-west. They are formed into several distinct groups: that of Kippure in the north, on the boundary of Dublin and Wicklow; Djouce, Tonelagee, Camaderry and Lugnaquilla in the centre; Church Mountain and Keadeen Mountain in the west; and Croghan Kinsella to the south. To the east, separated from the rest of the range by the Vartry Plateau, is the group comprising the Great Sugar Loaf, Little Sugar Loaf and Bray Head. Lugnaquilla is the highest peak in the Wicklow Mountains at 925 metres (3,035 feet) and the 13th highest in Ireland. It is also the highest peak in Leinster and is the only Irish Munro to be found outside of Munster. Kippure stands at 757 metres (2,484 feet). There are a total of 39 peaks over 600 metres (2,000 feet) in the Wicklow Mountains. There are only three passes through the mountains under 600 metres (2,000 feet) with the Sally Gap (498 metres (1,634 feet)) and the Wicklow Gap (478 metres (1,567 feet)) being the highest road passes in the country.
Geology
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