According to local folklore the first foot was planted on Irish soil at Dún na mBarc (the place of the boat) on the shores of Bantry Bay in 2680 BC.

The Corcu Loígde, meaning Gens of the Calf Goddess, were a kingdom centered in West County Cork who descended from the proto-historical rulers of Munster, the Dáirine, of whom they were the central royal sept.

Cork city was originally a monastic settlement founded by Saint Finbarr in the 6th century. Vikings attacked the monastery there in 820.

Keyser’s Hill, leading to the south bank of the Lee, close to the South Gate Bridge—is the only place in Cork that still has a Viking name.

The town of Baltimore was depopulated in 1631 in a slave capture raid by Barbary pirates from either Algeria or Salé (Morocco).

On 26 June 1644 Lord Inchiquin decreed the expulsion of the Irish and Catholic population of Cork from the city.