Tipperary is known as “The spring of the territory of Ara”, “Rebel Tip”, Premier County. County Tipperary was created and named after the town of Tipperary in 1328, making it one of the earliest of the Irish counties. In the 1840's Thomas Davis made the statement ‘Where Tipperary leads, Ireland follows.’ Ronald Reagan traces his family back to Ballyporeen in south Tipperary. The father of the famous Australian outlaw, Ned Kelly, was born in Killenaule parish in 1820.

Around 450 AD, Saint Patrick preached at the royal dun, Cashel, and converted Aengus, king of Munster. Brian Borufortified Cashel in 990. The Rock of Cashel was the traditional seat of  the kings of Munster for several hundred years prior to the Norman invasion in 1169. In 1101, the King of Munster, Muirchertach Ua Briain, donated the fortress on the Rock of Cashel to the Roman Catholic Church.

Pre-Norman Tipperary was divided…