Slane ( ) is a village in County Meath, in Ireland. The village stands on a steep hillside on the left bank of the River Boyne at the intersection of the N2 (Dublin to Monaghan road) and the N51 (Drogheda to Navan road). In 2006 Slane's population was 1,099, having grown from 823 in 2002. The population of the village and the surrounding rural area was 1,587 in 2006, up from 1,336 in 2002. The village centre dates from the 18th century. The village and surrounding area contains many historic sites dating back over 5,000 years.

The village

The village centre, laid out as a model village by the Conynghams is a good example of 18th century town planning. At the centre of the village stands four near identical Georgian houses. The four houses stand at the intersection of the two main streets in the village. The four houses and four streets form an octagon. This feature is known as The Square. The two main streets in the village feature 18th century gray limestone buildings with slate roofs, oriel windows and stone steps and archways. At present there is a comprehensive Village Development Plan in operation.Fact: date=October 2007 In 2007 Meath County Council proposed that both Slane village and the mill be recognised as Architectural Conservation Areas and protected according.

Sport

Slane Gaelic Football Club comprises the local parish Gaelic Athletic Association Gaelic football teams for the urban and rural areas of Slane. Teams play their home games in Toddy Harding Park, located north of the village.

The Hill of Slane

To the north of the village rises the Hill of Slane, which stands above the surroundings. Such a commanding site could never have been ignored, and consequently there are a number of historic sites located around the top of the hill. In the Metrical Dindshenchas, a collection of bardic verse, the ancient Fir Bolg king Sláine was said to have been buried here, in the place that had been called Druim Fuar that came to be known in his memory Dumha Sláine. There is an artificial mound on the western end of the hilltop. The hill may have been chosen as the site of Christian abbey due to the presence of an existing pagan shrine, the remains of which may be two standing stones in the burial yard. Muirchu moccu Machtheni, in his highly mythologized seventh century Life of Patrick, says that St. Patrick lit a Paschal fire on this hill top in 433 CE in defiance of the High King Laoire who forbid any other fires while a festival fire was burning on the Hill of Tara. Historians and archaeologists agree that Muirchu has moved to Slane a fire lit elsewhere; Brú na Bóinne, and Knowth have been suggested.Fact: date=October 2007 The Hill of Slane can be seen from the Hill of Tara which is about away. According to Muirchu, Logaire was so impressed by Patrick's devotion that, despite his defiance (or perhaps because of it), he let him continue his missionary work in Ireland. It is somewhat more certain that Patrick appointed a bishop of Slane, Saint Erc.