Slane (Irish: Baile Shláine,[2] meaning ‘Town of Sláine mac Dela’) 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.[1] The village and surrounding area contains many historic sites dating back over 5,000 years. The village centre, as it appears today, dates from the 18th century.

While the area and its surroundings have been inhabited since at least the Neolithic era and then with literature references upon the introduction of christianity and the hill of Slane settlement, as discussed in the stolen 1092 Annals of Inisfallen. The earliest surviving structures, in what is considered the boundaries of the modern day village, were built by the invading Norman family of the Flanders (now Fleming), during the Norman invasion of Ireland. The most relatively undisturbed structure, built under the feudal lordship of this family is a Motte and Bailey, which is in close proximity to the hill of Slane settlement.