a market-town of Ireland, in the county of Tipperary, on an affluent of the Brosna, in a fertile country at the foot of the Slievebloom Mountains, 65 miles W.S.W. of Dublin. It is an old place, irregularly and not very well built; but has some broad streets and good houses. The most conspicuous object here is the ancient round tower, 80 feet high, which is one of the largest in the country; and, unlike most of the rest, built entirely of square stones. The parish church has a curious Gothic front at its west end, and the belfry of the Roman Catholic church consists of the steeple of an old Franciscan priory. The ancient castle of the Ormonde family is now used as a military storehouse. The other chief buildings in Roscrea are the court-house, market-house, jail, national school, hospitals, and workhouse. Coarse woollen cloth is manufactured here to some extent, and there is a considerable trade in grain. The town is of great antiquity, for it owes its origin to a monastery which was founded in 620. Pop. (1831) 3496.