An Bord Pleanála has overturned a decision by Roscommon County Council allowing for a development of nine houses and a commercial building in Tulsk.

The proposed development in the Co Roscommon town - rumoured to be the home of the legendary Queen Meave - has been refused planning permission on the grounds that it would interfere with a ring fort and prejudice the preservation of archaeological remains.

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The appeals board also ruled that the proposals would detract from the town's established character.

The Department of Environment had objected to the plans which it believed would have a detrimental affect on the archaeological heritage. The town has been associated with the Flight of the Earls and within a four-mile radius there are 60 national monuments.

According to a study by the Discovery Programme, the state funded archaeological research body, the area is believed to have been "a strategic centre for the control of the region from the 9th to 17th centuries".

(VB/JM)