Queen of the Land Festival is an annual festival in County Offaly, Ireland, hosted by Offaly Macra na Feirme in which young women compete for the title "Queen of the Land" based on their "appearance, personality, energy, confidence, dress sense, rural knowledge and elocution".
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The festival, which is currently sponsored by FBD Insurance, was initiated by the Farmers Journal in 1964 as part of the Kilkenny beer festival. The competition was then taken over by Offaly Macra three years later.
Meath live up to the claim of being the "Royal County" by having had six Queens crowned over the years. Laois and Kilkenny come in a close second with four titles each.
2001 became the only year the contest had to be postponed due to the foot-and-mouth disease crisis that hit Ireland that year (in the process giving Anita Meagher the distinction of being the only Queen to rule for two years).
The host county has only tasted victory twice in the competition with Michelle Cody's win in 1994 and Sinead Mulcahy in 2009, both from the Shinrone Macra Club.
2005 was the 40th anniversary of the festival. As part of the big celebrations all former Queens were invited back to Tullamore to join in the festivities for the weekend. The festival is celebrating 49 years in 2013.