Castles

Castles

Cahill Castle

On the site of a fortress built on an Island on the River Suir by Conor O’Brien, Prince of Thomand in 1142, Cahir castle had 200 years later become the centre of a thriving medieval town. By this time it had become the property of the Butlers of Ormonde, given to them following the Norman invasion by King Edward III. Apart from two short periods in the early 17th and the mid 19th centuries the Butlers remained in residence until 1961

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Cahir Castle

Cahir Castle
Cahir Castle
Cahir Castle
Cahir Castle
Cahir Castle
Cahir Castle
Cahir Castle
Cahir Castle
Cahir Castle
Cahir Castle
Cahir Castle
Cahir Castle
Cahir Castle
Cahir Castle
Cahir Castle
Cahir Castle

 

Rock of Cashel

The Rock of Cashel is one of Ireland’s most spectacular landmarks, rising above the surrounding plain and dominating the land route southward.The large Cathedral, ancient round tower and the very early Romanesque Cormac’s Chapel , perched on a dramatic outcrop of rock, were silent witnesses to many of the stirring events of Irish History; St.Patrick converted the local King Aenghus, here in the 5th century.

Besides tales explaining the legendary origin of the Rock of Cashel, other stories exist that link this location to the emergence of the shamrock as an Irish symbol. According to legend, during the baptism of King Aengus, St. Patrick plucked a shamrock to explain the mystery of the Trinity and so gave Christian Ireland a powerful new emblem.

Rock of Cashel

Rock of Cashel
Rock of Cashel
Rock of Cashel
Rock of Cashel
Rock of Cashel
Rock of Cashel
Rock of Cashel
Rock of Cashel
Rock of Cashel
Rock of Cashel
Rock of Cashel
Rock of Cashel
Rock of Cashel
Rock of Cashel
Rock of Cashel
Rock of Cashel
Rock of Cashel
Rock of Cashel
Rock of Cashel
Rock of Cashel
Rock of Cashel
Rock of Cashel
Rock of Cashel
Rock of Cashel
Rock of Cashel
Rock of Cashel
Rock of Cashel
Rock of Cashel
Rock of Cashel
Rock of Cashel

Blarney Castle

Blarney, near Cork, Ireland.
The castle originally dates from before AD 1200. It was destroyed in 1446, but subsequently rebuilt by Cormac MacCarthy, the King of Munster. It is currently a partial ruin with some accessible rooms and the battlements. At the top of the castle lies the Stone of Eloquence, better known as the Blarney Stone

For many of the visitors to Blarney, their first priority is to kiss the famous Blarney Stone high up on the Castle battlements. Tradition holds that those who kiss the Blarney Stone will be endowed with the gift of eloquence – “the gift of the gab”, as the locals call it.

“There is a stone that whoever kisses never misses to grow eloquent, he may clamber to a lady’s chamber or become a member of parliament”

Blarney Castle

Blarney Castle
Blarney Castle
Blarney Castle
Blarney Castle
Blarney Castle
Blarney Castle
Blarney Castle
Blarney Castle
Blarney Castle
Blarney Castle
Blarney Castle
Blarney Castle
Blarney Castle
Blarney Castle
Kissing the Blarney Stone
Kissing the Blarney Stone
Kissing the Blarney Stone
Kissing the Blarney Stone
Kissing the Blarney Stone
Kissing the Blarney Stone
Blarney Castle
Blarney Castle
Blarney Castle
Blarney Castle
Blarney Castle
Blarney Castle
Blarney Castle
Blarney Castle
The Backup Stone
The Backup Stone
Blarney Castle
Blarney Castle
Blarney Castle
Blarney Castle
Blarney Castle
Blarney Castle
Blarney Castle
Blarney Castle

 

Ross Castle

Ross Castle is the ancestral home of the O’Donoghue clan. It is located on the edge of Lough Leane, in Killarney National Park, County Kerry, Ireland.
Ross Castle was built in the late 1400s by local ruling clan the O’Donoghues, though ownership changed hands during the Desmond Rebellion of the 1580s. The castle was amongst the last to surrender to Oliver Cromwell’s Roundheads during the Irish Confederate Wars, and was only taken when artillery was brought by boat via the River Laune.

The castle is typical of strongholds of Irish chieftains built during the middle ages. The tower house had square bartizans on diagonally opposite corners and a thick end wall. The tower was originally surrounded by a square bawn defended by round corner towers on each end.

Ross Castle

Ross Castle
Ross Castle
Ross Castle
Ross Castle
Ross Castle
Ross Castle
Ross Castle
Ross Castle
Ross Castle
Ross Castle
Ross Castle
Ross Castle
Ross Castle
Ross Castle
Ross Castle
Ross Castle
Ross Castle
Ross Castle

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