LISMORE CASTLE

Ireland

Lismore Castle is the Irish home of the Duke of Devonshire. Located in the town of Lismore in County Waterford in the Republic of Ireland, it belonged to the Earls of Desmond, and subsequently to the Cavendish family from 1753.

It was largely rebuilt in the Gothic style during the mid-nineteenth century for The 6th Duke of Devonshire.

Built as the sister castle to Ardfinnan Castle in 1185 by the Lord of Ireland, Prince John of England to guard the river crossing, the castle site was originally occupied by Lismore Abbey, an important monastery and seat of learning established in the early 7th century.

It was still an ecclesiastical centre when King Henry II of England stayed here in 1171, and except for a brief period after 1185 (when he had assigned his son King John of England to build a ‘castellum’ here) when it served as the episcopal residence of the local bishop. It was a possession of the Earls of Desmond, whose lands were broken up during the plantations following the killing of The 14th Earl of Desmond in 1583.

In 1589, Lismore was leased and later acquired by Sir Walter Raleigh. Raleigh sold the property during his imprisonment for High Treason in 1602 to another infamous colonial adventurer, Richard Boyle, who was later created, in 1620, The 1st Earl of Cork.

There are gardens and a contemporary art gallery open to the public. However, Lismore Castle is a private rental property.

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DROMOLAND CASTLE

Ireland

Dromoland Castle is a castle, located near Newmarket-on-Fergus in County Clare, Ireland. It is operated as a 5-star luxury hotel with a golf course, with its restaurant, the Earl of Thomond, being awarded a Michelin star in 1995, under head chef Jean Baptiste Molinari.

The present building was completed in 1835. However, the first building constructed here seems to have been a tower house built in the 15th or early 16th century and is recorded as being erected by Thomas, the son of Shane Mac Anthony.

There were at least three houses on the site, at various times, called Dromoland. While Dromoland later became the residence of eight generations of the O’Brien family, early records suggest that the area was also occupied by other local Gaelic families, such as the McInerney family during the 16th century.

According to the historian James Frost, Dromoland translates as the “Hill of Litigation”.

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TRIM CASTLE

Ireland

Trim Castle is a castle on the south bank of the River Boyne in Trim, County Meath, Ireland, with an area of 30,000 m².

Over a period of 30 years, it was built by Hugh de Lacy and his son Walter as the caput of the Lordship of Meath. The Irish Government currently own and are in charge of the care of the castle, through the state agency The Office of Public Works.

The Office of Public Works operate a Guide Service at Trim Castle and the grounds are open to the public for self-guiding, on payment of an entry fee. Access to the Castle keep is by guided tour only, an entry fee also applies. In winter, the complex is open only on weekends and bank holidays.

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DUNLUCE CASTLE

Ireland

Dunluce Castle is a now-ruined medieval castle in Northern Ireland, the seat of Clan McDonnell. It is located on the edge of a basalt outcropping in County Antrim (between Portballintrae and Portrush), and is accessible via a bridge connecting it to the mainland.

The castle is surrounded by extremely steep drops on either side, which may have been an important factor to the early Christians and Vikings who were drawn to this place where an early Irish fort once stood.

n the 13th century, Richard Óg de Burgh, 2nd Earl of Ulster, built the first castle at Dunluce.

It is first documented in the hands of the McQuillan family in 1513. The earliest features of the castle are two large drum towers about 9 metres (30 ft) in diameter on the eastern side, both relics of a stronghold built here by the McQuillans after they became lords of the Route.

The McQuillans were the Lords of Route from the late 13th century until they were displaced by the MacDonnell after losing two major battles against them during the mid-and late-16th century. The castle in the last decade of the 19th century

Later Dunluce Castle became the home of the chief of the Clan MacDonnell of Antrim and the Clan MacDonald of Dunnyveg from Scotland. Chief John Mor MacDonald was the second son of Good John of Islay, Lord of the Isles, 6th chief of Clan Donald in Scotland. John Mor MacDonald l was born through John of Islay’s second marriage to Princess Margaret Stewart, daughter of King Robert II of Scotland.

In 1584, on the death of James MacDonald the 6th chief of the Clan MacDonald of Antrim and Dunnyveg, the Antrim Glens were seized by Sorley Boy MacDonnell, one of his younger brothers. Sorley Boy took the castle, keeping it for himself and improving it in the Scottish style. Sorley Boy swore allegiance to Queen Elizabeth I and his son Randal was made 1st Earl of Antrim by King James I.

Four years later, the Girona, a galleass from the Spanish Armada, was wrecked in a storm on the rocks nearby. The cannons from the ship were installed in the gatehouses and the rest of the cargo held, the funds being used to restore the castle. MacDonnell’s granddaughter Rose was born in the castle in 1613.

A local legend states that at one point, part of the kitchen next to the cliff face collapsed into the sea, after which the wife of the owner refused to live in the castle any longer. According to a legend, when the kitchen fell into the sea, only a kitchen boy survived, as he was sitting in the corner of the kitchen which did not collapse.

However, the kitchen is still intact and next to the manor house. You can still see the oven, fireplace and entryways into it. It wasn’t until some time in the 18th century that the north wall of the residence building collapsed into the sea. The east, west and south walls still stand.

Dunluce Castle served as the seat of the Earl of Antrim until the impoverishment of the MacDonnells in 1690, following the Battle of the Boyne. Since that time, the castle has deteriorated and parts were scavenged to serve as materials for nearby buildings.

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DUBLIN CASTLE

Ireland

Dublin Castle is a major Irish government complex, conference centre, and tourist attraction, of significant historical importance. It is located off Dame Street in central Dublin.

Until 1922 it was the seat of the British government’s administration in Ireland. Most of the current construction dates from the 18th century, though a castle has stood on the site since the days of King John, the first Lord of Ireland.

The Castle served as the seat of English, then later British, the government of Ireland under the Lordship of Ireland (1171–1541), the Kingdom of Ireland (1541–1800), and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (1800–1922).

After the signing of the Anglo-Irish Treaty in December 1921, the complex was ceremonially handed over to the newly formed Provisional Government led by Michael Collins.

It now hosts the inauguration of each President of Ireland and various State receptions.

The castle was built by the dark pool (“Dubh Linn”) which gave Dublin its name.

This pool lies on the lower course of the River Poddle before its confluence with the River Liffey; when the castle was built, the Liffey was much wider, and the castle was effectively defended by both rivers. The Poddle today runs under the complex.

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KILKENNY CASTLE

Ireland

Kilkenny Castle is a castle in Kilkenny, Ireland built in 1195 to control a fording-point of the River Nore and the junction of several routeways.

It was a symbol of Norman occupation and in its original thirteenth-century condition it would have formed an important element of the defences of the town with four large circular corner towers and a massive ditch, part of which can still be seen today on the Parade.

The property was transferred to the people of Kilkenny in 1967 for £50 and the castle and grounds are now managed by the Office of Public Works. The gardens and parkland adjoining the castle are open to the public.

The Parade Tower is a conference venue. Awards and conferring ceremonies of the graduate’s oaf the Kilkenny Campus of the National University of Ireland, Maynooth have been held there since 2002.

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