Trim Castle is beside the River Boyne in Trim, County Meath, Ireland. It is the largest Anglo-Norman (Cambro-Norman) castle in Ireland. It was built by Hugh de Lacy. He was granted the lands by King Henry II of England in 1172 for his part in the Norman invasion of Ireland.
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Ireland
A Different Visit to Ireland
Category: Castles, Houses & Follies
At the very top of my list of things I wanted to find when I was in Ireland was Leixlip Castle. It is not open to the public. The book The Follies and Garden Buildings of Ireland by James Howley describes the “fine gazebo which still stands in the grounds of Leixlip Castle, at the meeting of the Rye Water and the River Liffey.” So, I found where the Rye Water and the River Liffey meet and looked for the gazebo.
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Lismore Castle is in the town of Lismore in County Waterford. It was in a decorating magazine years ago. I tore out the pages, so I don’t know what magazine. I just wanted to drive by and see it on the way to Swiss Cottage. It is beautiful and I spent longer than I had expected.
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I decided to drive to Cahir Castle along the ridge of the Knockmealdown Mountains. I had read about Grubb’s Monument, marking where Samuel Grubb was buried standing up overlooking the beautiful Golden Vale.
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Cahir Castle, County Tipperary, is one of the largest castles in Ireland. I visited it on the way to see the Swiss Cottage and I am so glad I did not miss it. It still has a keep, tower and defensive walls. The inner ward has a gatehouse and great hall.
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Other than Leixlip Castle, I most looked forward to seeing Swiss Cottage. And it was not available to tour when I was there. But, I walked out to it.
Swiss Cottage is perhaps the finest example of cottage orné of the Romantic Movement.
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Driving down the M18 somewhere past Shannon, I saw something. Using Google Maps, I retraced my course and found it is the Belvedere Folly, the Gazebo at Dromoland Castle.
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The drive from the Cliffs of Moher to Doolin was beautiful. I drove down R478, Ballard Road, along the coast. I drove through Burren karst pavements, beautiful green fields, passed ruins and castles to Doolin Harbour.
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I left Doolin early, making my way toward the Burren. In the morning mist, I could see a tower in the distance. I found the entrance to Ballinalacken Castle near the intersection of R477 and R479, near Lisdoonvarna, Fanore and Doolin in Killilagh parish, County Clare, Ireland.
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I left the Doolin area and headed up into the Burren. I found a castle, abandoned houses, an old school and an old tomb or something.
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I made my way along the small bays of Galway Bay on R477. I saw Ballynacregga Castle and Finavarra Tower, another Napoleon Tower, this one with an oval footprint. The route drives between the beautiful ban and the solid limestone hills of the Burren. I also visited the little village of Kinvarra and its quay.
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I left Doolin, wandered through the Burren and found my way to Galway Bay. I found Dunguaire Castle as I drove along the shore.
Dunguaire Castle is a tower house built around 1520 by the O’Hynes clan. It is near Kinvarra on the Galway Bay in County Galway, Ireland. It is named after the fort that was here before the tower house was built. The castle is small, with a 75 foot tower and defensive walls.
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I drove through the little village of Ardrahan, through County Galway, County Roscommon and County Offaly. I saw more ruins and castles and crossed Shannonbridge, one of the oldest bridges still in use over the River Shannon.
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I drove into Birr. The road ends at the walls of Birr Castle.
Birr Castle is the private home of the Earls of Rosse and family. It is not open to the public, but the grounds and gardens are.
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There is a lot to see at Birr Castle, but I came for the telescope. Called the Leviathan of Parsonstown, it was the largest telescope in the world from 1845 until the Hooker Telescope was completed at Mount Wilson Observatory, California in 1917.
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Birr Castle Gardens are open to the public. There are 120 acres with five miles of walking paths. Two rivers, the Camcor and the Little Brosna meet within the Castle Demesne walls forming a lake and waterfalls. An amazing display of rare plants and trees grows here in beautiful profusion. There are over 2000 different species of plants collected by the Earls of Rosse on their travels around the world or given to them by some of the most famous plant hunters.
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Kinbane Headland is about three miles from Ballycastle in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, on the way to Giant’s Causeway. The walkway leads along the cliff with views of a long narrow headland with castle ruins. The path is narrow and stepped. The view is beautiful, Rathlin Island, birds, flowers and ruins, and, of course, sheep.
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Dunluce Castle might be the most well-known castle in Ireland. It is a romantic ruin dramatically set at the very edge of the cliff on the Antrim Coast near Giant’s Causeway and Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge.
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Florence Court is an excellent example of mid-18th century Irish Palladian architecture near Enniskillen, County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. The setting is beautiful, in the foothills of Cuilcagh Mountain, overlooking Benauglin Mountain, watered by River Larganess and River Finglass. The house is well known for exquisite Rococo plasterwork and Irish furniture. And it wasn’t open when I was there.
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I really wanted to see the Florence Court Heather House, a garden feature at Florence Court Estate in County Fermanagh.
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So… My last day! I have to get on a plane and fly home the next morning. I had a different plan, but instead I decided I would try to do some of the things I missed on the days I slept through after the car wreck.
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I went back around to the other side of the river, back to the castle gates and they were open!
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Leixlip Castle Gate Lodge stands outside the gates. Although it looks Gothick, it was actually built in the early eighties. Before I walked in the gates, I took these photos of the Gate Lodge.
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I was invited to wander around Leixlip Castle and take photos. These are photos of the castle from the outside.
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The Front Hall to Leixlip Castle exemplifies Mariga Guinness’s style that “combined fantasy with history and the grand with the laid-back, all in a natural and seemingly uncontrived manner that belied the careful thought and planning behind it. Desmond’s views on restoration – that ‘a certain amount of shabbiness is an appropriate characteristic of an old house in any country, particularly Ireland'”
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At least when I was at Leixlip Castle, this was set up as a dining room. This is the room called the Gothic room in Irish Houses & Castles. The book shows a dining room in the tower. This is one of the oldest parts of the castle. I love these windows!
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A print room was a decorative scheme specific to Georgian times. Prints and engravings of pictures were pasted on the wall, then decorated with cut-out garlands, frames, festoons and ribbons. It was the first decorating style that was a hobby, usually for the lady-of-the-house.
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Leixlip Castle is filled with beautiful and whimsical things. In the drawing room, the gigantic Georgian dolls house is used as a cupboard.
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The stairs and hallway of Leixlip Castle are beautiful!
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There are no photos of Leixlip Castle Kitchen in any of the books or magazines I have. Here it is!
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Before I was invited to see inside Leixlip Castle, I photographed outside. The dogs led me around. Continue reading
The Garden Temple was built around 1920. It was made from salvaged pieces.
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There are a few outbuildings surrounding Leixlip Castle. Here are more photos.
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Where the the Rye Water meets the River Liffey a Boat House Gazebo stands at the water edge. Before the dam was put in, the water flowed through the bottom of the boat house. The top used to be comfortably finished inside, with a fireplace.
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James Howley in The Follies and Garden Buildings of Ireland, one of the books I planned my trip with says “…the Wonderful Barn is… arguably one of the finest follies to be found in Ireland.” It is not on the tourist maps, but I had enough information to find it.
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Someone pinned these paintings. I saw the kitchen first and I thought it might be the kitchen at Leixlip Castle. When I saw the one with the window, I was sure it was Leixlip Castle. It took some looking to find the artist. The paintings are by Hector McDonnell. Continue reading
When I visited Ireland, I could not find out much about Samuel Grubb, whose beehive-shaped grave is near the Vee overlooking the Golden Vein. His home was just listed for sale. I learned more about him and got to see photos of the inside of Castle Grace. I also found an article about his mills. Continue reading
I was looking for something else and came across Thomas Conolly Papers from the National Library of Ireland. I have excerpted out the references to Liexlip Castle. Continue reading
I came upon an article about the family that lives at Tullynally Castle in Westmeath.
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In the 1750s, Acheson Moore, an eccentric Irish Jacobite planted his demesne in the shape of a thistle. You can still see the outline on Google Maps. Continue reading
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