My name is William Martin and I'm of Irish lineage. My grandparents came over from Ireland during the early 20th century, but not with each other. My grandmother, Elizabeth Rafferty, was just 14 years old when she landed on Ellis Island with her older sister. My grandfather Joseph Martin had landed a couple of years earlier in 1890. I spent my childhood years in a home very proud of its Irish heritage, regaled with the stories and filled with the Celtic music of Ireland. Like many children of immigrants, I have longed to go back to my ancestral soil.
Hardly anything has interested me more about Ireland than its history of turmoil and clan rivalries, its faith based wars along with the mark they have left on the people along with its landscape. One of the principal marks left on the ground is castles. Ireland is full of castles, old castles, ruined castles, castles abandoned, and castles remodeled and converted into lavish hotels. It's no blarney, you can find hundreds of castles in Ireland therefore we will confine ourselves to only a few of the more attention-grabbing. Incidentally that is blarney with a small B, Blarney with a big B is, needless to say, a castle in County Cork.
So, why don't we start with the afore referred to Blarney Castle. Blarney could possibly be the most well known castle in all of Ireland. Countless travelers come year after year to see the gardens, castle, and of course, to kiss the famous Blarney Stone. The original castle dates back to the 13th century but it was destroyed and rebuilt in the 15th century. Blarney was the castle home of the McCarthy clan and it is from this point that Cormac McCarthy sent his evasive answers to Queen Elizabeth's calls for submission. Elizabeth is said to have coined the word blarney to describe all evasive answers and obfuscation.
The ruin of Leep Castle, in County Offally, is the ancestral home of the warlike O'Carroll sept. The castle safeguards a strategic mountain pass and from this point the O'Carroll's were the very last holdouts in opposition to English domination in the 17th century. Leep Castle is thought to be haunted. Teige O'Carroll killed his brother, a Catholic priest, at the altar of the castle church. Locals say, that after the castle was destroyed by fire in 1922, cartloads of bones were taken from the castle's dungeons. Leap castle is off the beaten path but you can arrange a visit with the owner. A visit to this haunted castle is alleged to be a once in a life time experience.
Kilkenny Castle, also known as Butler Castle, is the ancestral home of the Butler Earls of Ormond. The castle was originally built by William Marshall, Earl of Pembroke, in the late 12th century at a fording spot on the River Nore. It was bought by the Butler's 1n 1391. Kilkenny Castle is truly one of the most breathtaking in all of Ireland. Today the castle and grounds belong to the people of Ireland and it is open to the public. Every three years there is a Butler Gathering held at Kilkenny Castle where there is also a Butler genealogy archive. No trip to Ireland could be complete without a stop at Kilkenny Castle.
I have only touched on a few of the many castles scattered throughout southern Ireland. Other significant castles od County Cork are Ballea Castle, Ballynamona Castle and Desmond Castle to name a just few more. Plan your Irish trip to include some or all of these fantastic cultural landmarks and you won't go wrong. Erin go braugh.
Hardly anything has interested me more about Ireland than its history of turmoil and clan rivalries, its faith based wars along with the mark they have left on the people along with its landscape. One of the principal marks left on the ground is castles. Ireland is full of castles, old castles, ruined castles, castles abandoned, and castles remodeled and converted into lavish hotels. It's no blarney, you can find hundreds of castles in Ireland therefore we will confine ourselves to only a few of the more attention-grabbing. Incidentally that is blarney with a small B, Blarney with a big B is, needless to say, a castle in County Cork.
So, why don't we start with the afore referred to Blarney Castle. Blarney could possibly be the most well known castle in all of Ireland. Countless travelers come year after year to see the gardens, castle, and of course, to kiss the famous Blarney Stone. The original castle dates back to the 13th century but it was destroyed and rebuilt in the 15th century. Blarney was the castle home of the McCarthy clan and it is from this point that Cormac McCarthy sent his evasive answers to Queen Elizabeth's calls for submission. Elizabeth is said to have coined the word blarney to describe all evasive answers and obfuscation.
The ruin of Leep Castle, in County Offally, is the ancestral home of the warlike O'Carroll sept. The castle safeguards a strategic mountain pass and from this point the O'Carroll's were the very last holdouts in opposition to English domination in the 17th century. Leep Castle is thought to be haunted. Teige O'Carroll killed his brother, a Catholic priest, at the altar of the castle church. Locals say, that after the castle was destroyed by fire in 1922, cartloads of bones were taken from the castle's dungeons. Leap castle is off the beaten path but you can arrange a visit with the owner. A visit to this haunted castle is alleged to be a once in a life time experience.
Kilkenny Castle, also known as Butler Castle, is the ancestral home of the Butler Earls of Ormond. The castle was originally built by William Marshall, Earl of Pembroke, in the late 12th century at a fording spot on the River Nore. It was bought by the Butler's 1n 1391. Kilkenny Castle is truly one of the most breathtaking in all of Ireland. Today the castle and grounds belong to the people of Ireland and it is open to the public. Every three years there is a Butler Gathering held at Kilkenny Castle where there is also a Butler genealogy archive. No trip to Ireland could be complete without a stop at Kilkenny Castle.
I have only touched on a few of the many castles scattered throughout southern Ireland. Other significant castles od County Cork are Ballea Castle, Ballynamona Castle and Desmond Castle to name a just few more. Plan your Irish trip to include some or all of these fantastic cultural landmarks and you won't go wrong. Erin go braugh.
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