Ballinskelligs Abbey & Castle Co Kerry

                             Above Image: The approach laneway and entrance gate

                                                   Above Image: Chancel arch

                                      Above Image: Remnants stored within abbey

                                             Above Image: Western gable interior

                                  Above Image: Partly sunken doorway in North wall

                                       Above Image Castle as seen from the abbey

                                    Above Image: The castle's North West aspect

                               Above Image: Entrance to castle in South West wall

A recent trip to the Iveragh Peninsula in County Kerry revealed a few really interesting sites and among them was this impressive Augustinian abbey nestled on the coast with stunning views.

Ballinskelligs abbey was constructed in 1210AD in order to house the monks of Skellig Island who had abandoned their offshore habitat in favour of a more settled and secure monastery on the mainland. Numerous Viking attacks and increasingly poor weather conditions had sealed their island fate. The new mainland abbey was dedicated to St. Michael the Archangel.

Although it appears to have survived the dissolution of abbeys it was occupied only until 1568. 

During the 17th century it was given with its lands to Richard Harding of the nearby castle which stands on a promontory into the bay. It is believed the abbey's ruination began after the monks' departure and the chancel collapsed in the early 1840's leaving only the Nave and the Chancel arch and an ancillary building 

We visited on a fine summer's day and the views here were spectacular. The abbey is at the end of a long narrow lane adjacent to a very popular beach and although there was a throng of bathers nearby, the abbey did not seem to draw that much attention. It is also separated from beach access by fencing. 

The abbey appears to have originally been constructed around an ambulatory, or cloister, as it is also known. Some remnants remain of this.

A pointed bellcote arch is the only remains of the Chancel. 

Within the walls a metal table has been set up to display various remnants that had once littered the area of the abbey as it fell into ruin. Ruins of a residential tower, the Prior's house and the refectory are amongst the parts to be seen. 

This is a very tranquil spot overlooking the sea and a great place to relax a while away from the business of the world.

As mentioned the abbey came under the ownership of Ballinskelligs castle and following the Harding occupancy became the home of the Sigerson family. The castle was built as a MacCarthy Mor stronghold in the 16th century in order to protect the bay from attack and to tariff the trade vessels that sailed in. Subsequent Sigerson decendants were owners until the end of the 19th century but the castle finally succumbed to ruin thereafter and is now subject to coastal erosion. Works are in progress to save it from future collapse. However it is still accessible from the headland should you wish to venture out.

To find the ruins take the Ring of Kerry N70 route Northwards out of Waterville and drive approx. 12KM until you see a left hand turn signposted for  the R566 to Ballinskelligs. Turn onto the R566 and drive approx.10KM until you pass The Ballinskelligs Inn on your left. Approx 600m past the Inn you will come to a crossroads. The turn left takes you to the beach car park for access to the castle but to visit the abbey follow the sign straight on another 500m and take the un-signposted laneway on the left. You will see the abbey on the horizon. You can park up at the entrance gate. I would advise turning your car back facing the way you have come in case someone else parks there making turning difficult.

Castle co-ordinates  51.820828  -10.273095

Abbey Co-ordinates  51.815712  -10.272141

Mallow Castle Co Cork

                                             Above Image: The entrance gate

                                 Above Image: The interior showing North-East gable.

The dramatic ruin of Mallow Castle stands in the grounds of the current 19th century mansion on the South-East end of the town.

A former castle was built here by Bad King John in 1185AD and became a possession of the Earls of Desmond in 1282. It remained so for several centuries. Between 1569 and 1583 the castle became involved in the Geraldine wars and in the end was lost by the Desmonds as a result of the scorched earth policy of the English. Elizabeth I granted the castle to Sir Thomas Norreys along with all its land. The castle was in such a bad state that it was replaced by a new fortified mansion built by Norreys in 1585 in which he resided until his demise in 1599. It then passed to his daughter and her husband John Jephson.

The castle's fate became more turbulent when in 1642 it was laid siege to during the Confederate wars but it managed to survive the conflict.

Then in 1691 more trouble was laid at its door and it was badly burnt by fire during the Williamite war. As a result it was abandoned by the Jephsons and it subsequently fell into ruin. In 1928 it was given the status of a National Monument.

The ruins today are still quite extant. The house itself stands four storeys high with four towers standing another level higher still. The most complete is the North standing hexagonal tower. When we visited we only had partial access and at the moment it is being renovated and so only exterior views can be made until this work is completed. Nonetheless this is a very striking structure and well worth a visit.

Access is very easy through the main gate on Bridge Street. There is a small car park adjacent to the castle estate and a much larger one nearby on Park Road.

To find the ruin take the N20 roundabout exit for the N72 East towards Mallow Town Centre. Approx. 250m along this road turn right again following the N72. Drive till you reach a set of traffic lights and take the left turn onto Bridge Street. There is a car park around 30m along on your right. The castle entrance is another 30m along by foot. 

Co-ordinates  52.133951,  -8.639380

Old Kilberry Church Co Kildare

 

                                              Above Image: The entrance gate

                                        Above Image: The South wall and doorway

                                   Above Image: Remains of the ivy covered tower.

                                               Above Image: Southern doorway

                                               Above Image: Interior of the tower

                               Above Image and Below Image: Remains of the Nave.

I visited this ruin a few years back and somebody told me they had seen it recently and that it had not changed much from my description. I had wanted to post this for quite some time now but information was hard to come by. 

When I made the visit I met a farmer in the laneway, in fact he was the the landowner and he gave me some information which I include here. There are many, many old church ruins like this in Ireland whose history is sketchy or in fact non extant. But for me this all adds to the mystery of these remnants of our past, still visible and maybe diminished in stature but not in interest.

Firstly, the church is certainly medieval in origin and was apparently dedicated to St. Baire whom I cannot find any backround information on, but the name "Kilberry" derives from KIL (for church) and BERRY (it seems from Baire). What remains are the often ivy covered ruins of the nave and tower but little else.

Access is by way of a gate although access over a former stile may now have been bricked up since my visit. 

The gate arch of the South doorway divides the graveyard and it is possible to see up inside the partial tower remains. 

This church is situated down a long narrow road from the main road and historically this place was called Abbey Farm. Indeed the farmer I spoke to still farms this land. He said that a group from the OPW arrived one day to clear some ivy from the ruin but found that it was actually now supporting one of the walls and so abandoned the work. Abbey farm was the home of the Verschoyles and was named after the Abbey linked to the Hospitallers of St John, which later became a nunnery and was in fact listed as so on the 1837 O.S. map. It once stood adjacent to the church and beside Kilberry Castle. He told me that the remains of the castle were now incorporated into the farm buildings and that the Abbey ruins were virtually gone. Apparently in another of his fields a short distance North was the stump of Castlereedy castle once home to the La Redes. It had a folk tale attached to it that locals believed that a cache of gold had been buried beneath the castle and many a sound of nocturnal digging and activity could be heard in the wee hours among the ruin in the years before the turn of the twentieth century.

After spending a little time exploring the remains I left this small remote station of Catholicism and ventured back to the main road for the next port of call that day which was nearby Ballybracken.

To find the ruin take an exit at junction 14 0f the M7 motorway and from the roundabout follow the signs for the R445 to Monasterevin. Drive for approx. 3KM until you see a left hand turn onto the R417 to Athy. Turn onto this road and drive approx 12KM until you pass a line of bungalows on your right. Shortly thereafter there is a right turn signposted for Kilberry Cemetery. Drive right to the bottom of this narrow road and you will see the gate to the cemetery on your right. Park so as not to inhibit access to the farm gate opposite.

Co-ordinates  53.034918.   -7.025073

Old Dunlewey Church Co Donegal

                         Above Image: The church with the slopes of Errigal Mountain

                                               Above Image: The entrance gate

                                           Above Image: The great East window

                                                  Above Image: The bell tower

                                    Above Image: Entrance door (from the interior)

                                           Above Image: Entrance door (exterior)

                                                  Above Image: Church interior

                                   Above Image: View of the Lough from the church

                                        Above Image: Gated access to tower stairs

The story behind the striking church ruin at Dunlewey began with James Russell a merchant in London who made a fortune from his commercial dealings in hops. Russell had married Jane Smith in 1835 and decided that with his wealth they would live a peaceful life in the wilds of Donegal. He set about purchasing the Dunlewey estate and lived quite happily there with Jane until his untimely death in 1848. His wife bereft of the love of her life commissioned the building of a church at the head of Dunlewey Lough in the shadow of the great Errigal mountain. Her husband was interred in a vault below its floor and when the church was finally finished in 1853 it was consecrated as a chapel of ease. 

Throughout the subsequent decades the local community diminished and the church began its decline as well. In 1955 the roof was removed as it had become dangerous and the church was stripped of its assets which were distributed to other community churches. 

Some renovation work was carried out in the late 1980's and finally twenty years later some enterprising people carried out additional work to preserve the church from deteriorating further.

The church sits at the top of the Lough affording a commanding and beautiful view. A long narrow and uneven boreen leads down from a secondary road into the valley of the Poisoned Glen. Here at the end of the boreen the graveyard is situated containing the church ruins. A gate allows access to a well kept graveyard and the main entrance doorway is on the Western aspect overlooking the lakeside. A couple of solid but worn steps leads into the former entrance porch below the church tower and a gated up set of steps accesses the ground level of the tower. Beyond the porch lies the rectangular expanse of the interior now open to the elements. Some of the walls still contain traces of the plasterwork but little else remains apart from the interred body of john Russell underfoot.

I have wanted to visit this ruin for a long time and finally was afforded the chance this year. It is a bit out of the way but worth every mile to get there. As I am sure others experienced I felt a serious sense of peacefulness here. Sitting on one of the stone benches to the side of the church I was lost in the serenity of the place. What the ruin lacks in features it exudes tenfold in atmosphere.

The church is adjacent to the ominous sounding Poisoned Glen where you can take a ramble and embrace its terrible beauty. Legend has it that in ancient times the Giant, Balor, King of Tory Island, followed the kidnapper of his beautiful daughter here and that a battle took place between the two in which Balor's eye was split and oozed out a molasses like liquid which poisoned the glen forever. Truth be told it is thought that a more likely explanation of the origin of the glen's name was the misspelling of the word Neamh which means "heavenly" for the word Neimhe which means "poison". Somehow I think heavenly glen describes it better with its stark but beautiful views of the mountains.

To find the ruin take the N56 heading East from the bridge in Gweedore and drive approx 3.7KM where you will see a right turn onto the R251 for Dunlewey. Drive approx 4.6KM and you will spot a slip road to the right with a sign for The Poisoned Glen. Take this slip road which is narrow and after about 1KM you will see the church ruin on your right. There is room outside the gate to park. 

GPS  55.019341,  -8.111128

Tully Castle Co Fermanagh

                                                  Above Image: The entry gate

                                                    

                                        Above and Below Image: The entry door

                                       Above Image: Inner stairs to first floor level

                                                    Above Image: Upper level

                                  Above Image: View of bawn and South facing wall

                                  Above Image: Remains of South East bawn tower

                                          Above Image: Remnants at East wall

                                        Above Image: Remains of the bawn walls

                                     Above Image: Remains of North East turret

On a recent trip to County Donegal we found ourselves driving through the Northern county of Fermanagh and while alongside the Southern shore of Lough Erne we came across the ruins of this interesting castle on Tully Point.
Tully Castle had a short life as a residence lasting less than 30 years! It was built by Sir John Hume, a settler from Scotland, between the years 1611 and 1613 and was modelled upon the Scottish style of fortified residences. It's main purpose was defense mostly against attack from the native Irish clans. Around the sturdy house he built a large hundred foot square bawn and positioned defensive towers on each corner.
Unfortunately it was not strong enough to outlast an attack made by Rory Maguire during the 1641 rebellion who struck while the garrison was absent, fighting elsewhere leaving the Humes and the inhabitants of the nearby village without protection. Hume had the villagers take refuge in the castle but to no avail. Once the castle was taken, the Humes' were allowed to leave but the villagers were imprisoned in the cellar area and at some point later the castle was burned with no survivors remaining from the fire.
This tragic event spelled the end of Tully Castle and it was never inhabited again eventually falling into ruin.
However in 1974 a project began and the site was landscaped with the castle rendered safe for public  access. A small visitor centre has been set up in an adjacent farm house.
When we visited we took the long somewhat grassy lane up from the main road to a small car park/picnic area and were surprised to find we were alone. This was early August and a decent enough summer's day. One explanation might be is that there is a looped walk available here so a lot of people were probably somewhere along the trail.
After a short walk from the car park a small wooden access gate brings you straight into the castle area and they are very striking ruins indeed. The large expanse of the former bawn is represented by partial remains which are tallest on the Eastern side. The main house has the remains of a North Eastern turret and an entry door in the South side. There is a large chimney block on the East side extending to all floors.The building appears to be T-shaped and three storeys high.

Access to the upper floor is possible and a good stairs has been provided but it can be erratic for times of opening and a sign clearly states it closes at 4PM.
 

To find the ruins take the A46 from Enniskillen towards Belleek for about 20KM and you will pass a left turn for Churchill (Binmore Rd). Drive on another 400m and you will see a right hand turn signposted for Tully castle. Turn down this road and follow the track (approx. 1.2KM) right to the end where you will find a small car park. It's a short stroll to the castle.

St. Patrick's Footprint Lullymore Co Kildare

                               Above Image: Artist's impression of the monastic site

                                       Above Image: Laneway entrance from road

                                       Above Image: Graveyard entrance with stile

                                       Above Image: Grave slab embedded in wall

                                              Above Image: Ancient stone font 

                                             Above Image: Footprint marker stone

                                        Above Image: The footprint in the stone.

                        Above Image: Aerial photo on display board showing graveyard 

                                                and ancient enclosure

                                          Above Image: 1798 rebellion memorial

 

Lullymore, basking in the backwaters of Kildare. A quiet bucolic spot but with plenty of history about it. When I first heard of "St. Patrick's footprint" the engine of the car was already running in anticipation and so on a bright warm day in early may we aimed straight for this site in the lovely county of the Lilywhites.
We understood that the said "footprint" was located in Lullymore East graveyard which in itself is the centre of a huge ancient enclosure which is still partly in evidence by way of surrounding ditches that have been excavated.
When St. Patrick came to Ireland he visited the area of Lullymore and following the conversion of the pagan druid Erc to Christianity he instructed his new convert to found a monastery for scholars which Erc then set about building on an ancient pagan henge that had been familiar to him. The melding of the old ways with the new it would seem.
This monastery founded in the 5th century became quite significant and was sited on an inland island of fertile land 93m above sea level. It was completely surrounded by the peatland of the Bog of Allen making it difficult to attack. But eventually it did fall foul of assailants and came to an end in the late medieval period. The lands were confiscated and came under the ownership of the Earl of Kildare in 1641. Today only remnants from the monastery era remain. No ecclesiastical structures are extant at the site.
When we arrived at the small junction that has a laneway leading up to the graveyard we found the lane was blocked by a large metal gate and some CCTV warning signs were clearly displayed. Not to be put off by this we crossed to the Bog of Allen heritage centre and were advised there that the gate is unlocked and just to "close it after you"  So with spirits renewed we followed the instuctions and drove up a long gravel track right to the boundary wall of the graveyard.
We accessed the enclosure by way of an unlocked metal gate although there was a formidable stile available as well.
After a circuit of the interior we came across an ancient font which was a remnant from an early church and now has a permenant position in the graveyard but there was no sign of the "footprint."
We did find embedded in the graveyard wall to the left of the entrance gate one of thirteen known grave markers that existed in the monastery. Eight more are in the wall of a monument back at the entrance to the heritage centre. The final four are lost to the sands of time.
Puzzled by the absence of the rock containing the footprint we eventually searched outside of the graveyard and found it in a small railed area a few yards back along the track. There is a monument beside it detailing its history. Indeed the graveyard also has a detailed board displaying historical info and photos. The said footprint is a foot shaped depression in the top of a large rounded rock and to all intents and ourposes it resembles a bullaun stone as rainwater collects within it.
The only area inaccessible to the public is the adjacent ditch excavation area which is on private property populated by a herd of enthusiastic cows.
Back to the footprint. On measuring our feet against it, it appears to be a size 6!
Outside on the main road opposite the laneway to the graveyard is a memorial to the 1798 rebellion and the significant involvement in it of Captain John Doorly, a Lullymore native. We checked and indeed eight grave slabs have been incorporated into a crescent shaped wall behind the monument stone. The site at Lullymore is well worth a visit and you could also incorporate a visit to the brilliant Bog of Allen heritage centre.

To find Lullymore graveyard take the junction 9a exit from the M7 heading on the R407 for Clane. Follow the signs for 8KM until you enter Clane. In the town take the left hand turn opposite the old church onto the R403. Drive approx. 11KM through the villages of  Prosperous and Allenwood. About 1KM further from Allenwood take a left hand turn over a stone bridge crossing the canal onto the R414 signposted for Rathangan. Drive along this road for approx. 3.5KM and you will reach Lullymore. Watch out for a long grey single storey building on your right with a sign for the Bog of Allen nature centre. The laneway to the graveyard is opposite the end of this building. You can park at the gate and take a walk (about 500m) or drive up to the graveyard remembering to close the gate after you on entry and exit. The property here belongs to Lullymore farms ltd.


GPS   53.274995  -6.935464