| Alluring Leinster - Be the king of
the castle
 MALCOLM ROGERS gets to grips with Ireland’s geography and history by
going on a castle tour.
In 1429 Edward VI promised a grant of £10 to anyone building a castle in
order to strengthen the boundaries of his rule. And £10 back then was a
kings’ ransom, almost literally, so no wonder the countryside is studded
with castles — with Leinster boasting more than most, it being the area
where the invaders first set up camp.
Numerous other incentives across the province promoted a frenzy of
castle-building, not least the presence of restless locals, with castle
hassle lasting the best part of 800 years.
To discover a slice of Ireland’s military past, a trip across Leinster
will provide you with a dramatic lesson, as well as taking you through
enough enchanting scenery to balance up the hard history.
King John’s Castle, Carlingford, is the most northerly outpost of the
Pale, the area where Norman, followed by English rule, ran in Ireland
from the 12th century until the end of the 15th century. The village
boasts two castles which isn’t bad going for a place with a population
of only a couple of hundred souls.
The more substantial of the two castles, the afore-mentioned King
John’s, dominates the area from its rocky outcrop overlooking
Carlingford Lough.
Built in the 13th century, much of the castle remains intact. Regular
tours point out the huge fortifications plus the nearby town gates which
still guard the entrance to Carlingford.
About 200metres away from King John’s Castle stands Taafe’s Castle, a
16th-century fortified town house, adorned with pre-Norman Celtic
motifs. At this point if the castle quest has tired you out, there’s no
better place to spend the night — a dozen first rate restaurants, and
about the same number of pubs will serve all your cuisine needs.
From Carlingford’s cobbled, medieval streets, it’s time to head
southwards. Take the R175 south, join the M1 south, and you’ll soon come
to Ardee.
In Irish Baile Áth Fhirdhia or the Town of Fedia’s Fort, Ardee is
steeped in folklore. The great warrior of the early Irish sagas, Cú
Chullainn, fought Ferdia for three days in an attempt to stop the Queen
of Connacht from entering Ulster.
Ardee continued to play a substantive role in the affairs of Irish
history across the centuries, evidenced by the presence of its
impressive Norman castle. Built in the early 13th century, its role was,
just like the Carlingford castle — to guard the Pale. It soon attained
major strategic importance. Both James II and William of Orange lodged
here.
The castle remains in good condition, partly because it was bought by
the Grand Jury in 1805 and put to use as a courthouse and jail. It still
serves as the local courthouse so if you want to see more of the castle,
get yourself elected onto a jury — or commit a felony.
Just a few hundred metres down the main street from Ardee Castle stands
Hatch’s Castle, a smaller and older fortification and still used as a
private dwelling. A very distinctive building due to the rounded corners
of its walls, it remains in good condition more than three centuries
after the Hatch family was granted the castle by Oliver Cromwell. Two
18th-century cannons adorn the front garden.
From Ardee, the next part of our grand castle tour of Leinster takes us
south on the N2 for almost 25 kilometres.
Royal Meath is home to many castles, many legends. There’s a story about
Dunsany Castle, how robbers forced their way in during the turbulent
early 1920s and started looting their way from room to room. “Whom shall
I say called?” enquired the butler as they fled with their booty.
However, it’s one of Leinster’s newer castles we’re bound for.
 Situated in the Boyne valley just a few miles upstream from the site of
the battle, Slane boasts one of the finest gothic-revival castles in
Ireland. Many of the big names in architecture during the 18th and 19th
century were associated with the building including James Gandon and
Capability Brown.
With the completion of the 10-year restoration program in 2001, Slane
Castle is now one of Ireland’s major rock venues. It’s doubtful if the
Anglo-Normans saw that one coming.
To get to the largest and just about the most important castles in
Ireland for several centuries, head south-west until you reach the
former garrison of the Anglo-Normans, Trim.
The very model of impregnability, the castle’s thick granite walls are
equipped with slit-like embrasures for the archers, and the unevenly
spaced stumble-steps in the keep made the going as difficult as possible
for intruders — those failing to negotiate the granite gradients
experienced the original bouncy castle.
And don’t forget the oubliette. Those consigned to the oubliette
(derived from the French word ‘’to forget’) suffered abject misery until
their death. Prisoners would be pushed into the room to fall through the
floor and land on a spike eight feet below (you rarely got off with a
fine back then). If you survived that, you were just left to die.
Some 100km south-west of Trim, in Co. Offaly, you’ll eventually find the
village of Clareen. Nearby stands what is reputedly the most haunted
castle in Ireland.
The brooding fortifications of Leap Castle have stood silently over the
pass from Leinster into Munster since the 14th century.
Originally called Léim Uí Bhanáin, the Leap of the O’Bannons, the castle
takes its name from a predictably tragic incident involving love,
betrayal, murder and elopement. Par for the course really.
Like all castles in Ireland, changes in ownership were frequent and
rarely done with the aid of an estate agent.
But throughout the shifting alliances over the centuries, the torture
chamber upstairs continued its work.
The Bloody Chapel in the castle is steeped in, as you might imagine,
blood. The name stuck after a younger O’Carroll murdered his brother, a
priest, here. The fact that the priest was celebrating mass with the
rest of his folks made this a family day to remember.
From Clareen it’s a short drive to Birr Castle, also a seat of the
O’Carrolls, outlawed in 1620. The present castle, dating back to 1810,
incorporates the central tower of the early 17th-century stronghold. The
gardens are one of the glories of Birr — even a passing interest in
flowers requires that you visit one of the greatest displays of magnolia
on the island.
However the castle’s main claim to fame is not its botany but its huge
telescope. Built in 1825 this enormous feat of engineering was until
1917 the biggest telescope in the world.
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