| King of the castles keeps Trim
 Malcolm Rogers
visits one of Ireland’s most picturesque towns and its surrounding
area.
After the Battle of the Boyne in July 1690, the defeated King James II was,
naturally enough, very dejected. According to legend he sat down, head
in hands, beside a tree on the banks of the Boyne. King Billy —
the triumphant William III — happened to gallop by. On seeing James,
King Billy reined in his horse and trotted up to the vanquished king.
“Ach, don't worry about it too much,” said Billy. “Sure,
it’ll be forgotten about in a couple of weeks.”
If only. In some parts of the North the events of 1690 are as clear in
the collective memory as if they'd happened last Saturday, and for anyone
brought up in that north-easterly corner of the country it’s virtually
impossible to see the Boyne babbling its way to the Irish Sea without
hearing an echo of ‘marching feet and angry voices’.
At Trim, one of the most beautiful villages in Ireland, the dark Boyne
looks at its most attractive — but here again, history is lurking
around every corner.
Stand at the bridge just beside the Sally Rogers Pub (no relation, regrettably)
and you get a terrific view of Trim Castle.
This Co. Meath redoubt, built by Hugh de Lacey in 1173, was the largest
and just about the most important castle in Ireland for several centuries.
Its garrison of Anglo-Normans watched over the dangerous natives and took
every precaution to ensure their castle was unwelcoming in the extreme.
The fast waters of the Boyne helped keep out uninvited guests —
which you can be sure were numerous in number. If the visitors managed
to breach the Boyne they were treated to a torrent of boiling water, tar,
arrows, rocks, and other early weapons of mass destruction, rained down
on them from overhead.
These bombs were extremely accurate — they always hit anyone immediately
below, ensuring an early grave.
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. And don't forget the oubliette, a word derived from the
French ‘oublier’, to forget. Prisoners were simply thrown
into this dungeon-like room and forgotten about.
For more information on the Battle of the Boyne — which took place
just downstream from Trim — take one of the terrific Living History
Tours (free), tel + 353 41 9809950. The site of the battle is about 3km
north of Donore village. www.battleoftheboyne.ie
Castle quest
The hugely impressive Trim Castle was used as a set for Braveheart in
1994, but its use in crosswords has predated the film industry by many
years. ‘Neat Irish town (4 letters)’ is the usual thrust,
and it's situated at the edge of another crossword clue — ‘Faded
part of Ireland under Norman rule? (4 letters)’. Yes, well done,
the Pale.
But even before the Pale came into existence, and long before the Normans
landed, Baile Átha Troim, The Town of the Ford of the Elder Tree
was a place of immense importance. An ancient ford crossed the Boyne here
— you can still see it from the aforementioned town bridge.
To this very ford, it is said, St. Patrick himself came and founded a
monastery — history permeates the very ground of this extraordinary
place.
Surrounding the castle, on both sides of the river, are fascinating
ruins which provide evidence of religious activity stretching back centuries.
Stone relics abound in St. Patrick’s Cathedral, its church and porch
revealing a number of medieval grave slabs. Nearby, St. Mary's Abbey is
all that is left of an Augustinian monastery founded in the 12th century,
and later a focal point for major pilgrimages from throughout Ireland.
The Yellow Steeple is a prominent landmark in the area, gracefully dominating
the left bank of the Boyne. Originally the belfry tower of the Abbey and
standing some 125 feet, the steeple gets its name from the golden colour
it turns as the sun sinks below the horizon and bathes the Boyne Valley
in golden colours. For some reason it seems to pick out the Yellow Steeple
for special attention. When you see this scene of pastoral calm, it’s
hard to imagine the chaos which occurred here just over 300 years ago
when Cromwell’s guns wreaked havoc on the walls of the monasteries.
The Sheep Gate, just below the steeple, is the only surviving gateway
of the medieval town.
The Newtown Monuments consist of a large medieval cathedral, two monasteries
and small church which date back to 1206. The remains of the Friary of
St. John the Baptist, a 13th century Augustinian foundation, lie to the
south of the castle. This was later converted to a hospital in the 18th
century.
Meanwhile, if you feel like saying ‘sod it’, then head for
the Butterstream Gardens just outside Trim. Because that’s exactly
what the proprietors there have done, turning acres of heathland into
a spectacular rose garden, a ‘white’ garden, a wild garden,
a herbaceous garden, a pool garden and many others, all containing wonderfully
controlled masses of flower and leaf forms hidden away by neatly clipped
hedges and leafy screens. Fuchsia, ancient hawthorn, rhododendron, azaleas
and a hundred and one wild flowers — no matter what the season Butterstream
is ablaze with colour.
Located just outside Trim on the Kildalkey Road, tel: + 353 46 36017.
From Swift to Shakespeare
The county of Meath has produced some very famous people over the years
— the socialist anthem the Red Flag was written by Jim Connell,
while the Beaufort Scale (which calibrates wind speed) was devised by
Navan man Francis Beaufort. Arguably Ireland’s greatest composer
ever, Turlough O’Carolan was also a Meath man, from Nobber.
Trim, being a place of no small importance in earlier times, boasts a
few very significant residents of its own. During the 1700s Jonathan Swift
was presented with the Vicarage of Laracor in Trim, and was evidently
very happy in the area if his Journal to Stella is anything to go by.
The Duke of Wellington Sir Arthur Wellesley was educated in Trim, and
according to contemporary accounts, kept his Meath accent for many years
— there’s a statue to him in the town. Henry V (of Shakespeare
fame) was imprisoned in the castle by Richard II. Maybe he had Trim Castle
in mind when he wrote: “Once more unto the breach, dear friends,
once more; or close up the wall with our English dead!”
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