2. o Markree Castle, the Cooper family home for 370 years, has been
lovingly restored by the current owner Charles Cooper and his
wife Mary to become one of the finest country house hotels in
Ireland. Set in a secluded 500 acre estate in County Sligo, peace
and relaxation combined with good food, fine wine and old-
world charm make a stay at Markree a step back in time.
3. o The Castle is one of the most exciting historic buildings on the island and
displays the collective talents of some of Ireland and England’s most
distinguished architects. The parklands were laid out by the distinguished
landscape architect, Capability Brown.
The Castle was also a settling for a famous historical romance between King George
IV of England and, Elizabeth, the first Marchioness Conyngham. The King stayed in the
Castle in 1821 and it is believed that the reason the road from Dublin to Slane is one
of the straightest roads in Ireland is because it was so designed to speed him on his
journey. He dined in the spectacular Gothic Revival Ballroom and the bedroom he
slept in is known as the King’s Room to this day.
4. o The cliffs of Moher are located just south of the Village of
Doolin in Co Clare Ireland. Rising slowly from Doolin they
ascend to over 700 feet (213 meters) stretching south for
nearly five miles (8km) to Hags head. They are Irelands
premier tourist attraction and a must see for anyone visiting
Ireland.
5. o Kilkenny Castle is a castle in Kilkenny, Ireland built in 1195 by
William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke to control a fording-point of
the River Nore and the junction of several routeways. It was a
symbol of Norman occupation and in its original thirteenth-century
condition it would have formed an important element of the
defences of the town with four large circular corner towers and a
massive ditch, part of which can still be seen today on the Parade.
6. o Originally built in 1185 by King John, Lismore Castle was owned in
turn by Sir Walter Raleigh and Richard Boyle, First Earl of
Cork, before passing to the Fourth Duke of Devonshire in 1753. The
Castle is designed in Gothic style and contains some of the finest
examples of domestic Pugin furniture still in private hands. The
gardens, laid out over eight acres within the 17th Century outer
defensive walls, are believed to be the oldest in Ireland and
retain much of their original Jacobean form.
7. o This dramatic site, on the karstic limestone pavement of the
Burren, is one of the most famous Irish dolmens. The name
Poulnabrone literally means 'The hole of the sorrows'.
The thin capstone sits on two 1.8m high portal stones to create a
chamber in a 9m low cairn. The eastern portal stone was replaced
in 1985, following a discovery that it was unfortunately cracked;
excavations during the repair showed that this site dated back to
about 2500 BC.
8. o Ashford Castle is a medieval castle turned five star luxury
hotel near Cong on the Mayo/Galway border in Ireland, on
the shore of Lough Corrib. Ashford Castle is a member of the
Leading Hotels of the World organization. The castle was
built in 1228 by the Anglo-Norman House of Burke following
their defeat of the O'Connors, the Royal House of
Connacht, who are still extant in the person of the O'Connor
Don.
9. o Birr Castle is a large castle in the town of Birr in County
Offaly, Ireland. It is the home of the seventh Earl of
Rosse, and as such the residential areas of the castle are
not open to the public, though the grounds and gardens of
the demesne are publicly accessible. There has been a
castle on the site since 1170, and from the 14th to the 17th
century the O'Carroll family ruled from here over an
area known as "Ely O'Carroll“.
10. o Bunratty Castle is a large tower house in County Clare, Ireland. It lies
in the center of Bunratty village, between Limerick and Ennis, near
Shannon Town and its airport. The name Bunratty, Bun Raite in
Irish, means the 'bottom' or end of the 'Ratty' river. This
river, alongside the castle, flows into the nearby Shannon estuary.
From the top of the castle, one can look over to the estuary and the
airport.
11. o Portumna Castle, built near the shore of the northern extremity of
Lough Derg on the river Shannon in the reign of James I. It was built
between 1610 and 1618 at a cost of £10,000.
Portumna was one of the first, if not the first, building in the country to
admit some of the Renaissance refinements already common in Italy and
France for over a century, but which took so long to filter through to
Ireland. It measures 29.7m by 21.2m and the corner towers are 6.5m
square with gunports. A central corridor 3m wide.
12. o Malahide Castle, set on 250 acres of park land in the
pretty seaside town of Malahide, was both a fortress and a
private home for nearly 800 years and is an interesting mix
of architectural styles.
The Talbot family lived here from 1185 to 1973, when the
last Talbot died.
