Sunday 21 February 2010

Bunratty Castle, a towered fortress


Bunratty Castle
All over Ireland there are impressive reminders of a long and robust history - pre-historic forts, strongholds, mediaeval castles, picturesque abbeys and monasteries.  Bunratty, ten miles from Limerick city is one of the largest of the towered fortresses of Ireland.  It was built by the O'Briens of Thomond in the 15th century.  It has been completely restored, and furnished in the style of the period, so that it is one of the most interesting examples of mediaeval times to be found today.
The castle has had a turbulent past, or rather the castles that existed on the site before the present one.  The first fortress was built in 1270 and later rebuilt in stone.  Then in 1318 and again 1382 it was completely destroyed.  In 1353 it was rebuilt, with final alterations in 1425.

The castle ground now contains Bunratty Folk Park which is a village recreated in the style of the 19th century.  The Walled Garden is modelled on the garden which used to serve the nearby Bunratty House.  While the garden is Regency period, the house has been restored in a Victorian style.
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5 comments:

  1. Thank you for all the information amazing the history you can get from postcards.

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  2. Learning more about a place is the attraction, as far as I'm concerned. It makes it a very time-consuming hobby.

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  3. Great picture look like film photography.

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  4. I think this would be a great place to visit.

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  5. This is a very old picture, taken around the late 50s/early 60s. The castle is still a ruin at this time. The pub is called Dirty Nellies and still exist on the same spot but has been rebuilt in recent times. There are now two bridges in front of the existing bridge in the picture, the first was built in the late 60s and the 2nd dual carriageway bridge was built in 1991.

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