DUBLIN CASTLE
Dublin Castle was the seat of British
imperial power in Ireland for 700 years.
A former military and intelligence
garrison, Dublin Castle now serves as
an Irish government venue for state
banquets and hosting official visits.
Queen Elizabeth II was welcomed to
Ireland in May 2011 with a lavish dinner
and Champagne served from Waterford
Crystal at St. Patrick’s Hall– the
grandest chamber of the castle.
BLARNEY CASTLE
The most famous Irish castle of them
all? Maybe this has something to do
with the legions of fans who besiege the
castle every summer, departing with the
gift of eloquence (full of Blarney) having
kissed a certain fairytale stone.
Confused? So are we, but we’re not
going to argue with the thousands of
happy travelers who take our Blarney
Castle Day Trip!
ROCK OF CASHEL
The Rock of Cashel is not really a castle
– but how could we leave this bad boy
out? It was here that St. Patrick
converted the King from Celtic
Paganism to Catholicism in the 5th
Century.
The Rock proudly stands over the plains
of Tipperary, and contains one of the
most important collections of Celtic
architecture to be found anywhere in
Europe.
DUNLUCE CASTLE
Dunluce keeps watch over Co Antrim
with very steep drops into the North
Atlantic Ocean on all sides – in fact this
is probably why the Vikings built a
defensive fort here many years before
the current castle.
In 1588 the Spanish Armada sailed into
the area to pick a fight with Imperial
England – thinking the nearby Giant’s
Causeway was actually Dunluce Castle,
they destroyed a section of the World
Heritage Site with cannon fire.
KILKENNY CASTLE
This castle is without doubt one of the
highlights of medieval Kilkenny. A 12th
Century masterpiece which was
remodeled over the centuries, this
citadel is different to many castles in
Ireland because it has an aristocratic
Victorian feel to the interior.
Pay a visit to see how the other half
lived – in this case a powerful family of
Norman lords – the Butlers (Dukes of
Ormonde).
Get More In-Depth Reviews in our Ireland Travel Guide
www.KennedyCarr.com
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