Sunday, 26 October 2014
Dunbrody Abbey
So we had a lovely Bank Holiday weekend and dined very well at Dunbrody House. We headed for home on Monday and saw the Abbey on our way out of town. There is a lot to see in County Wexford, including the ancestral home of the Kennedy's and the Dunbrody Famine Ship. Once again, we will need to come back...
Slade Castle
As we drove back to Dunbrody House, we saw this ruin and so stopped to have a look. It is funny houw many ruins there are here and sometimes they are just kind of THERE. This one has a sign telling about it but as far as the castle itself, it is used to store crab pots!
Saturday, 25 October 2014
Hawks at Hook!
We saw this car in the parking lot at the Hook Lighthouse! It was so windy and chilly, we couldn't just stand out there waiting for them to show up. When we were heading out, the car was gone.
Hook Lighthouse
The Hook Lighthouse is the oldest intact operational lighthouse in the world! It is a 13th Century building that still stands and still operates to this day!
It is made of limestone and has 4 stories. It stands 36 meters high and the stairway has 115 steps.
Inside they used the crossing beams and the inside part is the Keystone. The lighthouse was built by William Marshall, a son-in-law to Strongbow and Aoife. He was responsible for the building of many other castles and buildings in Ireland. The lighthouse originally used a fire to serve as the beacon to ships at sea. It was kept lit by monks who lived in the lighthouse and worked to keep the fire burning in the top, by carrying the coal up the steps to the top. Now it is lit by electricity.
Views from the top of the lighthouse. It was a very windy day so it was a little scary! Steve did not venture too far out from the doorway at the top.
It is made of limestone and has 4 stories. It stands 36 meters high and the stairway has 115 steps.
Inside they used the crossing beams and the inside part is the Keystone. The lighthouse was built by William Marshall, a son-in-law to Strongbow and Aoife. He was responsible for the building of many other castles and buildings in Ireland. The lighthouse originally used a fire to serve as the beacon to ships at sea. It was kept lit by monks who lived in the lighthouse and worked to keep the fire burning in the top, by carrying the coal up the steps to the top. Now it is lit by electricity.
Views from the top of the lighthouse. It was a very windy day so it was a little scary! Steve did not venture too far out from the doorway at the top.
Loftus Hall
This is the most haunted house in Ireland! I had read about it last year and wanted to see it but then forgot about it. Then, as we were driving to the Hook Lighthouse, there it was! So we drove down the lane. It wasn't open until later in the day, and we weren't going to wait around. I have since seen some of the stuff about it and it seems to me to be a rather cheesy haunted house tour, so I don't have plans to go see it. I do not go on haunted house tours where they just try to scare me - I am quite easily freaked out anyway!
The story goes that the family living there had a knock on the door and let in a man who said he had come by sea and gotten lost. They took him in and made him welcome and the adult daughter was entranced by him. While they were playing cards, she dropped a card and when she bent down to pick it up, she saw his feet under the table. Instead of feet, he had cloven hooves. He turned into a spirit and flew out of the house making a hole in the roof. The daughter went insane and was kept in an upstairs room for the rest of her life and the family firmly believed they had been visited by Satan.
So even though we didn't go inside, it was an appropriate stop for the weekend before Halloween!
The story goes that the family living there had a knock on the door and let in a man who said he had come by sea and gotten lost. They took him in and made him welcome and the adult daughter was entranced by him. While they were playing cards, she dropped a card and when she bent down to pick it up, she saw his feet under the table. Instead of feet, he had cloven hooves. He turned into a spirit and flew out of the house making a hole in the roof. The daughter went insane and was kept in an upstairs room for the rest of her life and the family firmly believed they had been visited by Satan.
So even though we didn't go inside, it was an appropriate stop for the weekend before Halloween!
Templetown
After having a lovely evening at the pub on site at the manor house, we awoke and had a splendid Irish breakfast and then popped into the car to head out to the Hook Peninsula. We saw lots of things along the way!
This was a church and graveyard that we saw as we drove to the Hook Lighthouse. We were intrigued because it was close to the road and the sea and it was fairly well intact.
The sign posted at the ruin said it was Templetown and gave the following information: "The Knights Templars were founded by the Crusaders in Jerusalem, early in the twelfth century. In 1172, King Henry II granted extensive lands to the Templars along the eastern shore of Waterford Harbour. They set up their headquarters here at Templetown, which is named after them, and at nearby Kilcloggan. The Templars were disbanded in 1307 and their lands were given to their great rivals, the Knights Hospitallers who built the fortified church at Templetown and the castle at Kilcloggan."
In 1307 the Knights Templar were essentially arrested and imprisoned and charged with various things, though most likely they were trumped up charges designed to disband them and divide up their wealth and prevent them from becoming too powerful.
It looked like you could go inside the tower and possibly climb the steps, but it was dark and scary and too close to Halloween for that! Also, it was probably not safe.
I love how they keep the ruins but also make use of the land for cows and sheep. Almost every ruin is in a pasture!
This was a church and graveyard that we saw as we drove to the Hook Lighthouse. We were intrigued because it was close to the road and the sea and it was fairly well intact.
The sign posted at the ruin said it was Templetown and gave the following information: "The Knights Templars were founded by the Crusaders in Jerusalem, early in the twelfth century. In 1172, King Henry II granted extensive lands to the Templars along the eastern shore of Waterford Harbour. They set up their headquarters here at Templetown, which is named after them, and at nearby Kilcloggan. The Templars were disbanded in 1307 and their lands were given to their great rivals, the Knights Hospitallers who built the fortified church at Templetown and the castle at Kilcloggan."
In 1307 the Knights Templar were essentially arrested and imprisoned and charged with various things, though most likely they were trumped up charges designed to disband them and divide up their wealth and prevent them from becoming too powerful.
It looked like you could go inside the tower and possibly climb the steps, but it was dark and scary and too close to Halloween for that! Also, it was probably not safe.
I love how they keep the ruins but also make use of the land for cows and sheep. Almost every ruin is in a pasture!
Dunbrody House
After seeing lots of Waterford, we took a ferry across the River Suir and headed to our hotel in County Wexford. We stayed at the Dunbrody House, which was a manor house turned into a hotel and our first joy was a gift from us to us: Cheers!
Medieval Museum of Waterford
After touring the Waterford Crystal Factory, we crossed the street to see the Medieval Museum. Upon coming in we first saw the Mayor's Chair. Then we went down a spiral staircase to the Chorister's Hall and the Wine Vault.
This is the Chorister's Hall, which was built around 1270.
Then we headed into the wine vault! It was built about 1440 and is the oldest wine vault in Ireland.
The ceiling was made using baskets. They were stacked and the mortar for the ceiling was put on top to dry and create the ceiling. I thought it was interesting.
In the 13th century, Waterford was the only port that could import wine into the southeast of Ireland. This was by royal decree. Originally, most of the wine came from France, but during the Hundred Years' War, the wine was mostly obtained from Portugal and Spain.
This chest is 800 years old. The tour guide actually sat on it while he talked to us!
From there we went upstairs to the museum. There was so much to see it was absolutely amazing. Waterford has a long and wild history, with the Vikings coming to settle it, then the Anglo-Norman invasion at the request of Dermot McMurrough, the deposed King of Leinster, the marriage of Strongbow to Aoife, Dermot's daughter, at Christ Church Cathedral, in return for Strongbow's help in conquering Waterford and Dublin and restoring Dermot to his throne, thereafter English control, Cromwell's invasion, invasion by pretenders to the throne, etc, etc etc! There was so much to see and so much to learn and to put into context with other places we had been that it was almost overwhelming. It is a museum I would visit again, because there is so much to see.
This is a relic of the cross upon which Christ was crucified. The double cross holds a piece of wood that is purportedly, from the true cross.
The next few pictures are cloth of gold vestments that were hidden in a chest and buried for 123 years. They date to around 1460 and they are the only full set of medieval vestments to survive in Northern Europe. It is believed they were paid for by James Rice, a wealthy wine merchant who was Mayor of Waterford 11 times and who was most likely seeking indulgences from the Church. When Waterford fell to Oliver Cromwell's forces in 1650, the vestments were put in a chest and buried. 123 years later, they were discovered when the medieval cathedral was being demolished. The vestments were gifted back to the Catholic Church by the Bishop of the Church of Ireland.
My photos cannot do them justice. One needs to see them in person. Seeing them calls to mind Yeat's poem: Cloth of Gold
Had I the heavens' embroidered cloths,
Enwrought with golden and silver light,
The blue and the dim and the dark cloths
Of night and light and the half light,
I would spread the cloths under your feet:
But I, being poor, have only my dreams;
I have spread my dreams under your feet;
Tread softly, because you tread on my dreams.
This Book is a manuscript that contains records of the City from 1356 to 1649. It is made of 233 sheets of vellum and contains information regarding royal decrees, the wine trade, laws and regulations put in place at various times, and other interesting things. Each year is recorded under the name of the elected mayor and the ruling monarch. in 1649, King Charles I was executed and the entry for the year listed John Levitt as mayor and King Charles II, the late King's son, as the monarch. Shortly thereafter when the city fell to Cromwell's army, the page was defaced to remove the royalist entry. Ten years later Charles II was restored to the throne, but the Book was no longer in use at that time.
Below is an example of some of the entries in the Book.
This is King Henry VIII's Cap of Maintenance. It was given to the people of Waterford in 1536 as a special honor. It is the only article of clothing of King Henry VIII in existence today.
Below is the royal coat of arms of King Henry VII and it was placed above St. Patrick's Gate, Ballybricken.
This is a painting depicting the wedding of Strongbow to Aoife. The Anglo-Norman invasion and Strongbow's marriage into the Leinster King's family was a huge turning point in Irish History. The painting shows the anguish of the Irish people rather than celebration.
Below are coins that were called gunmoney. The coins were issued in 1689 by King James II during his campaign against his son-in-law, King William III. They were minted from copper and would have been redeemable for silver if James had been victorious.
If everything in this section seems a little eclectic, it is only because the history is so immense and I didn't really keep it all in order very well! Below is a portion of the Great Charter which I think is about 10 feet long and covers a wide range of things and it is simply amazing to see things that are so old and yet so well-preserved.
This is the Chorister's Hall, which was built around 1270.
Then we headed into the wine vault! It was built about 1440 and is the oldest wine vault in Ireland.
The ceiling was made using baskets. They were stacked and the mortar for the ceiling was put on top to dry and create the ceiling. I thought it was interesting.
In the 13th century, Waterford was the only port that could import wine into the southeast of Ireland. This was by royal decree. Originally, most of the wine came from France, but during the Hundred Years' War, the wine was mostly obtained from Portugal and Spain.
This chest is 800 years old. The tour guide actually sat on it while he talked to us!
From there we went upstairs to the museum. There was so much to see it was absolutely amazing. Waterford has a long and wild history, with the Vikings coming to settle it, then the Anglo-Norman invasion at the request of Dermot McMurrough, the deposed King of Leinster, the marriage of Strongbow to Aoife, Dermot's daughter, at Christ Church Cathedral, in return for Strongbow's help in conquering Waterford and Dublin and restoring Dermot to his throne, thereafter English control, Cromwell's invasion, invasion by pretenders to the throne, etc, etc etc! There was so much to see and so much to learn and to put into context with other places we had been that it was almost overwhelming. It is a museum I would visit again, because there is so much to see.
This is a relic of the cross upon which Christ was crucified. The double cross holds a piece of wood that is purportedly, from the true cross.
The next few pictures are cloth of gold vestments that were hidden in a chest and buried for 123 years. They date to around 1460 and they are the only full set of medieval vestments to survive in Northern Europe. It is believed they were paid for by James Rice, a wealthy wine merchant who was Mayor of Waterford 11 times and who was most likely seeking indulgences from the Church. When Waterford fell to Oliver Cromwell's forces in 1650, the vestments were put in a chest and buried. 123 years later, they were discovered when the medieval cathedral was being demolished. The vestments were gifted back to the Catholic Church by the Bishop of the Church of Ireland.
My photos cannot do them justice. One needs to see them in person. Seeing them calls to mind Yeat's poem: Cloth of Gold
Had I the heavens' embroidered cloths,
Enwrought with golden and silver light,
The blue and the dim and the dark cloths
Of night and light and the half light,
I would spread the cloths under your feet:
But I, being poor, have only my dreams;
I have spread my dreams under your feet;
Tread softly, because you tread on my dreams.
This Book is a manuscript that contains records of the City from 1356 to 1649. It is made of 233 sheets of vellum and contains information regarding royal decrees, the wine trade, laws and regulations put in place at various times, and other interesting things. Each year is recorded under the name of the elected mayor and the ruling monarch. in 1649, King Charles I was executed and the entry for the year listed John Levitt as mayor and King Charles II, the late King's son, as the monarch. Shortly thereafter when the city fell to Cromwell's army, the page was defaced to remove the royalist entry. Ten years later Charles II was restored to the throne, but the Book was no longer in use at that time.
Below is an example of some of the entries in the Book.
This is King Henry VIII's Cap of Maintenance. It was given to the people of Waterford in 1536 as a special honor. It is the only article of clothing of King Henry VIII in existence today.
Below is the royal coat of arms of King Henry VII and it was placed above St. Patrick's Gate, Ballybricken.
This is a painting depicting the wedding of Strongbow to Aoife. The Anglo-Norman invasion and Strongbow's marriage into the Leinster King's family was a huge turning point in Irish History. The painting shows the anguish of the Irish people rather than celebration.
Below are coins that were called gunmoney. The coins were issued in 1689 by King James II during his campaign against his son-in-law, King William III. They were minted from copper and would have been redeemable for silver if James had been victorious.
If everything in this section seems a little eclectic, it is only because the history is so immense and I didn't really keep it all in order very well! Below is a portion of the Great Charter which I think is about 10 feet long and covers a wide range of things and it is simply amazing to see things that are so old and yet so well-preserved.
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