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Kylemore Abbey and Walled Victorian Garden |
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Trim Castle Inside Tour
Vistas from the top
For more information: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trim_Castle And... http://www.meath.ie/Tourism/Heritage/HeritageSites/TrimCastle
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Day 3 - August 28 We saddled aboard our mighty coach and made our way through the Valley of the Boyne River until the stately Trim Castle rose mightily from the horizon.
"Trim Castle (Irish: Caisleán Bhaile Atha Troim) is a Norman castle on the south bank of the River Boyne in Trim, County Meath, Ireland. With an area of 30,000 m², it is the largest Norman castle in Ireland. Over a period of 30 years, it was built by Hugh de Lacy and his son Walter as the caput of the Lordship of Meath." (Wikipedia) By this time, I was ready to sit. But, Larry and I went thru the castle door to the main room where our guide talked with great interest and enthusiasm about Trim Castle.
"The castle site was chosen because it is on raised ground, overlooking a fording point on the River Boyne. The area was an important early medieval ecclesiastical and royal site that was navigable in medieval times by boat up the River Boyne, about 25 miles from the Irish Sea. Trim Castle is referred to in the Norman poem "The Song of Dermot and the Earl". "In Medieval times, Trim Castle stood like an imposing stone sentinel and powerful symbol of norman strength at the edge of the Pale, the small area of Anglo-Norman influence on Ireland’s eastern coast. To go beyond the Pale was to enter the hostile world of the Gaelic Irish. Here at the edge, the two sides would have met - in conflict and in battle." "The Castle fell into decline in the 16th century but was refortified during the Irish Confederate Wars in the 1640s. In 1649 after the sacking of Drogheda, the garrison of Trim fled to join other Irish forces and the place was occupied by the army of Oliver Cromwell."
Some of our more energetic tour members climbed the round concrete step to the top floors to marvel at the construction and view. I, on the other hand, opted to park myself with other on wooden benches and await their return.
For more gorgeous pictures of the Victorian Garden and our overnight stay at the Moalreidh Hotel go to :
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Kylemore Abbey and Garden Kylemore Castle was built as a private home for the family of Mitchell Henry, a wealthy doctor from London whose family was involved in textile manufacturing in Manchester, England. Later it was purchased by Benedictine nuns who were bombed out of their Belgium abbey during WW1. They had a boarding school for girls until 2010. However, they retained the land and developed a Victorian Garden to help pay for the upkeep of the Abbey. http://connemara.net/kylemore-abbey-and-victorian-walled-garden/
Walled Victorian Garden
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