Picture of Ireland
Caption: of History #bestofireland 6,000 years Ireland
Picture of Ireland
Caption: - BlueSkyTraveler To understand
a nation of people,
you have to
understand
the history
that
shaped them.
Picture of Poulnabrone Dolmen
Caption: One of 172 dolmens (portal tombs). This one has a capstone thirteen-feet in length, 6-10 feet wide and 1 foot thick.
Excavations have found 33 human remains. Poulnabrone Dolmen • Burren • Clare 4200 - 2900 BC
Picture of Brú na Bóinne
Caption: This UNESCO site has been a centre of
human settlement for at least 6,000 years. One site contains NewGrange passage tomb circa 3200 BC, that aligns with the
winter solstice, making it older than Stonehenge & the Egyptian pyramids.
Brú na Bóinne • Meath ~3200 BC
Picture of Grange Stone Circle Lough Gur
Caption: Grange Stone Circle • Lough Gur Stone Circles from prehistoric times
like this one can be found across Ireland as places of ritual gatherings, sacrifice & worship. ~3200 BC
Picture of Hill of Tara
Caption: The site was the ancient seat of power for 142 Kings. In Irish religion & mythology, Temair was the sacred place of dwelling for the gods & entrance to the otherworld.
Around 500 AD, Saint Patrick came Tara to confront the ancient religion of the pagans at its most powerful site. Hill of Tara • Meath ~2500 BC
Picture of Glendalough
Caption: Glendalough • Wicklow 5th Century AD
An early Medieval monastic settlement founded by St Kevin who dies in 618.
Religion continues to flourish here
for 600 years.
Picture of Rock of Cashel
Caption: Cashel is reputed to be the site of the conversion of the King of Munster by St. Patrick.
It remained the traditional seat of the Kings of Munster for several hundred years prior to the Norman invasion. Rock of Cashel • Tipperary 5th Century
Picture of Rock of Cashel
Caption: The monastery of Clonmacnoise
founded by St. Ciarán.
An important site in Catholic history. 544 AD Clonmacnoise • Athlone
Picture of Rock of Cashel
Caption: 600 AD Over 50,000 stone forts like this one
were built as defensive strongholds
by the local lord or King. Cahergal Stone Fort • Kerry
Picture of Rock of Cashel
Caption: 6-8th century This UNESCO site is a renowned Gaelic monastery of special interest to archaeologists as the remains are in unusually good condition likely due to its remoteness on an island. Skellig Michael • Kerry
Picture of Rock of Cashel
Caption: Viking invade Ireland plundering Christian riches and also establishing trade & commerce ports in Dublin, Wexford, Waterford, Cork and Limerick, which became the first large towns in Ireland. Vikings in Ireland 800-1169
Picture of Rock of Cashel
Caption: The first castle on this site was constructed by Strongbow, the legendary Norman invader.
The Norman invasion kicked off English rule in Ireland for 750+ years. 1195 Kilkenny Castle
Picture of Rock of Cashel
Caption: 1200 A 13th-century castle built by King John, brother of King Richard the Crusader & the nasty king of Robin Hood fame.
The castle is one of the best preserved Norman castles in Europe. King John’s Castle • Limerick
Picture of Rock of Cashel
Caption: 1500’s Aughnahure Castle • Galway This tower house built by the O’Flaherty clan highlights medieval life in Ireland & the need for family & security amongst feuding clans of Gaelic and Normans.
Picture of Rock of Cashel
Caption: Founded by Queen Elizabeth I modeled after the Oxford and Cambridge. Trinity College
is the oldest surviving college also contains the Book of Kells (9th century medieval manuscript) & The Long Room library. 1592 Trinity College • Dublin
Picture of Rock of Cashel
Caption: Ireland's number one international visitor attraction.
Drive around Ireland and you will see their advertising everywhere showing the impact of this company to Ireland’s economy. Guinness Storehouse • Dublin 1759
Picture of Rock of Cashel
Caption: Daniel O'Connell (1775 – 1847), an Irish political leader known as The Liberator, who campaigned for the repeal of the Acts of Union which combined Great Britain & Ireland and
Catholic emancipation—including the right for Catholics to sit in Westminster Parliament that had been denied for over 100 years. Daniel O’Connell Cathedral • Kerry 1800’s
Picture of Rock of Cashel
Caption: The Lost Valley of Uggool • Mayo 1845-1849 Take a walk through the land owned by the Bourke family & learn the story of the Great Irish Potato Famine, a significant event
in Irish history triggering mass starvation, disease, and emigration.
Picture of Rock of Cashel
Caption: 1848
First inhabitants came here in 1000 BC, but
this site plays an important place in Irish history
as the place where 2.5 million of the 6 million Irish people left Ireland & emigrated to North America between 1848 and 1950.
It was also Titanic’s last port of call in 1912. Cobh • Cork
Picture of Rock of Cashel
Caption: 1909-1911 Opened in 2012, a museum dedicated to
Belfast's maritime heritage & the building
of the Titanic on the site of the former
Harland & Wolff shipyard Titanic Museum • Belfast
Picture of Rock of Cashel
Caption: Built in 1814, it made history in 1916 as the modern birthplace of Irish freedom.
It was headquarters of the 1916 Easter Rising and subsequent revolution General Post Office • Dublin 1916
Picture of Rock of Cashel
Caption: Built in 1796, but significant to the 1916 Easter Rising, where many Irish revolutionaries, including the leaders of the revolution were imprisoned & executed in this prison by the British.
Kilmainham Gaol • Dublin 1916
Picture of Rock of Cashel
Caption: 2009 Dublin bridge modeled after Ireland's national emblem, an ancient gaelic harp.
A modern country with roots 6,000 years old. Samuel Beckett Bridge• Dublin
Picture of Rock of Cashel
Caption: BlueSkyTraveler.com #blueskytraveler
