HISTORY both tumultuous and heroic lurks round every corner of this ancient landscape.
Its hills and valleys have seen Neolithic farmers clear the land, rebel fugitives hiding in its woods, and great armies massing on its plains ready for combat.
Its monasteries and friaries have sheltered the monks who turned Ireland into the very centre of Christianity while the rest of Europe struggled in the quagmire of the Dark Ages.
The culture, the music, and the heritage of Ireland’s Ancient East have been shaped by centuries of thunderous happenings. But today it's a tranquil, peaceful place with a real sense of its eventful past.
The area is divided into The Historic Heartlands, The Land of 5,000 Dawns, and The Celtic Coast.
The Historic Heartlands
Clonmacnoise
THE Pilgrim’s Road to Clonmacnoise monastery settlement skirts the northerly edge of Mongan Bog before arriving at the monastery on the banks of the Shannon. Just to the south stands Clonony Castle, built by the local MacCoghlan clan but subsequently seized by Henry VIII’s people. It eventually ended up in Thomas Boleyn’s possession. Mary and Elizabeth Boleyn lived and died at Clonony and would doubtless have wandered through the bogland, perhaps contemplating the fate of their tragic cousin Anne Boleyn, executed by Henry VIII. The sisters’ tombstone stands some 100 metres from the castle.
Clonmacnoise Monastery itself was founded by St Ciarán around 544 AD and is located strategically on a wide bend of the River Shannon. The preserved ruins include churches, two round towers, and several intricate high crosses. It was repeatedly attacked by Vikings before being largely abandoned by the 13th century. It is a beautiful, melancholy spot, and with its round towers and high crosses, the Shannon flowing slowly by and the boglands stretching to the horizon, this is Ireland being as Absolutely Ireland as it can be.
Clonmacnoise in Co. Offaly (Pic: Tourism Ireland)Kilkenny
THE ANGLO-NORMAN Kilkenny Castle is one of the great castles of the world. A 12th-century fortification remodelled in Victorian times, you can tour inside, walk in the gardens, or visit the art gallery. Kilkenny almost seems to have had more history than it can handle. The city’s timeline stretches back to the 5th or 6th century, an early Christian settlement founded by followers of St Canice — hence the name Cill Chainnigh.
It has kept more of its mediaeval character than any other Irish city — two imposing cathedrals and an extremely impressive 12th-century castle overlooking the River Nore put it right up there with the very finest of Europe’s cities.
If you look up ‘hurling’ in Wikipedia, the first line says: “Not to be confused with curling or hurdling.” You’ll work hard in Kilkenny to find someone who might make that error. The sport is an obsession in the county. Locals say: “Hurling is a game for piano tuners; football is a game for piano removers,” although clashes can sometimes make the stands shake.
In 1366 the Statutes of Kilkenny were brought in to chasten English settlers who found the native ways very much to their liking and had become “more Irish than the Irish themselves”. The sanctions thus introduced included a ban on hurling — a somewhat unpopular move.
The hostelries
Kilkenny’s hostelries are underpinned by a brewing tradition that stretches back to the 14th century. As ever, the monks were at the centre of the licensed victualling trade (unlicensed back then, as it happens), brewing ale and saving souls at this spot on what is known as the Mediaeval Mile.
But commercialism soon reared its lucrative, creamy head, and Smithwick's was founded by John Smithwick in 1710 in St Francis Abbey Brewery. Today this is Ireland's oldest operating brewery, situated on the site of the old Franciscan Abbey — tours of the brewery are available: www.smithwicksexperience.com
On the High Street, spare a thought for Alice Kyteler who in 1324 stood trial for witchcraft. Her crime sheet also accused her of being a heretic. Accused by her stepchildren of sorcery, demonism, and murdering her husbands, she faced charges brought by Bishop Richard de Ledrede. But, according to legend, she escaped from Kilkenny Castle before she could be executed, likely fleeing to England. Her maid, Petronilla de Meath, was less fortunate — burned at the stake, the first such execution in Irish history.
You’ll learn all about this on a Kilkenny Walking Tour: https://kilkennywalkingtours.ie/
There are between 70 and 80 pubs in and around Kilkenny, so you’re unlikely to go thirsty. Kyteler’s Inn on Kieran Street, with a history dating back to 1263, is one of the oldest hostelries in Ireland. It’s named after Alice Kyteler, the bar’s founder, whose legal problems regarding witchcraft we’ve already chewed over. Today, with all thoughts of sorcery banished, the pub is a haven for traditional music, storytelling, and entertainment of all types of craic.
Leixlip
LEIXLIP, on the border of County Kildare and Dublin, has watched the Liffey flowing past since the 12th century and remains one of Ireland’s oldest continuously inhabited castles — owned by the Guinness family. Just downriver stands the magnificent Rye Water Aqueduct, an 18th-century feat of engineering carrying the Royal Canal high above the valley — the towpath is perfect for a quiet walk or cycle.
Leixlip is perhaps best known as the original home of Guinness: Arthur Guinness signed his first lease here in 1755 before moving his brewing empire to St James’s Gate.
Maynooth
ALTHOUGH Maynooth is home to St Patrick's College, one of the most famous priest-training seminaries in the world, an atmosphere reminiscent of Victorian Dublin suffuses the place. There's also a long history attached to the town — the remains of the 13th-century Fitzgerald Castle, for long the home of the Kildare Geraldines, still stands, today festooned with ivy.
It was here that the traitor brother of Silken Thomas was executed, or as contemporaneous news reports put it, “he was caused to be cut shorter by the head”.
Maynooth's museum celebrates the amazing Nicholas Callan (1799–1864), a priest and professor of natural philosophy at St Patrick's. Callan invented the wonderfully named self-exciting dynamo, as well as the induction coil. He also constructed the world's largest battery and most powerful electro-magnet.
Land of 5,000 Dawns
Newgrange is part of the Brú na Bóinne complex in Co. MeathMOST historians and anthropologists believe that Ireland’s first settlers arrived on the north coast around 10,000 years ago — probably from Scotland. It’s possible a few hunter-gatherers were already present — we may be talking in terms of fewer than a hundred people who had Ireland entirely to themselves.
By around 8,000 BC we know for certain that the populating of Ireland was on its way. Over the next few millennia these early settlers made their way throughout the island, living in what we might call Neolithic affluence — the woods and forests provided fuel, shelter, and game.
The most striking example of that stony burst of energy is Brú na Bóinne, or Newgrange in Co. Meath, one of the most important megalithic structures in Europe. It dates back to approximately 3,200 BC, making it the oldest known specifically orientated structure in the world.
Every December a moment of magic occurs here, as it has done for the last 5,000 years, give or take. Weather permitting, at dawn on the morning of the winter solstice, a pencil of sunlight penetrates the main burial chamber, flooding the space with winter light.
The huge megalithic structure is perfectly aligned so that the first rays of the solstice sun pierce through a small opening in the chamber's roof. The light then travels some nineteen metres along a narrow stone passage to focus on the entrance to the grave. For seventeen minutes the chamber is illuminated, and then it returns to darkness as the light departs down the passage.
People gather at Newgrange for the winter solstice dawn on each of the mornings from December 19th to December 23rd inclusive. All access to the inner chamber is decided by lottery (you’re too late for this year, sorry).
The shortest day of the year usually occurs on December 21st — very occasionally December 20th, 22nd, or 23rd. It’s all to do with the rotation of the Earth in conjunction with the planets. At Brú na Bóinne, the sun will rise at approximately 8:41am and set at approximately 4:23pm on December 21st. The Winter Solstice, that is, the precise astronomical moment when the Earth’s North Pole is tilted furthest away from the Sun, happens at 9:03 Irish time on December 21st. Blink and you’ll miss it.
Dowth
DOWTH, in County Meath’s lush Boyne Valley, is one of Ireland’s great but often overlooked treasures. Overshadowed by its famous neighbours Newgrange and Knowth, this Neolithic passage tomb is every bit as haunting — and, in some ways, more mysterious.
Dating from around 3,200 BC, Dowth (“Dubhadh,” meaning “darkness”) forms part of the UNESCO World Heritage–listed Brú na Bóinne complex. You approach through gentle farmland, where the mound rises like a sleeping giant above the river.
Unlike Newgrange, Dowth has never been fully restored, which in my book makes it even more evocative. Two passage tombs pierce the mound, their chambers aligned with the setting sun at the winter solstice — a moment of Bronze Age brilliance that still draws small gatherings each December.
Around the site, carved stones bear spirals and solar motifs, the language of a people long gone and yet still with us (come on, it is November; we’re allowed to be a bit mystical). Speaking of which, the Boyne’s banks are rich with myth: this is where the Dagda, father of the gods, was said to have dwelled.
Modern visitors will find little in the way of cafés, interactive visitors’ displays, or ticket booths — only the wind, the grass, and the ancient quiet.
The Cooley Mountains
The crags of the Cooley Mountains rise steeply behind the Carlingford, the mediaeval village which boasts two castles, the remains of Dominican Friary and an ancient harbour that faces Northern Ireland. It’s a totally wonderful place for hiking, with no really rock climbing required to reach the main peak Slieve Foye.
It's also home to hares, foxes, peregrine falcons and enough flora to enthral any botanist.
There’s a terrific pub quiz question: which is the fastest: the peregrine falcon, the cheetah, or the white mulberry bush. It is, of course, the white mulberry bush, which pushes out its pollen at half the speed of sound.
But the falcon can be regarded as the fastest animal in Ireland. If it’s hurtling through the air at 150mph it’s only dawdling. Speeds of up to 180mph have been regularly recorded. So, where to see them — any open terrain is good, mountain ranges are the best. It’s about the size of a crow, but, dare I say, a little more debonair looking.
Having said that, I saw a stand-off between a peregrine falcon and raven in the Cooley Mountains. A lot of squawking, dive bombing, tumbling through the air. Lots of, here, hold my drink. It got so ferocious I hid behind a rock; almost called the guards. It ended up in a home draw for the raven, with the raptor withdrawing.
I tell you what — it beats any safari I’ve ever been on hands down.
The Celtic Coast
THE Celtic Coast section of Ireland’s Ancient East covers parts of the east and south-east coast of Ireland — specifically the counties of Wicklow, Wexford, Waterford, and the eastern part of County Cork.
Hook Head
TO THE south of Wexford town lies Hook Peninsula and the Hook Head Lighthouse. It dates back to the early 13th century, probably the longest continuously operational lighthouse in the world. A visitors' centre boasts first-class displays tracing the history of the beacon — it seems that Ireland's first beam team were monks who may have blagged the design for their distinctive tower from the Pharos in Alexandria. Those monks, eh? Always with the big ideas...
By hook or by crook you should try to get there, not least because the expression “by Hook or by Crook” is believed to date from the 14th century and this very area. The ‘Crook’ refers to Crook village across Waterford Harbour. Local legend says that Oliver Cromwell, during his 1649 campaign in Ireland, vowed to take Waterford “by Hook or by Crook” — meaning he would capture the city by landing forces either at Hook Head or at Crook.
Hook Head Lighthouse in County WexfordTintern Abbey, Co. Wexford
Tintern Abbey, founded around 1200 by William Marshal, the Norman lord of Leinster, is a hauntingly beautiful ruin on the Bannow Bay estuary. The abbey’s grey stone arches and ivy-clad cloisters speak of its Cistercian past. Take a stroll along the riverside woodland trails, have a peek into the walled garden, or cross the ancient Tintern Bridge with its view of the tide sweeping in.
Dunbrody Famine Ship, New Ross
THE FULL-SCALE Dunbrody Famine Ship reconstruction in New Ross tells the story of Irish emigration during the 1840s. Visitors board the vessel to meet costumed guides portraying passengers fleeing the Great Hunger for North America. Adjacent exhibitions trace the Kennedy family’s Wexford roots, linking Ireland’s emigrant past with its global diaspora. Overlooking the River Barrow, the Dunbrody serves as both a museum and a memorial.
Ardmore, Co. Waterford
ARDMORE is one of Ireland’s oldest Christian settlements, founded by St Declan in the fifth century — historians believe this was some decades before St Patrick’s mission. The seaside village retains its round tower, cathedral ruins, and intricate stone carvings depicting early saints and serpents. A cliff walk gives great views across the ocean past the shipwrecked Samson crane and lookout towers.
Copper Coast Geopark, Co. Waterford
STRETCHING from Tramore to Dungarvan, the UNESCO Copper Coast Geopark showcases 460 million years of geological drama. This was once mining country — its headlands pierced with old engine houses and shafts — but today it’s prized for its wave-sculpted coves, fossil beds, and striking sea stacks. The visitor centre at Bonmahon offers exhibits on copper mining, while clifftop walks reveal volcanic cliffs and quiet strands such as Kilmurrin and Ballydowane.
Dungarvan and Lismore, Co. Waterford
THE Waterford Greenway crosses eleven bridges and three impressive Victorian viaducts before arriving at Dungarvan Bay. En route you’ll visit many of the nooks and crannies of Irish history. Norman castles, ethereal monasteries, welcoming villages — all are part of the tapestry of this region. Dungarvan, with its bustling quays and pubs, is the ideal place to stop for seafood, a pint, and some salty sea breezes.
Inland, the heritage town of Lismore boasts a magnificent castle, Gothic bridges over the River Blackwater, and connections to literary greats from William Thackeray to Edmund Spenser. Thackeray stayed at Lismore Castle where he wrote some of the chapters of The Irish Sketch Book (1843).
For more information on holidays in Ireland visit: ireland.com
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