Somehow we ended up in Tipperary after driving the obligatory long way from Dingle Peninsula. Apart from our B&B host’s interesting life awarding global peace prizes to the likes of Bill Clinton and Nelson Mandela we found nothing of interest in Tipperary. Fortunately Cashel and Cahir are nearby and we headed off the next morning to do our Irish castle visits.
The Rock of Cashel was the traditional seat of the kings of Munster for several hundred years prior to the Norman invasion after which it was gifted to the Catholic Church and became home to the Vicars Choral from the 1500’s. The picturesque complex has a character of its own and is one of the most remarkable collections of Celtic art and medieval architecture to be found anywhere in Europe. Few remnants of the early structures survive; the majority of buildings on the current site date from the 12th and 13th centuries
Cahir Castle , one of the largest castles in Ireland, is sited on an island in the river Suir It was built from 1142 by Conor O’Brien, the Prince of Thomond.
