Things to do in County Tipperary

The High Crosses at Ahenny in County Tipperary are among the earliest and most beautifully carved of the Irish high crosses, two eighth-century stone crosses of exceptional quality whose elaborate interlaced ornament and geometric carving represent the fully developed art of the Irish monastic tradition at its most refined. The crosses stand in the quiet graveyard of Kilclispeen, a remote rural site whose peacefulness and isolation add to the contemplative quality of an encounter with some of the finest sculpture produced in medieval Ireland. The Ahenny crosses are distinguished by their almost entirely abstract ornamental carving, covering every surface of the cross heads and shafts with interlaced knotwork, spiral and geometric patterns of extraordinary sophistication. This decorative style, closely related to the manuscript illumination tradition of the Book of Kells and the Lindisfarne Gospels, represents the visual language of early medieval Irish Christianity expressed in monumental stone rather than vellum. The quality of the carving, which shows no sign of the tentative early experiments visible in simpler crosses, suggests that this tradition was already mature when the Ahenny crosses were carved. The bases of the crosses carry figural panels depicting biblical and other scenes whose iconographic interpretation remains a subject of scholarly debate, and the combination of the abstract ornamental carving with these narrative panels creates a sculptural programme of considerable intellectual complexity. The site is freely accessible and the rural character of the surrounding Tipperary countryside provides a setting of great charm.

Annagh Castle is a ruined tower house in County Tipperary, representative of the hundreds of fortified residences built by Gaelic Irish and Anglo-Norman families across Munster from the fourteenth century. Tower houses combined defensible accommodation across several storeys with thick masonry walls, vaulted ground floors and limited window openings. Tipperary's fertile Golden Vale attracted intense competition between the Butler earls and numerous lesser families, and the density of tower houses across the county reflects both agricultural wealth and the persistent instability of the later medieval period.

Ardfinnan Castle is situated on rocky slope overlooking the River Suir valley eight miles west of Clonmel. It has views north west to the Galtee Mountains and south to the Knockmealdown Mountains. The castle is rectangular in shape with square towers at the corners, and a fortified entrance gateway. The castle is on high ground near the old bridge over the River Suir. It was originally built to guard the river crossing in Ardfinnan. The old bridge with its 14 arches makes an interesting approach to the castle. Facilities The castle is privately owned and not open to the public. Ardfinnan Castle was built around 1185 for Prince John (who later became King John of England). In the 1640s in was occupied by Oliver Cromwell's troops. It was held as a military post until 1649, when it was destroyed by Cromwell's forces. The castle was partially restored and rebuilt in the 18th century and 19th century.

Ardmayle Castle is a ruined tower house in County Tipperary, standing in the fertile Golden Vale south of Thurles. The castle reflects patterns of Anglo-Norman and Gaelic Irish lordship in medieval Munster, where the Butler earls dominated a landscape of competing lesser families each maintaining their own defensible residence. Tower houses served simultaneously as private homes, symbols of status and centres for estate management in a period of endemic local conflict. The Rock of Cashel, one of Ireland's most spectacular assemblages of early Christian and medieval architecture, lies a short distance to the south.

Ballindoney Castle is a medieval tower house in County Tipperary and represents the long Irish tradition of fortified domestic architecture that spread across the countryside from the later Middle Ages onward. Buildings of this kind were created to give local elites a defensible residence without the scale or cost of a great enclosure castle. The result was a tall, compact stone structure designed around security, visibility and controlled access. Tower houses of this type became so prevalent across Ireland between the fourteenth and seventeenth centuries that several thousand examples, in varying states of preservation, survive in the Irish landscape today. What makes sites like Ballindoney historically interesting is that they sit at the intersection of everyday life and conflict. The people who lived here would not have experienced the building only as a fortification. It was also a home, a place for household management, food storage, family life and the exercise of local authority over the tenants and dependent communities that supported the castle's occupants. The thick walls, small openings and elevated arrangement of interior spaces reveal how concerns about violence shaped even routine domestic architecture during this period of Irish history. County Tipperary contains an unusually high concentration of castles and tower houses reflecting the long-standing contested nature of this fertile, strategically important county on the border between Gaelic Munster and the more anglicised Pale. These structures collectively tell the story of a countryside divided among Norman, Old English and Gaelic families and lordships where strong houses were necessary markers of status and survival. Even reduced to ruins, they show how densely history once occupied what is now an agricultural landscape. Today Ballindoney Castle stands as an evocative survival from that world. Its appeal lies partly in its authenticity as a relatively undisturbed ruin in a rural setting that preserves something of the agricultural and social context that gave the tower house its meaning. County Tipperary's wealth of ecclesiastical ruins, including the extraordinary complex at the Rock of Cashel, makes this part of Ireland especially rewarding for visitors with an interest in the medieval landscape.

Ballynahow Castle near Ballycahill in County Tipperary is a well-preserved circular tower house, an unusual form in Ireland where the great majority of tower houses are rectangular. Built by the Purcell family in the fifteenth or early sixteenth century, the castle rises to four storeys with distinctive corbelled machicolations at the parapet. The circular plan gives Ballynahow a distinctive silhouette in the flat agricultural landscape of north Tipperary and marks it as one of the more architecturally interesting tower houses in the Golden Vale. The Office of Public Works maintains the castle, which retains its original spiral stair and vaulted basement.

Burncourt Castle is situated near Burncourt off the M8 five miles south west of Cahir. The castle comprises a rectangular central block with a four storey square tower at each corner. The interior was lit by mullioned windows. Several fireplaces can be seen in the interior walls, and there were originally seven chimneys. Parts of the walled courtyard can still be seen including a corner turret. A stone in the entrance to the nearby farmyard is inscribed with the date 1641 - this stone is believed to have been once positioned over the castle doorway. Facilities Burncourt Castle was built in 1641 by Sir Richard Everard. Sir Richard joined the Catholic Confederates at Kilkenny in 1642, and became a member of the Supreme Council. The castle was destroyed by fire in 1650. Some reports say it was burned down by Oliver Cromwell's troops, others say the Everard family burned it themselves to prevent Oliver Cromwell's troops capturing the castle. Either way, the castle was destroyed. Sir Richard Everard was involved in defending the city of Limerick against Cromwell's troops, but was captured and hung by Oliver Cromwell's son-in-law, General Ireton in 1651. Prior to the fire, it was known as Clogheen Castle or Everard's Castle. After the fire it was abandoned and has remained a ruin. A two storey house was built adjacent to the castle in the early 18th century by painter Anthony Chearnly. A formal garden was established in front of the castle courtyard. This house is now in ruins.

Cahir Castle is a situated in the centre of the town of Cahir. Built on a rocky island on the River Suir, 12 miles south east of Tipperary in the south of Ireland. Cahir castle is an extremely well preserved castle. It has retained its tower, keep and most of its defensive walls. The complex comprises of a series of courts, the inner court is set to the north at the highest point with the keep to the south which originally served as a gatehouse. Facilities The castle is open to the public and offers both guided tours and a modern and informative audio visual presentation entitled 'partly hidden, partly revealed'. It is a popular tourist attraction because it is one of the largest and well preserved castles in Ireland and has managed to keep many of it's original features. The castle is open year round between 09:30 and 17:30 March to October and 09:30 - 16:30 November - February. The castle was built in 1142 by the Prince of Thomond, Conor O'Brien on the site of an earlier fort. Edward III granted the castle to the James Butler in 1357 and also awarded him the title of Baron of Cahir in recognition of his loyalty. The castle was considered 'impregnable' until a three day siege in 1599 when the castle was bombarded with heavy cannon fire and was eventually taken by the Devereux, Earl of Essex. During the Irish Confederate Wars it was surrounded by hostile forces twice more and taken by Lord Inchiquin in 1647 and then Oliver Cromwell in the conquest of Ireland. The castle layout was changed considerably and enlarged during work to repair some of the damage caused by the battles, but was then left abandoned until 1840 when the partial rebuilding of the Great Hall took place. The castle became the property of the state after the death of Lord Cahir in 1961; it was classified as a national monument and taken into the care of the Office of Public Works.

Court Castle is a ruined tower house in Fethard, County Tipperary, a town celebrated as one of Ireland's best-preserved medieval walled settlements. The fourteenth-century town walls of Fethard remain largely complete, enclosing a streetscape of medieval buildings, ancient churches and Norman-period street patterns of exceptional historical integrity. The castle was associated with the White family, prominent local merchants and landowners. Fethard's combination of complete town walls, medieval Augustinian priory, parish churches and the tower house make it one of the most rewarding and undervisited medieval towns in Munster.

Lisheen Castle is situated in open countryside 30 miles west of Kilkenny in the centre of Ireland. The Tudor style castle built over two floors comprises a main crenellated building, a central tower with projecting gallery and side turrets built of grey stone. It is set on sweeping lawns giving views out to the countryside beyond. Facilities Lisheen Castle has been fully refurbished throughout and is now used as luxury self catering accommodation decorated and furnished in a comfortable traditional style. The castle is full of features including ceilings decorated with Celtic murals and marble fireplaces The castle has 9 luxury bedrooms sleeping up to 16 people; one room with a four poster bed, Regency dining room, library, old style kitchen and reception room. For guests celebrating a special occasion or those who simply do not wish to cook the castle can provide its very own top class catering team and head chef, making it an ideal location for an intimate wedding reception. The earliest record of the castle was in 1827 where John Lloyd Esq. was recorded at 'the castle' and paying taxes on surrounding land he continued to make additions to the original castellated building. In 1856 Charles Henry Lloyd succeeded to the estate and lived there until his death in 1887 when the castle was left to his eldest son Charles Edward. Charles and the rest of the Lloyd family all emigrated to different parts of the world with Charles heading for Australia. He went to make his fortune and rebuild a crumbling home, but never came back to Lisheen and so the castle was rented for 80 pounds a year to the Hamilton family between 1896 and 1903. In 1903 a new land act was introduced which encouraged land owners to sell their land with favorable terms to their tenant farms. This is just what Charles did leaving just 143 acres and the castle to create a new estate. The castle and estate was then sold on a number of occasions until in 1921 it was under the ownership of John O'Meara. In July of that year the castle was one of the last to be burnt down in the Irish War of Independence and was left a shell until 1960 when the Land Commission took control of the buildings and land and divided them. The castle was eventually purchased by the Everard family in 1996; they set about the castle's restoration which took them 3 years.

Loughlohery Castle is a ruined tower house in County Tipperary near Rathmore, occupying a hillside position with views across the Suir valley toward the Galtee and Knockmealdown mountains. The castle represents the defensive domestic tradition of lesser gentry families in medieval Munster below the level of the great Butler and Fitzgerald earls. The rolling east Tipperary hills and Slievenamon mountain, associated with numerous mythological and historical traditions, provide an attractive backdrop. The town of Cahir nearby contains one of the largest and best-preserved castles in Ireland, and the wider Suir valley between Cashel and Carrick-on-Suir constitutes one of the most rewarding medieval heritage landscapes in Munster.

Loughmore Castle at Templemore in County Tipperary is a dramatic and substantial ruin combining a medieval Purcell tower house with a large seventeenth-century fortified mansion, one of the most impressive castle complexes in the county. The seventeenth-century mansion is a particularly notable transitional structure, combining castellated features such as turrets and battlements with larger windows and more comfortable domestic spaces typical of the ambitious Irish gentry houses of the 1630s and 1640s. The exceptional scale of the building reflects the wealth and ambitions of the Purcell family at the peak of their influence in north Tipperary. The castle stands today within the demesne of the Garda Síochána College at Templemore.

Milltown St John Castle is a ruined tower house in County Tipperary, a typical example of the small fortified residences built by minor gentry families across the Golden Vale during the later medieval period. The placename combines a topographical reference with a religious dedication, a pattern common in medieval Ireland that reflects the intertwining of agricultural settlement and ecclesiastical organisation across the rural landscape. The county's exceptional density of tower houses, several hundred surviving at various levels of preservation, reflects both the agricultural prosperity of the Golden Vale and the competitive social landscape of late medieval Munster.

Standing in grassy parkland amongst trees, Nenagh Castle is an imposing landmark in the Irish market town of Nenagh, in County Tipperary. Nenagh Castle (also known as Nenagh Round) is the best example of a cylindrical keep in Ireland. It used to be attached to a curtain wall which surrounded a five-sided courtyard. Most of the curtain walls have gone, but isolated parts remain. The castle used to have four towers with twin towered southern gateway, and a tower on both the east and west sides of the courtyard. Only fragments of the gateway remain. The circular keep was on the northern corner of the pentagon. The castle is made of limestone rubble. The keep is about 30m tall and 16m across at the base. The walls are about 5m thick at the base. The upper part of the tower including the corbelled parapet was a later addition, constructed around 1860. Facilities The castle is undergoing restoration at the time of writing (2009). Nenagh Castle was built around 1200. Construction was started by Theobald FitzWalter (aka Theobald Walter), a Norman, who died before it was completed. FitzWalter later took on the name of Butler, Nenagh Castle continued as the seat of the Butler family, the Earls of Ormonde, until 1391. The castle changed hands a number of times during the wars of the 17th century. The Williamite War, when King James and King William of Orange fought for the Kingdom of Ireland, resulted in the defeat of James's forces. Nenagh Castle was destroyed by King William's forces in 1692. The circular keep was partially restored in the 19th century by Bishop Michael Flannery, who added a new parapet on top of the tower.

Ormonde Castle is situated on the River Suir near Carrick on Suir, 16 miles north of Waterford in the south of Ireland. Ormonde Castle is a fully restored Elizabethan manor house surrounding a small courtyard. The house is built over two floors with a gabled attic and two of the original four towers from the original building. Facilities The castle is open to the public and access to the interior is by guided tour only. Visitors can see a variety of historical documents along with fine plasterwork and murals including one of Queen Elizabeth I. The gallery on the first floor; sixty feet in length, has a large limestone fireplace and a stucco ceiling with heraldic symbols. This room is perhaps the greatest achievement of the restoration project as the ceiling was in a collapsed state. The castle is open to the public daily from the beginning of May until the end of September between 10am and 6pm. The original tower house on the site was built in 1309 with the 1st Earl of Ormonde, James Butler, being the first of the family to occupy the castle in 1315. Thomas Butler, 3rd Earl of Ormonde and also known as the 10th Earl of Ormonde, divided his time between Ormonde and the court of Queen Elizabeth I his cousin at the invitation of Anne Boleyn. It was here that he found an appreciation for Elizabethan architecture and added the first Tudor mansion onto Ormonde Castle in the years after 1565. The remodeling included beautiful interiors with carved chimneys and the decoration of its ceilings with friezes. The 'Great Earl of Ormonde', James Butler lived spent much of his time at Ormonde and was the last of the family to reside at the castle. On his death in 1688 the family abandoned the property and it was only in 1947 that they eventually handed the castle over to the government who then became responsible for its restoration.