Roodstown Castle

Roodstown Castle (15th Century) is a fine example of the many tower houses built in Leinster between the 14th and15th Century.

The castle is four stories high and is roofless.
Two of the square turrets are projecting from the castle.   
One of these turrets contains garderobes (toilets), the other has a spiral staircase giving access to the different floor levels and the battlements.
The first and second floor have finely carved windows (15th Century) image No 2 . 
The ground floor is vaulted and just inside the entrance is a murder hole. 

This was my third visit to Roodstown and as on previous visits the castle was locked up, I have read somewhere that a local maybe is the key holder.

Access - The castle can be found a short drive from the M1, I parked close to the farm opposite the castle so as not to block the narrow road.



 


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Dromiskin Round Tower High Cross and Church

Dromiskin Monastery was founded by Lughaidh a disciple of St Patrick.
The monastery came under attack in 908 from the Irish, the Danes in 978 and again by the Irish in 1043.

The tower is over 15 meters high as a result of the tower being used as a belfry and then recapped.
This has now left the tower with a shrunken look to it.
When viewed from the front this tower always makes me smile.

The Romanesque doorway (missing some stone work) is just under 4 meters from ground level. 

The head of the high cross dates back to the 10th Century- it was grafted onto a granite shaft and base in 1918.

The church ruin dates to the 12th Century with the window dated to the 15th Century.

The more modern St  Ronan's Church of Ireland was built in 1821.
It is now in a dangerous derelict state.

The village of Dromiskin is a short drive from the M1.
When you arrive at the village you will have no problem spotting the tower.
Parking is available right outside the gate of the graveyard.

Proleek Portal Tomb & Wedge Tomb

The well known Proleek Portal and Wedge Tomb have to be quite unique in that they are located on a golf course.

The super looking and impressive portal tomb rises to a height of 3.5 meters.
It's massive capstone is just under 4 meters in length and over 3 meters in width.
The capstone is said to weigh 35 tons.
The two front stones are over 2 meters in height.
The third stone has had a mixture of cement and smaller stones pasted onto it in an effort to stabilise the tomb - but it is done in a very crude way.

To reach the portal tomb you have to walk past the lesser known wedge tomb of proleek.
This great little tomb is over 6 meters in length and over 1 meter in width.
The slightly narrower end is covered by two roof stones.
This is a really well put together tomb which on it's own would be well worth seeking out.
So to get a super portal tomb so close by is very special.

Access - The two sites can be walked to from the car park of the Ballymacscanlan Hotel (just off the R173).
The pathway is signposted and the walk through the golf course to the sites takes about 10 minutes.      

Old Mellifont Abbey

Old Mellifont Abbey was the first Cistercian monastery founded in Ireland.
St Malachy brought the European monastic lifestyle to Ireland in 1142.

Such was the power of Mellifont, that many of the monks who started out in Mellifont went on to form many other cistercian monasteries in Ireland. More than 20 such abbeys were built during this period.

Mellifont despite some problems mainly flourished, this was mostly because of its size and the surrounding fertile land

In 1539 Mellifont became one of the first monasteries to be dissolved by Henry VIII.  Much of the abbeys brickwork was then used in the building of a fortified house.                

William of Orange used Mellifont as a headquarters during The Battle of the Boyne in 1690.

By the 18th century Mellifont lay in ruin having long since been abandoned.

Taking a walk around the perimeter of what is left of the abbey it is not hard to imagine the many monks (upwards of 100) that were housed in this vast site.

The stand out feature of the site is the 13th century octagonal Lavabo.
This was used by the monks to wash their hands before prayer.
To the left of the Lavabo in image No 4  is a 14th century chapter house (this was closed on the day of my visit).                                                     
The site also has a gateway close to the main entrance.  Due to the time of year of my visit I was unable to access the field its in because of  marshy/boggy conditions

The visitors centre is open May to October, which is probably the best time to visit and not November as yours truly did.






    

Monasterboice

Muiredach's Cross (south cross)

The Tall Cross (west cross)

The North Cross

Monasterboice dates back to the 5th Century when St Buite founded a monastic community here.
Today a visit to this great site will bring you into contact with two church's, a round tower and three high crosses.
The round tower stands to an impressive 28 meters high despite missing its cap.
The tower is the easy way to find this site, you can see it from the M1.
The two most famous high crosses are of sandstone and are dated around the 10th Century

-Muiredach's Cross (south cross) is 5.2 meters tall, with beautiful detail on both sides.
The cross gets its name from an inscription at the base "saying it was erected by Muiredach".
 
-The Tall Cross (west cross) is Ireland's tallest high cross, it is over 7 meters tall.
This cross has detailed panels on both sides, my personal favorite is David with the head of Goliath.
  
-The third cross which is known simply as the north cross, is tucked away in its own enclosure against one of the boundary walls in the graveyard.
The head of this cross has been grafted onto a newer plain body.

Monasterboice has so much to offer, just give yourself plenty of time.

Castle Roche

Castle Roche is one of the most striking Anglo- Norman castles in Ireland and can be viewed for miles around. Located on a rocky hilltop, it commands wonderful views of the surrounding countryside.
Lady Rohesia de Verdun built the castle in 1236 ad.
Legend has it that Lady Rohesia promised her hand in marriage to the architect if he completed the castle to her satisfaction. When he went to claim her hand, she had him thrown from one of the windows, which to this day is known as the 'murder window'.

Hurlstone Standing Stone

This is a giant of a stone, it is much bigger than either of the images would have you believe.
The stone stands to a height  of 1.5 meters and is roughly the same in width.
The hole is 20cm's in diameter.

It is thought that this may be all that remains from what was once a wedge tomb.

Access - The stone is located just off a very narrow road so parking is tricky.
The stone is not visible from a car as the field it is situated in is banked.

Cuchulains Stone

This really impressive stone stands alone on a slight rise in a large field. Standing at over three metres high and close to one and a half metres wide, this up close has a big wow factor. Some idiot has carved his name into the bottom of the stone  but it takes nothing away from this great site.
When i arrived at this site and started to make my way across the field i could not help but notice a lone raven atop of the stone (with about twenty flying around) very spooky.
Which probably had somthing to do with the below being fresh in my mind,
The History
http://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/celt/cuch/lgc23.htm