The O’Briens had an extraordinary history stretching back to the 5th Century, Dromoland Castle was originally the ancestral home of one of the few families of Gaelic Royalty; direct descendants of Brian Boru, the High King of Ireland. We first hear Of Dromoland in about 1551. There were at least three houses [...]

Blarney Castle and its demise:

The sixteenth century in Europe was a time of unprecedented change. It was the beginning of the modern era, and it saw a revolution in almost every aspect of European life. The century opened with the discovery of a new continent. The renaissance in Italy was peaking and spreading north, [...]

From a European viewpoint the Anglo-Norman invasion of Ireland was seen as part of a wider movement of Western Europe colonial expansion. The invasion, conquest and settlement was part of a general expansion and colonization extending from the core areas of western Europe to the European periphery, which by that time included Ireland. A vibrant [...]

The advent of the friars, and especially the Dominicans and Franciscans, brought a whole new world of learning to Ireland. Through the colony the medieval papacy was brought into closer contact with the Irish than ever before. Because the early upper-class settlers spoke French and were products of French-orientated civilization, they brought with them a [...]