Butterslip

This alley is named after the butter stalls that once lined  this small market place.

Kilkenny : A city?

Kilkenny was granted city status by a Royal Charter in 1609. The Local Government Act 2001 formally defined Dublin, Cork, Limerick, Galway and Waterford as cities and classified Kilkenny as a town. Later, the Local Government Reformed Act 2014 abolished town councils entirely and Kilkenny became part of Kilkenny County Council as a municipal district. However, the legislation afforded the continued use of the description city in relation to Kilkenny. As such, Kilkenny is officially  not a city but is officially entitled to be described as a city. Got it?

Cormac's Chapel

The Cormac's Chapel is one of the most outstanding romanesque architecture in Ireland. It contains the only surviving Romanesque frescoes in Ireland. Entry is only by guided tour.

A reconstruction of how the chapel may have looked

Sarcophagus of a member of the MacCarthy family

Rock of Cashel

This rocky stronghold which rises dramatically out of the Tipperary plain was a symbol of royal and religious power for more than a thousand years. The Rock of Cashel was the traditional seat of the kings of Munster as early as the 4th century and prior to the Norman invasion. St Patrick is said to have converted the King of Munster to Christianity here in the 5th century. Brian Boru was crowned as king here in 977 and made Cashel his capital. The King of Munster gifted the site to the Church, turning it into an important ecclesiastical center.

St Patrick's Cross

holding it for good luck

The O'Scully Moniment

erected in 1870 by a local landowner

Damaged during a storm

Breakfast at the hotel

We will drive to the Rock of Cashel first. We will then come back to spend the whole day in Kilkenny.