Last friday for Irish Studies we talked about a more civilized Ireland than the last, though still not THAT civilized. Gordon told us a lot about the Normans (Vikings that settled in France and came to Ireland) in the 12th and 13th centuries. We learned about how they lived their lives here among the people who had previously resided here, their religious beliefs, and the type of structures they built to live in. We also learned about a few of the early overlords and chiefs of Ireland, including the O'Connors, O'Loughlins, O'Neils, and O'Briens! It was cool to hear a little about my family history IN CLASS haha. The O'Briens were actually the overlords of the Burren Area (County Clare). They ruled the land on paper but the O'Loughlins tried again and again to over throw them; hence there are a lot of O'Brien and O'Loughlin tower houses here in the Burren, some of which we saw that day.
After our lecture we went out to explore some more cool parts of the Burren that related to what we had talked about. It took me a while but I FINALLY finished editing the photos from the field trip so here they are!
Hanging out in the courtyard before field trip
Once we got on the bus our first stop was a stone fort with a very interesting historical significance.
Cahermacnaghten Stone Fort
This stone fort is the sight of the ancient Burren Law School in the 16th century. Specifically it was the schoolhouse used by the O'Davoren clan who were the lawyers to the O'Loughlin chiefs of the Burren. Each family clan in Ireland (the overlords and chiefs specifically) had their own hereditary brehons, or lawyers. It was always the same families that dabbled in law and those two families (the chiefs and their lawyers) stuck together like glue. (In case you were wondering, the hereditary brehons for the O'Briens were the MacClancy's)
We then headed out to see one of the Burren's incredible cliff forts. We had a nice little hike there (an actual hike! with an actual incline! haha). It was also a BEAUTIFUL day once again, perfect for hiking and listening to Gordon D'Arcy's wonderful stories.
Our hike to the cliff fort
Sitting on the side of the cliff
The Cathair Chomain (Stone Fort of Coman)
It's a three walled stone fort that rests on the side of a limestone cliff
The group listening to Gordon talk about ancient goings on. The grass was extra soft and squishy, perfect for laying on in the warm sun =)
Hannah and Mandy by the inner fort.
After the really wonderfully relaxing moment at the cliff fort we headed to another wedge tomb for a quick stop and a look then headed to the Abbey, our last stop for the day.
Another Wedge Toomb
Mainister Chorca Mrua (Corcomroe Abbey)
This area was occupied by the Cistercian monastery in the late 12th century. It was founded in 1194 by Donal Mor O'Brien, King of Thomond.
Let me just preface by saying that these photos do NOT do justice to how beautiful this abbey is. Not only were we there at the right time with the right amount of sunlight, but the place itself is incredible, huge, extremely well built, and a real piece of art in itself. I remember standing in this ancient building looking up at the tall structures and thinking... "I'm going to keep taking photographs so I can show people what I saw, but they will never understand how it actually feels to be here unless they see it themselves." I hope you can get some kind of idea though. I would encourage you to click on these photos and see them a little larger though.
A beautiful garden in front of one of the grave stones at the Abbey
The beautiful stone work on the ceiling.
Gothic style archways
Gordon D'Arcy, my favorite history professor EVER.
This is the effigy of Dolal Mor O'Brien's grandson, none other than Conor na Siudaine O'Brien, King of Munster. He was a huge benefactor of the Abbey, hence the statue below - a depiction of Conor on his deathbed.
Okay, yes maybe a little inappropriate, but c'mon people, it's my KING ANCESTOR!!! I couldn't resist.
This is a little random but what you see in between the rocks of these old stone buildings is truly beautiful. They are like little worlds waiting to be discovered. Here is a particularly intriguing one.
So yeah, that was last friday. It was a very interesting lesson. The only thing missing, though, was our friend Casey. She stayed behind on account of her boyfriend flying in to stay for the weekend. Later that night we met up with them at Logue's (as did everyone else) and we all hung out for a long while. I left a little early because we had an early start the next morning and I wanted to pack and get some sleep.
Next post: DINGLE!!!!
No comments:
Post a Comment