The High Man Tour 2

The Hill of Tara

It is the wealth of history and legend associated with Royal Tara as the ancient spiritual and political Capital of Ireland, and its central place in Irish History, which attracts ongoing, national and international interest. For here on this lonely hill, once stood a royal acropolis.

For well over two thousand years royalty occupied Tara. This was an ideal spot to build a palace and, in time, the Five Ancient Roads of Ireland converged here, linking Crúachan - Rathcroghan in County Roscommon, Eamain Macha - NavanFort in County Armagh and Dún Ailinne. The view from the hill is one of the best features. The surrounding countryside is considered to be one of the richest pastureland in the whole of Ireland.

Here at the cultural and political heart of the country every third year there was a great Feis (fair or festival) held at which the laws and the rules of the land were discussed and revised.

Trim Castle

Trim Castle, the largest Anglo-Norman castle in Ireland, was constructed over a thirty-year period by Hugh de Lacy and his son Walter. Hugh de Lacy was granted the Liberty of Meath by King Henry II in 1172 in an attempt to curb the expansionist policies of Richard de Clare, (Strongbow).  Construction of the massive three storied Keep, the central stronghold of the castle, was begun c. 1176 on the site of an earlier wooden fortress. This massive twenty-sided tower, which is cruciform in shape, was protected by a ditch, curtain wall and moat. 

Lacy was granted the Liberty of Meath by King Henry II in 1172 in an attempt to curb the expansionist policies of Richard de Clare, (Strongbow).  Construction of the massive three storied Keep, the central stronghold of the castle, was begun c. 1176 on the site of an earlier wooden fortress. This massive twenty-sided tower, which is cruciform in shape, was protected by a ditch, curtain wall and moat. 

Donaghmore Round Tower

DONAGHMORE church and Round Tower are situated a little more than a mile from Navan, on the road to Slane.

This religious establishment, which was anciently called Domnach-mor muighe Echnach, owes its origin to St. Patrick.

But though the existing ruins of the church of Donaghmore sufficiently indicate it to have been a structure "diminutive in size," its architectural features clearly prove that it is not the original church of St. Patrick's erection, but a re-edification of the thirteenth century, in the usual style of the parish churches erected by the Anglo-Norman settlers within the Pale.

Slane Castle

Slane Castle celebrated its bicentennial year in 1985, an occasion that was marked by the official opening of the Castle to the public.

The Castle as you see it today was reconstructed under the direction of William Burton Conyngham, and his nephew the first Marquess Conyngham, who inherited the Slane Estate form his uncle General Henry Conyngham on his death in 1796. This reconstruction commenced in 1785, and is principally the work of James Gandon, James Wyatt and Francis Johnston. Francis Johnston, one of Ireland’s most distinguished architects, is responsible for the dramatic gothic gates on the Mill Hill in Slane.

Evening meal atTankardstown House