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Natasha McShane flown home for further
brain surgery
By CATHY HAYES
Published Monday, July 12, 2010, 7:59 AM
Updated Monday, July 12, 2010, 8:01 AM
Natasha McShane
Natasha
McShane has been flown home to Ireland to
receive expert brain surgery closer to home. McShane, from
Silverbridge, County
Armagh, was beaten severely with a baseball bat on April
23.
She was then placed into an induced coma until the beginning
of June due to brain swelling. It was thought that she might never
walk or talk again but she is currently making a slow but steady
recovery.
John D. Colbert, an attorney who took on Natasha McShane’s
case pro-bono, has released a statement announcing that McShane has
been released from the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago and has
now been flown to Belfast.
This week doctors at a Belfast
hospital will perform brain surgery on McShane, along with a
Chicagoan surgeon, via a satellite link up.
Mary Margaret O’Connor, a volunteer at the Irish-American Heritage
Center who
met McShane and her family through fund-raising efforts. She said
that McShane was cleared to fly last week.
McShane flew home to Belfast
with her mother and a doctor on a private medical airplane last
week.
Since waking from her induced coma McShane has relearned how
to eat, drink and is working on walking and other physical
movement.
The Irish student had been working toward a degree in
association with the University
of Illinois at Chicago. The
University delivered her parchment to McShane’s bedside as she
could not attend her graduation.
The people of Chicago have
raised over $250,000 to help with McShane’s medical bills. They
have pledged that they will continue to fundraise for her though
she has gone home.
O’Connor, who is involved in fundraising for McShane said “I
think that this young woman is going to walk off like she walked
off the plane the day she came here&hellipI think she's going
to come back to Chicago.
I really do because she loved Chicago.”
Heriberto
Viramontes, 30, and Marcy
Cruz, 25, have been indicted on 25 counts including the
attempted murder and burglary of McShane and her friend Stacy
Jurich. They have pled not guilty on all charges. Their
case will be heard next month.
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Ten patriotic facts about the Irish in America
By
MEGHAN SWEENEY,
IrishCentral.com Staff Writer
Published Sunday, July 4, 2010, 7:26 AM
Updated Sunday, July 4, 2010, 9:15 PM
Photo
gallery of Irish-American fast facts: CLICK HERE
When you think "Irish America" you think
Catholicism in the U.S.,
JFK , St. Patrick's Day parades and Irish pride.
But Irish-American ties run deeper than one might expect on
first glance.
For instance, did you know an Irishman was the first person to
step off Columbus'
ship and set foot on American ground?
Or did you know it was an Irish-American who was the first U.S.
woman to walk in space?
On this Fourth of July, IrishCentral
celebrates Irish accomplishments in America, and presents to
you 10 interesting, if not surprising, Irish-American facts.
1. An Irishman was the first of Christopher
Columbus’ crew to step on American soil
There were several Irishmen in Christopher Columbus’ crew. But
the one who stands out most is Patrick
Maguire. In 1492, Irish-born Maguire was the first crew
member of Christopher Columbus’ to set foot on North American ground.
2. At least 15 U.S. Presidents have confirmed
Irish ancestry
It’s thought that over 40 percent of all American presidents
have some Irish ancestry, but at least 15 of them have confirmed
their Irish heritage. The “most Irish” presidents are Andrew
Jackson and James
Buchanan, both of whose parents were born in Ireland.
3. The first American general to die during the
Revolutionary War was Irish
It’s said by some historians that Dubliner Richard Montgomery,
who first served in the British
Army during the French and Indian War, but later joined
the Americans’ fight for independence, is the first general to have
been killed in battle during the Revolutionary War.
The Brigadier General in the Continental
Army, Montgomery
was killed in the Battle of Quebec during the 1775 invasion of
Canada.
The U.S. has
honored Montgomery
in numerous ways. The Navy has named
several ships USS Montgomery
after the Irishman, Philadelphia
has a statue of Montgomery in Fairmount Park and
several schools in the country are named after the Revolutionary War
general.
4. Three of the signers of the Declaration of Independence were born in Ireland
A total of 56 men signed the Declaration of Independence on
July 4, 1776. Of these men, 48 were born in the American colonies,
while three of the eight foreign-born men were natives of Ireland.
These Irish patriots of the American Revolution are: James Smith,
from Northern
Ireland, a member of the Continental Congress 1776-1778,
and a Colonel of Pennsylvania Militia 1775-1776; George
Taylor, an Irish native and a member of the Committee
of Correspondence, 1774-1776, and of the Continental
Congress, 1776-1777; and Matthew
Thornton, an Irishman who became a member of the
Continental Congress in 1776 and Colonel of New Hampshire Militia,
1775-1783.
5. Irishmen helped build the White House
Not only did an Irishman design the White House, and model it
after an Irish building, but the White House was built by the hands
of Irishmen as well.
Immigrant laborers from various backgrounds were the chief
builders of the presidential home. The Irish laborers mainly worked
on the layering the bricks and molding the plaster of the building.
6. The White House has a twin in Ireland
Many people know that the White House was designed by an
Irishman, Mr. James
Hoban, but not everybody knows that the White House
building has an Irish twin.
Kilkenny-born Hoban, who studied architecture in Dublin, is believed to have based his
plan for the U.S. presidential home on Ireland’s Leinster
House, the Georgian style home of the Dukes of Leinster
that is now home of the Dail
Éireann (Irish
Parliament).
7. A blind Irishman composed the “Star Spangled Banner”
Though British composer John
Stafford Smith, who was born in 1750, is credited for
composing "The Star Spangled Banner,” the tune is actually based
on music composed by the great Irish blind harper Turlough O'Carolan,
who died over 35 years before the American Revolution.
The musician and singer is considered by many to be Ireland’s
national composer, but many Irish-Americans consider O’Carolan as the
man responsible for their own country’s national anthem.
8. Ireland’s
population was twice as big as America’s during the
Revolutionary War
Today, Ireland
is a tiny country – both in size (84,421 sq. km) and in population
(5,915,267). New York
City alone has over 8 million people – more than 2 million
more than the entire island
of Ireland. As
of 2000, the population of the U.S.
is about 60 times that of Ireland.
But believe it or not, at the time when America gained its independence, Ireland’s population was nearly twice
as large as that of the U.S., and stayed that way
through 1800.
9. An Irishman is the “father” of the Navy
John Barry,
a Tacumshane, County
Wexford native, is known as “The Father of the American
Navy.”
Barry was appointed a Captain in the Continental Navy
on December 7, 1775.
He and his crew fought and won the final naval battle of the American
Revolution off the coast of Cape Canaveral on
March 10, 1783.
10. An Irish-American was the first woman from the U.S.
to walk in space
Kathryn
Dwyer Sullivan, an Irish-American from Paterson,
New Jersey, is a former NASA astronaut. She is also the first
American woman to ever walk in space.
Sullivan was a crew member on three Space Shuttle missions, and
is a member of the Astronaut Hall of Fame.
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Who was Grace O’Malley?
Irish Pirate
Contributed
by Judy Staley
 Extremely
upset when her father refused to take her on a sailing trip, legend has
it Grace cut off all her hair and dressed in boys clothes to prove to
her parents that she could handle the trip and live a seafarer's
life. Seeing this, her father and brother laughed aloud and nicknamed
her "Grainne Mhaol" meaning "Bald Grace" (which
is believed to have led to her nickname "Granuaile.")
Eventually, through her persistence, she was allowed to go to sea
with her father and his fleet of ships.
As a child, Grace often sailed with her father on trading
missions overseas. Once, upon returning from a trip to Spain,
their ship was attacked by an English vessel. Grace had been
instructed by her father to hide below deck if they ever were
attacked, but she did not heed his advise. Instead she climbed up
onto the sail rigging. Watching the battle from above, she noticed an
English pirate sneaking up on her father, raising a dagger behind his
back! The brave Granuaile leapt off of the rigging, through the air
and onto the pirate's back.... screaming all the while! The
distraction this caused was enough for the O'Malleys to regain
control of the ship and defeat the English pirates.
She spent her young life learning the ways of the sea and
grew to be quite the sailor--eventually having her own fleet of
ships.  The O'Flahertys were a seafaring
people, much like the O'Malleys, so Grace was right at home with
their clan. Over the course of their marriage, Grace learned more
about seafaring from Donal and his clan and added to her knowledge of
sailing and trading at sea. Grace was soon in charge of the O'Flaherty
fleet of ships and ruled the waters surrounding their lands. Although
it was unusual for a woman to lead men, Grace earned the respect of
all who followed her through her shrewdness as well as her knowledge
of sailing and bravery at sea. Her husband, Donal, had a reputation
for being quite a "hot head" and his temper eventually cost
him his life in battle against a rival clan. They were married for a
total of nineteen years.
According to Irish law, widows were entitled to a portion of
their husbands estates. But for some reason, the O'Flahertys did not
follow this tradition. Grace was forced to rely on the O'Flaherty
clan for support. She did not like this, so she set out on her own,
taking with her a loyal group of followers and traded on the seas to
earn her own way. She used what she learned from her father in her
youth and from her husband and eventually was able to break away from
the O'Flaherty Clan altogether. Grace moved back with the O'Malley
clan bringing her followers with her -- Grace had become a Chieftain
in her own right and the heir as Chieftain of the O'Malley clan.
In equally as political a move, Grace married her second
husband, Richard Burke in an effort to strengthen her hold on the
west coast area of Ireland.
Since the death of Donal, she had built her empire to include five
castles and several islands in Clew Bay,
but needed Rockfleet castle in the northeast side of the bay to
complete her stronghold on the area.
Legend has it that Grace travelled to the Castle Rockfleet,
knocked on the door and proposed marriage to Richard for a period of
one year. She explained that the union would enable both clans to
withstand the impending invasion by the English (who were slowly
taking over the Irish lands around them.) It is believed that after
exactly one year, Grace said to Richard, "I release you,"
apparantly offering him the option to end the marriage, but he must
have really fallen for the lovely Granuaile, because they remained
married until he died some seventeen years later.
Grace had a total of four children. Donal and Grace had
three children, 2 boys and 1 girl. Their sons were Owen and Murrough
and daughter Margaret. Later, when Grace married Richard, they had a
son, Tibbot (or Theobald).
In 1593, after many difficult years fighting against the
English and the capture of her brother and son by English forces,
 No one really knows why
Queen Elizabeth agreed to meet with Grace (let alone why she did not
have her executed or imprisoned). Grace was fluent in Latin and thus
was able to converse freely with the Queen. Grace explained that her
actions in the past were not rebellion but rather acts of
self-defense. She told of how her rightful inheritance from both
husbands' deaths were wrongfully withheld from her and asked for them
to be returned. She also asked for the release of her son and
brother. In return for all of this, Grace agreed to use her strength
and leadership to defend the Queen against her enemies by land and by
sea.
The Queen agreed and Grace returned to Ireland and demanded
Bingham release her son and brother and return her assets by order of
the Queen. Bingham did release the two captives, but never did
restore Grace her rightful possessions.
One interesting story is also worth noting. This allegedly
occured during Grace's meeting with the Queen in England. It is said that
during the meeting, Grace sneezed in the presence of the Queen and
her lords and ladies. A member of the court, in an act of politeness,
handed Grace an attractive and expensive lace handkerchief. She took
the delicate cloth and proceded to blow her nose loudly then tossed
the kerchief into a blazing fireplace. The members of the court were
aghast that she would be so rude to toss an expensive gift so easily into
the fire. The Queen then scolded her and said that the handkerchief
was meant as a gift and should have been put into her pocket. Grace
replied that the Irish would never put a soiled garment into their
pocket and apparantly had a higher standard of cleanliness. After a
period of uncomfortable silence, (during which the members of the
court expected the Queen to have Grace executed for her rude
behavior) nervous then roaring laughter followed. The Queen was
amused. 
Queen of the Seas:
The Story of Grace O'Malley
by Helen
Stringer
It must've
been something to see. They were both older by then, Gloriana in her
waning years and Grace O'Malley weather-beaten and lined, but both
still afire with life and dangerous to anyone who was careless enough
to take them lightly. Grace O'Malley had traveled to England
to plead her case with the Queen directly, and to the amazement of
almost everyone, Elizabeth I agreed to see her. She must have liked
what she saw, because against the wishes of her counselors, she
granted all Grace's requests. Being something of a pirate herself,
perhaps the Queen of England saw in Grace the woman she might have
been.
So who was this wild Irish woman? She was
certainly a pirate, but also a soldier, a gambler, and a leader of
men. She lived through great changes in Ireland, but had
inflicted as much grief as she had endured. Proud, feisty and
indomitable, O'Malley is largely forgotten today, even in her native Ireland,
but in her day she was legend.
Grace O'Malley was born around 1530 to Owen
"Black Oak" O'Malley, the elected chieftain of the Barony
of Murrisk. Known as seafarers since 1123, the O'Malley ships traded
from the west coast of Ireland
as far afield as Spain,
Portugal and Scotland,
and it's from this trade that we first hear of young Grace. Eager to
sail for Spain,
she begged her parents for permission to sail with the O'Malley
fleet. Her mother told her that such a life was not suitable for a
lady. Grace vanished, only to return with her long red hair cut short.
In all likelihood this was probably not the first time that they'd
seen the flash of anger and independence in their daughter. Legend
has it that the chief of the O'Malleys has the ability to look out to
sea and predict the weather, and that Grace's father took his
illegitimate son, Donal of the Pipes, out to see if he had the gift.
But the one who saw the storm was his wild girl.
At 16 she was married to Donal O'Flaherty, a good
match considering that he was next in line to be chieftain of the
O'Flahertys and owned the castles of Bunowen and Ballinahinch. A man
of violent temper, he was suspected of murdering his step-nephew so
that Richard, his sister's son, could become chieftain of the
MacWilliams. Tribal politicking and wrangling had always been a
feature of Irish life, and in spite of the greater English presence
on the island, it continued unabated through much of the 16th
century.
 Grace had three children by
O'Flaherty: Owen, Murrough and Margaret, but she was not the sort to
settle down to home and hearth. Over the ensuing years, she gradually
eclipsed her husband, taking over the captaincy of the fleet and
supervising their business and political dealings. In time, the
O'Flaherty ships were banned from Galway, one of the major trading ports
in Ireland.
Grace was forced to take her wares directly to Spain, Portugal,
Scotland and Ulster,
but she didn't let matters rest there. She would lie in wait off the
coast and swoop down on the slow merchant ships in her galleys,
negotiating with the captain of whatever unfortunate vessel she had
waylaid for money for safe passage (a Renaissance protection racket),
and if they declined she would simply plunder their vessel for
everything it held.
O'Flaherty died during a revenge attack by the
Joyce clan. He had captured their island castle of Caislean-an-Circa
and they had mustered all their strength to try and regain it. If
they thought they'd won when Donal died, they were sadly mistaken.
Grace took up the battle and defeated her husband's killers. The
castle became one of her favorites, and she defended it against all
comers, including the English. During one particularly desperate
siege, she ordered her men to remove the lead from the castle roof,
then melted it down to make shot. The English were forced to retreat
to the mainland, but Grace wasn't done with them yet. She sent a
messenger through a secret passage to the mainland where he lit
beacon fires alerting her fleet. The ships put to sea, defeated the
English and raised the siege.
Although by law she was entitled to a third of her
late husband's estate, her two sons denied her the property (what
were they thinking!) so Grace returned to O'Malley land with 200
followers and set up operations on Clare Island in Clew Bay. From
there she could monitor all traffic in and out of the bay and between
providing pilots, protection and piracy she made herself and her
followers wealthy.
As you would expect, there are numerous romantic
legends about the lady pirate, most with the tragic twist of Celtic
lore. One story, for example, has her setting out to rescue (yeah,
right) a ship that she had heard had foundered on the rocks near Achill. She set sail in a gale, but when she
got there the ship had vanished, broken on the vicious rocks. The
only survivor was a young man, Hugh de Lacy, and he was near death.
Grace nursed him back to health and the two fell in love and married.
(You know this is going to turn out badly, right?) They were
blissfully happy, until one day while out deer hunting he was killed
by the MacMahons of Ballycroy. Grace, grief stricken, tracked the
killers to the island
of Cahir where
they had gone on a pilgrimage. She burned their boats and killed
those responsible with her own hand, then sailed back to their castle of Doona
in Blacksod
Bay, defeating
its defenders and taking it for herself. This was not a woman you
wanted to cross.
 It wasn't long before almost all of
Clew Bay was in O'Malley hands. The
one piece of property left was governed by Iron Dick Burke from the castle of Rockfleet. By the way, this is
the nephew whose future her first husband had killed to ensure. In
1566 she married him (apparently they weren't too concerned with
those pesky consanguinity rules that the Church kept coming up with)
and a year later gave birth to a son, Tibbot. Tibbot was supposedly
born on board ship while Grace was returning from a trading mission.
The day after the birth the ship was attacked by Turkish pirates. The
captain made his way to Grace's cabin to tell her that the fight was
going against them. Grace leaped from bed, "May you be seven
times worse this day twelvemonth," she stormed, "Who cannot
do without me for one day!" She grabbed a musket on her way up
to the deck and blew a Turk away, "Take this from unconsecrated
hands!" They captured the ship, killed its crew and added it to
their fleet.
By this point, the English felt they couldn't
really ignore her, so on March 8, 1574 Captain William Martin took a
force of ships and men and laid siege to Grace in Rockfleet Castle.
Within two weeks, Grace had turned her defense into an attack and the
English were forced to beat a hasty retreat. But such victories could
not go on forever. The English had been changing the traditional laws
of Ireland,
outlawing the system of electing chieftains in favor of the European
system of primogeniture, and they had consolidated their power where
it counted. Each year more Irish chieftains submitted to the English
throne, including the head of the O'Malley clan. In 1577, Grace
herself submitted. The current MacWilliam chieftain had submitted the
year before; Iron Dick Burke had been elected next in line, but if
The MacWilliam decided to follow the first-born rule he would be out
of luck. They needed to build a political base if they were to ensure
their place in the clan.
 Sir Henry
Sidney, as Lord Deputy of Ireland, was responsible
for Irish matters at this time, and we have his son, the poet Sir
Philip Sidney, to thank for many of the stories about Grace. He was
fascinated by her, and they spent many hours in conversation. His
letters home form the foundation of our knowledge about her exploits,
though many have been lost. A favorite story was how she stopped to
restock her ship in Dublin
and went to the Lord of Howth for hospitality, as was Gaelic custom.
When she reached the castle, however, she found the gates locked
against her by the servants, who told her that their Lord was eating
and was not to be disturbed. Furious, she headed back to her ship,
but as luck would have it who should she meet on the way but the
Lord's son. You can almost see the smile on her face as she hauled
the boy off and put to sea. The Lord of Howth promised to pay any
ransom for his son's safe return, but Grace instead demanded that his
gates never be closed against anyone asking hospitality and that an
extra place always be set at table. The Lord of Howth obeyed and to
this day there is always an extra place at table at Howth Castle.
Sound apocryphal? Well, most of the tales about
her do, but there is little doubt that unlikely or not, many of them
are true. These were wild times and grand gestures were admired.
Power often lay in the ability to create one's own legend.
In 1580 The MacWilliam died and after a brief
struggle Richard duly became clan chieftain. The following year he
was knighted and Grace was more powerful than ever. Her time at the
top was to be short-lived, however, for two years later her husband
was dead (of natural causes!). Having been cheated out of her
inheritance the first time, Grace left nothing to chance. She took
1,000 head of cattle and all her followers and took possession of
Carrikahowley.
Fate had not finished with her, however. In 1584
the Governor of Connaught died and was replaced by Sir Richard
Bingham, a man who was dedicated to the destruction of the
traditional way of life in Western Ireland.
Within two years he had managed to capture Grace and her son Owen,
though for some reason he let her go (maybe as a newcomer he didn't
realize how powerful she was). Grace found that Bingham had
confiscated all her livestock and property and left her with nothing.
While she was trying to muster her forces, Owen was murdered.
 Rebellion
raged throughout the west of Ireland for several
years, and Grace harried Bingham's troops with her fleet, disrupting
trade, carrying troops to the rebels, and raiding seaport towns.
Bingham tried everything he could to defeat her, and even succeeded
in wooing her son, Murrough, to his side. Besieged on all fronts, in
1593 Grace finally wrote to the ultimate authority, Queen Elizabeth
I. The letter, which survives, harps on about injustice and Grace's
own advanced age but ends up requesting the Queen, "to grant
unto your said subject under your most gracious hand of signet, free
liberty during her life to invade with sword and fire all your
highness enemies, wheresoever they are or shall be, without any
interruption of any person or persons whatsoever." Not exactly
your usual frail little old lady.
The Queen sent Grace 18 "Articles of
Interrogatory," a series of questions to be answered by her on
her life, her business and her actions. Grace duly complied, but
before the Queen could respond, Bingham arrested both her son and her
brother. At this point Grace did something totally unexpected - she
sailed for England.
 When
Bingham heard where she'd gone, he fired off a letter to the Queen,
vilifying Grace and denouncing her as a traitor. It's not known if Elizabeth read
his letter before or after Grace's visit, what is known is that they
did meet on the 6th of September, 1593 and apparently hit it off. Did
each see something of themselves in the other? Was Elizabeth charmed by this woman who
had achieved with fire and sword what she had achieved with politics
and wit? We will never know. What we do have, however, is the letter
that Elizabeth
sent to Bingham following their meeting. In it she orders him to
release Grace's son and brother and restore her property to her. But
she didn't stop there, the letter informs Bingham that Grace O'Malley
has the Queen's permission to "fight in our quarrel with all the
world."
Bingham tried to weasel out of submitting to Elizabeth's order by simply doing nothing, but
Grace would have none of it and threatened to return to England
and tell Gloriana that her servant was disobeying her orders (not
recommended if you valued your head). The Governor reluctantly
returned her family to her and she put to sea again.
Over the next years the English fought the Irish
clans, who alternately sided with their foes in an attempt to gain
advantage, fought against them, or destroyed each other. Grace
eventually retired to Rockfleet
Castle where it
is thought she died in 1603, the same year as her Queen.
Grace O'Malley lived a life of adventure, a true
swashbuckler in a time that valued its buccaneers. Amazingly, there
is no mention of her in the Annals of Ireland, all the extant records
about her exploits are among the English State Papers. Is it that Ireland
likes her heroes male, and tragic? Or perhaps this woman who bested
every man she came up against, fought Turks and English alike and
survived to die in her own bed put the early chroniclers to shame.
Who knows?
But the image of the wild Irish pirate, red
haired, and screaming like a banshee from the rigging, is one that
every little girl should know. "Put down that Barbie doll,
sweetie, I have a story for you…"
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Census of Ireland 1901/1911
by IrishAbroad
The National Archives of Ireland has recently made the Census of 1901
searchable online.
The 1901 and 1911 censuses cover the 32 counties of the island of Ireland.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Top 10 places to see in Ireland
By
CONN CORRIGAN AND MEGHAN
SWEENEY
Published
Saturday, June 5, 2010, 7:40 AM Updated Saturday, June 5, 2010, 12:44
PM
Visit the photo
gallery here
From the windswept Cliffs of Moher
to the rain-soaked Aran Islands, there are a number of sites that
no trip to Ireland
is complete without. If ancient history is your thing, Ireland has plenty of it: try
Newgrange or the Hill of Tara in County Meath.
For sheer unadulterated, natural, beauty try the Giant's Causeway or
the entire county
of Kerry. But there is more to Ireland than countryside and rocks, as
any number of attractions in Dublin,
such as Trinity College and the Guinness Storehouse in Dublin,
suggests.
To narrow this list down to 10 is quite a challenge. But it
nevertheless reflects an array of tourist attractions from all
corners of Ireland,
that will have something for every one.
We compiled this list ourselves but we're open to change! What's your
favorite place in Ireland?
1. Boyne
Valley
Brú na Bóinne (the Boyne Palace) in County
Meath contains some of the
most important historic sites and monuments in Ireland, and is a
designated World Heritage Site.
It features the massive megalithic ancient passage tombs - which are
graves dating back to ancient times - of Newgrange, Knowth and Dowth.
These tombs are older than both Stonehenge in England and the Pyramids
of Giza inEgypt.
Newgrange, which was built about 5,000 years ago, is Ireland's
most famous prehistoric site.
It's especially famous for a spectacular event on Dec. 21, also known
as the Winter Solstice, the shortest day of the year. The tomb was
built in such a way so that on this day, it is illuminated by a
narrow beam of sunlight which shines through a specially designed
roof box. Those who have seen this say its an unforgettable
experience.
Nobody knows why the tomb was built in the way it was, or indeed how
the stones were even transported to the site. But it does seem fairly
certain that Newgrange was built before the invention of the wheel.
The tomb itself was almost lost to history itself. It was sunk into
the ground for over 4,000 years, only rediscovered in 1699 when
workers carried away building stones for the landowner. As they
removed the stones they discovered the entrance. But they left it
undisturbed as they thought it was a cave. Then, in 1962,
archaeologists began to investigate the sinking mound. Newgrange was
then excavated and restored to its former glory.
Today, access to Newgrange, Knowth and Dowth begins at a visitor
center, from where you can take a guided tour of the site.
The Hill of Tara is also in Co. Meath. An archeological complex, it
consists of a number of ancient monuments, including the Stone of
Destiny, the Fort of the Kings and the Mound of the Hostages. Located
on the River Boyne, it is said to be the actual seat of the High
Kings of Ireland.
Nearby is the site of the Battle
of The Boyne, one of the key dates in Irish history, in which
protestant William of Orange defeated Catholic James II in 1690.
2. Ring of Kerry
For many people around the world, the Ring of Kerry drive
encapsulates their image of Ireland: ancient
monuments, romantic castles, spectacular gardens and colorful towns
and villages. The spectacular scenery, dramatic coastline, colorful
towns and villages and ancient archaeological treasures have been
featured in postcards, film, poetry and song.
Here, the idealized pictorial of Ireland as a land of
rural greenery and stunning natural beauty springs to reality.
Tourists come to Kerry to experience this rare dip into a lifestyle
foreign not just in language and nationality, but in pace, philosophy
and spirit. Each twist and turn on a drive around the Ring of Kerry
reveals new sights - windswept cliffs, breathtaking scenery,
spectacular lakes, rich flora and fauna, green and yellow checkered
hills and unspoilt beaches.
There is evidence of the region's unique heritage and culture
everywhere, in the place names, the standing stones and the many
archaeological sites. The 6th century beehive huts on Skellig Michael
are a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Also worth checking out are the
stone forts at Caherciveen and Castlecove, the Neolithic stone circle
in Kenmare, the 15th century Ballycarberry Castle, the magnificent
O'Connell Memorial Church, Derrynane House and Gardens or the pretty
19th century Heritage town, Kenmare.
The Ring of Kerry is also highly regarded for it culinary delights,
such as the local cheeses, seafood and shellfish, lamb and homemade
breads. The town of Kenmare,
in particular, has a number of very highly regarded restaurants. (It
is thought to be the only town in Ireland that has more
restaurants than pubs.)
The area is a favorite among artists, writers and sculptors, and
there are a number of craft shops and galleries such as Cill Rialaig
showcasing their best works. It's also ideal for activity holidays,
such as walking and cycling routes, diving and angling and adventures
sports, to its array of championship golf courses - Waterville (An Coireán), Dooks,
Kenmare and Killorglin.
The coastal roads provide an ever-changing landscape around the Iveragh Peninsula, with snapshots of
the famous offshore islands popping in and out of view around every
corner.
3. The Cliffs of Moher
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