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Leinster/Laighin South trail
Haroldstown, Rathgall Hillfort, Castledermot High Crosses/St Dairmuids Cross, Moone High Cross, Browne's Hill, Kilkenny Castle, Kells Priory, Kilree Round Tower, Irish National Heritage Park and Dunbrody Abbey
Haroldstown
This is a Portal Tomb close to the town of Tullow in County Carlow. It comprises of two roof stones on supporting uprights reaching to about 1.8 metres in height. More on Haroldstown
Rathgall Hillfort
This is a Bronze Age hillfort and settlement located in County Wicklow. Archaeological evidence points to a metal workshop and burial chamber on the site which is thought to have been occupied until the medieval period. It is located east southeast of Carlow along the R725 east of Tullow.
Castledermot High Crosses/St Dairmuids Cross
There was a monastery founded here in the early ninth century by St Dairmuid. In the present churchyard there now stands two ninth century high crosses and a tenth century round tower. The two granite crosses have carved biblical scenes the best preserved of which is the ten foot high north cross. More on Castledermot High Crosses/St Dairmuids Cross
Moone High Cross
Within the site of a monastery, which is believed to have been founded by St Columba in the mid-sixth century, is a seventeen foot high cross dating from around the eighth century. More on Moone High Cross
Browne's Hill
Brown's Hill Dolmen is a Portal Tomb with a very large and heavy capstone supported by three uprights and two boulders with evidence of another upright nearby. More on Browne's Hill
Kilkenny Castle/Caisleán Cill Chainnigh
This is in the City of Kilkenny/Cill Chainnaigh in County Kilkenny. The stone castle first constructed on the site in 1213 replaced an earlier wooden structure. The castle was square with towers at each corner and three of these still remain. More on Kilkenny Castle/Caisleán Cill Chainnigh
Kells Priory
This is a priory founded in 1193 by Geoffrey FitzRobert. It is a national Monument and has a distinctive series of Tower Houses set along the walls. It had been the site of a number of attacks prior to it's dissolution in 1540. More on Kells Priory
Kilree Round Tower
This stands at over 85 feet in height and is thought to date from the eighth to eleventh century. Close to the site is the Kilree High Cross dating to the ninth century. More on Kilree Round Tower
Irish National Heritage Park Wexford
The park takes you through 9000 years of Irish history. More on Irish National Heritage Park
Dunbrody Abbey & Visitors Centre
Dunbrody was a Cistercian Abbey founded in 1170 and completed in the early thirteenth century and a fifteenth century tower added. It was dissolved under the rule of Henry VIII. Next to the Abbey is Dunbrody Castle and Visitors Centre with a craft shop and small museum. In the grounds is a maze made with 1,500 yew trees. More on Dunbrody Abbey & Visitors Centre