Bunratty Castle & Folk Art
this castle is the most complete and authentic
medieval fortress in the nation, constructed in 1425, and then
eventually restored in 1954 to its best condition and now houses
15th and 16th century tapestries, works of art and furnishings.
There are houses and cottages located at the base of the castle,
like it was so many centuries ago, located inside Bunratty Folk
Park, but the castle holds most visitors attention especially
with the outstanding collection of medieval furniture. The
Bunratty collection contains more than 450 pieces of medieval
furniture and relics, which becomes the stage for medieval
banquets in the evenings, all year long. The castle grounds
contain a wonderful formal garden that was modeled after the
original Regency period garden that would supply the house and
its residents with vegetables, fruits and flowers and has been
restored to a Victorian style of house garden that was atypical
then. The castle sits on 26 acres that looks out over the
Shannon River, and had been originally a Viking fortified
settlement that was surrounded by a moat. In 1250, a Norman
named Robert De Muscegros would construct the first wooden fort
there, and then later, the property would become owned by
another Norman named Thomas De Clare who constructed the first
stone castle here in the 1270s, and his son, Richard would be
killed in a battle between the Irish and Normans. In this
battle, the castle and town would be destroyed, and then rebuilt
by the King of England.
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