Blarney Castle
Blarney Castle was built by Cormac McCarthy in the fifteenth century. The Blarney Stone is a triangular piece of limestone bearing a faded latin inscription. It is located in the battlements of the castle approximately one hundred feet from the ground. A popular superstition is that one can obtain "the gift of gab" by kissing the stone. This can only be done by dangling head first from the battlements. According to one legend, the castle was once saved from attack through flattery and cajolery; hence' the power of the stone, and the word blarney itself. Another explanation states that Cormac McCarthy was involved in a lawsuit and that he was victorious because he kissed the stone after having its mysterious powers revealed to him in a dream.
If you would like to kiss the internet Blarney Stone feel free to do so, but remember you have to hang by your ankles for it to work. How you are planning to accomplish that I dont want to know.
Ashford Castle
Cong, County Mayo
The original castle dates back to the 13th Century, Anglo-Norman Castle built by the de Burgos family after their defeat of the native O'Connors of Connaught.
Successive lords expanded the castle and fortified it. The central building, a French style chateau that incorporates the 13th Century castle, was built in the mid 1700's by Lord Ardilaun. In 1852 the castle became the country home of the Guinness Family, it has since been restored and transformed into Irelands finest resort hotel. The castle is situated on 350 acres of wooded estate on the shores of Lough Corrib.
Kilkenny Castle
The first stucture on this site overlooking the River Nore was a wooden tower built in 1172 by the Anglo-Norman conqueror of Ireland, Richard deClare, also known as Strongbow. Twenty years later his son in law William Marshall erected a stone castle with 4 towers, 3 of which are part of the current structure.
The castle was bought by the Butler Family in 1391 and their descendents continued to live there until 1935. The city bought the castle in 1967 for the sum of 50 pounds.(About 75 US Dollars)
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