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Peace: Maha Ghosanada

Clough Castle, County Down, with Mourne Mountains in background

Clough Castle, County Down, with Mourne Mountains in background

The small village of Clough in County Down houses the ruin of this motte and bailey castle, built in the late 12th century as part of the Anglo-Norman invasion of Ulster. Its construction was managed by the prominent Knight, John De Courcy, who masterminded a programme of castle building to establish Anglo-Norman authority.
 
This castle at Clough would have controlled one of the main routeways into the area from the south and may also have acted as part of the defence of a larger castle at Dundrum, just a few miles away.

In the sixteenth century, the ruined ‘keep’ was rebuilt as a tower house. The castle sits on a 25ft artificial mound, giving a vantage point for lovely views over the surrounding countryside, including the Mourne Mountains.
Peace: Maha Ghosanada
Peace: Maha Ghosanada
Peace: Maha Ghosanada
Peace: Maha Ghosanada

The Past: Theodore Roosevelt

The Past: Theodore Roosevelt

These are the ancient church ruins of St Cuthberts on the Ballytober Road in County Antrim. The church dates from the late 1630s and was built on the site of a much older medieval church. St Cuthberts was a place of worship for Protestant settlers in the area, but it is credited as having been provided by Catholics; namely, Lady Katherine Manners, wife of the first Earl of Antrim, Randall McDonnell, and widow of the late Marquess of Buckingham. It is, therefore, a rare example of church tolerance in this region at that time.

The Past: Theodore Roosevelt

The church served the Parish of Dunluce from 1622-1821 when the new Church of St. John the Baptist was built in Bushmills. It originally had a thatched roof, but as was the custom, it was then unroofed and the contents sold at auction.

The Past: Theodore Roosevelt

The graveyard surrounding the church includes the remains of some sailors and noblemen who drowned when the ill-fated Spanish Armada ship, Girona, sank nearby in 1588, at what became known as Port na Spaniagh (or the Bay of the Spanish). It wasn’t until 1967 that the wreck of the Girona was discovered by Belgian diver, Robert Stenuit.

Purpose: Robert Byrne

Aughnanure Castle, Oughterard, County Galway

Aughnanure Castle, Oughterard, County Galway

The 'greetings' pony - welcoming visitors along the laneway to Aughnanure Castle

The 'greetings' pony - welcoming visitors along the laneway to Aughnanure Castle

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