At the very top of my list of things I wanted to find when I was in Ireland was Leixlip Castle. It is not open to the public. The book The Follies and Garden Buildings of Ireland by James Howley describes the “fine gazebo which still stands in the grounds of Leixlip Castle, at the meeting of the Rye Water and the River Liffey.” So, I found where the Rye Water and the River Liffey meet and looked for the gazebo.
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Ireland
A Different Visit to Ireland
Search results: "Leixlip"
So… My last day! I have to get on a plane and fly home the next morning. I had a different plan, but instead I decided I would try to do some of the things I missed on the days I slept through after the car wreck.
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I went back around to the other side of the river, back to the castle gates and they were open!
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Leixlip Castle Gate Lodge stands outside the gates. Although it looks Gothick, it was actually built in the early eighties. Before I walked in the gates, I took these photos of the Gate Lodge.
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I was invited to wander around Leixlip Castle and take photos. These are photos of the castle from the outside.
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The Front Hall to Leixlip Castle exemplifies Mariga Guinness’s style that “combined fantasy with history and the grand with the laid-back, all in a natural and seemingly uncontrived manner that belied the careful thought and planning behind it. Desmond’s views on restoration – that ‘a certain amount of shabbiness is an appropriate characteristic of an old house in any country, particularly Ireland'”
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At least when I was at Leixlip Castle, this was set up as a dining room. This is the room called the Gothic room in Irish Houses & Castles. The book shows a dining room in the tower. This is one of the oldest parts of the castle. I love these windows!
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A print room was a decorative scheme specific to Georgian times. Prints and engravings of pictures were pasted on the wall, then decorated with cut-out garlands, frames, festoons and ribbons. It was the first decorating style that was a hobby, usually for the lady-of-the-house.
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Leixlip Castle is filled with beautiful and whimsical things. In the drawing room, the gigantic Georgian dolls house is used as a cupboard.
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The stairs and hallway of Leixlip Castle are beautiful!
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There are no photos of Leixlip Castle Kitchen in any of the books or magazines I have. Here it is!
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Before I was invited to see inside Leixlip Castle, I photographed outside. The dogs led me around. Continue reading
The Garden Temple was built around 1920. It was made from salvaged pieces.
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There are a few outbuildings surrounding Leixlip Castle. Here are more photos.
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Someone pinned these paintings. I saw the kitchen first and I thought it might be the kitchen at Leixlip Castle. When I saw the one with the window, I was sure it was Leixlip Castle. It took some looking to find the artist. The paintings are by Hector McDonnell. Continue reading
I just found an old postcard of Leixlip. It was mailed from Dublin to the States in 1910 for a two penny and a half penny stamps. The postcard shows Main Street from the Rye Bridge where the Ryewater flows into the Liffey where Leixlip demesne Boat House is. Continue reading
I left Trim after breakfast. I was making my way to Leixlip. I passed through Summerhill and Kildare and had some lunch.
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Greenacres Bed & Breakfast
Kilteel Road, Rathcoole, County Dublin, Ireland
Greenacres Bed & Breakfast was a very comfortable inn in Rathcoole, one of the little villages around Dublin. It is convenient to Dublin, Leixlip, Castletown and some other places I was hoping to explore.
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Other than Leixlip Castle, I most looked forward to seeing Swiss Cottage. And it was not available to tour when I was there. But, I walked out to it.
Swiss Cottage is perhaps the finest example of cottage orné of the Romantic Movement.
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I really wanted to see the Florence Court Heather House, a garden feature at Florence Court Estate in County Fermanagh.
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Where the the Rye Water meets the River Liffey a Boat House Gazebo stands at the water edge. Before the dam was put in, the water flowed through the bottom of the boat house. The top used to be comfortably finished inside, with a fireplace.
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James Howley in The Follies and Garden Buildings of Ireland, one of the books I planned my trip with says “…the Wonderful Barn is… arguably one of the finest follies to be found in Ireland.” It is not on the tourist maps, but I had enough information to find it.
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I spent three weeks exploring the back roads of Ireland. I was looking for places I had read about in old books. I found them and I discovered wonderful things I never expected. Continue reading
When I visited Ireland, I could not find out much about Samuel Grubb, whose beehive-shaped grave is near the Vee overlooking the Golden Vein. His home was just listed for sale. I learned more about him and got to see photos of the inside of Castle Grace. I also found an article about his mills. Continue reading
I was looking for something else and came across Thomas Conolly Papers from the National Library of Ireland. I have excerpted out the references to Liexlip Castle. Continue reading
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