Kildare is located in the province of
Leinster just west of Dublin, making it an ideal base from which to
commute into the capital city. As a result, it is one of the more
densely populated rural counties of Ireland with a rapidly growing
population now approaching 200,000. The area is well-served for car
drivers needing to head out west or into Dublin with both the M4 and
M7 motorways passing through the county.
The Curragh horse-racing course, the host track for all five Irish
classics is located in County Kildare, as are two other courses
Punchestown Racecourse (home of the National Hunt Festival of
Ireland) and Naas Racecourse. The county is known for the quality of
horses bred in the area at farms such as the Irish National Stud,
the Moyglare Stud and Kildagan Stud. Kildare also has famous
sporting links with the game of golf. Amongst the numerous high
quality golf courses in the county, the cream of the crop is the K
Club in Straffan where the 2006 Ryder Cup team challenge was played,
closely followed by the PGA National course within the Palmerston
House country estate.
Holiday Home Kildare
The largest town is the county town of Naas with a population of
some 25,000. Newbridge, Celbridge and Leixlip are the next largest
towns, and all three are set in scenic locations yet the housing
areas are just minutes from fast motorway connections. Maynooth
remains quaint with its historic educational establishments, the
second oldest university in Ireland now called NUIM, and Maynooth
College which is the national RC seminary.
Lullymore Heritage & Discovery Park
Lullymore Heritage and Discovery Park is set in the heart of
Ireland’s largest bog land, The Bog of Allen. The Park is a blend of
history, nature and fun. Historic Exhibits and replica houses tell
the fascinating story of the Irish People over nine millennia. The
woodland/bog land walks and theme gardens are famous for their
vibrant colour throughout the summer. Also, extensive outdoor and
indoor play centres, 18 hole crazy golf and a beautiful road train
make Lullymore the kind of attraction you can’t miss when visiting
the midlands.
Ballitore Library & Quaker Museum
In 1975 the Meeting House of the Society of Friends which had fallen
into ruin was restored by Kildare County Council and it has served
as the library for the Ballitore area since then. The Museum, which
is incorporated into the library contains a selection of artifacts
and memorabilia of a mainly local nature. Items of a Quaker interest
also feature and include a wedding dress and bonnet worn by Marian
Richardson at Ballitore in 1853. In the entrance hall are the door
and lintel stone from the original Shackleton home at Harden in
Yorkshire which was built in 1660. Also in the entrance hall is a
ledger dated 1807-1810 for the Shackleton mills at Lucan. Amongst
the Ballitore manuscripts on display are Shackleton letters,
notebooks which contain water colours by Mary Shackleton and the
Ballitore Magazine
Kildare Town Heritage Centre
Kildare Town Heritage Centre is an exciting visitor attraction
situated in the picturesque town of Kildare. It is an area renowned
for its bloodstock industry and is located exit 13 on M7. Located in
the restored 18th century market house is a multi media exhibition
centre telling the story of Kildare past and present. Your host
Cogitosus, a 7th century monk, will take you on a fascinating
journey through time - an audio visual presentation of the town from
when St. Brigid established her church in 480ad, to later centuries
when Kildare was raided by Vikings and later ruled by Normans.
Kildare Town Heritage Centre is the ideal starting point for a tour
of Kildare Town. An integral part of the story of Kildare is to
visit the Historical sites after visiting the centre.
Holiday Home Rental Kildare
Newbridge Silverware Visitor Centre
For 70 years, Newbridge Silverware has been designing and producing
quality giftware and tableware. The Newbridge Silverware Visitor
Centre offers visitors the most memorable experience. On offer and
display is the complete and extensive Newbridge Silverware product
range including cutlery, glassware, giftware, kitchenware,
earthenware, homeware and jewellery. In addition, luxury collections
of jewellery, gift and home products are stocked exclusively in the
Newbridge based showrooms, and cannot be found anywhere else in
Ireland. A new addition to the Visitor Centre is the splendid Museum
of Style Icons. This Museum is a permanent exhibition dedicated to
design and style excellence. The Museum features signature pieces
from Irelands most notable designers and showcases artefacts
associated with some of the most legendary Stars of the Silver
screen including Audrey Hepburn, Marilyn Monroe, Bette Davis, Gloria
Swanson, Barbara Streisand, Julie Andrews, Vivien Leigh, Elizabeth
Taylor, Gloria Swanson, Jean Simmons, Sarah Jessica Parker, Jimmy
Stewart, Ingrid Bergman and Barbara Stanwyck. To complete your
visitor experience, the Gold Medal award winning “Silver” Restaurant
is also onsite at the Newbridge Silverware Visitor Centre.
The Steam Museum
The Steam Museum Building revives to use the magnificent Gothic
pitch pine roof, stone window tracery and architectural features of
the GS & WR Medieval Revival Church of St. Jude, moved from
Inchicore, Dublin. The Power Hall exhibits unique, stationary Steam
Engines from the 1830's. Now saved from destruction and fully
restored to working order, they turn under steam and once powered
the Industrial Revolution. The Model Hall displays the Richard
Guinness Collection of Inventors and early large size Prototype
Railway Models.
Holiday Cottages in Kildare
Kilkae Castle
Situated near Athy in the Castledermot direction stands the
impressive Kilkea Castle. Built in 1180 by DeLacy the castle later
became the family home to the Earl of Kildare. In 1414 the O'Moores
and O'Dempseys were defeated here by the Lord Justice. The castle
was rebuilt in 1426 by Lord Kildare. In 1634, the wife of the Earl
of Kildare, Elizabeth Nugent gave the castle to the Jesuits, who
remained there until 1646. The castle was captured by Cromellian
forces under Colonel Hewson in 1650. It was restored in 1849, having
been wreaked in the1798 Rebellion. The old church of Kilkea houses
the Fitzgerald altar tomb where William Fitzgerald was buried in
1623. There is a pagan tumulus and Christian burial ground on either
side of the castle.
Castledermot Abbey
A step through a gateway at the southern end of this straggling town
takes visitors back 800 years. In an instant one enters into the
stillness of the Franciscan Abbey which was founded in 1302 by
Thomas, Lord Offaly, with the help of the de la Hoyde family who
were its benefactors. Castledermot AbbeyThe Abbey was plundered by
Robert Bruce in 1317. Later, in 1541, the friary was suppressed.
Only the walls of the church remain, which was originally a long
rectangular structure with a doorway, a pair of lancet windows in
the west wall and a tower on the south side. The north transept was
added to it later and this is probably identical to the chapel of
St. Mary built by Thomas, Second Earl of Kildare in 1328. Attached
to the ruins of the church is a square building known as the Abbey
Castle, which possibly dates from the 15th century and would have
served as accommodation for the monks. The ruins are set back from
the main road by only two or three feet, which makes it all the more
remarkable that they have survived for so long. The solid stonework
is well preserved, seeming as secure and strong as the day it was
first constructed.
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Castletown House, Celbridge
Castletown House, Celbridge, was built in 1722 for ‘Speaker’ William
Conolly, the speaker of the Irish House of Commons from 1715. It was
designed by the famous Italian architect Alessandro Galilei
(1691-1737), and it remains the only house in Ireland designed by
him. The only Irish Palladian house to have been built with the
correct classical proportions, it is said to have influenced the
design of the White House in Washington. Catherine Conolly, widow of
the great ‘Speaker’, continued to live in Castletown until her own
death in 1752. Castletown was then inherited by her nephew William.
He died just two years later and the house was inherited by his son
Tom Conolly. ‘Squire’ Conolly, as he was known, married Lady Louisa
Lennox, daughter of the Duke of Richmond in 1758. Louisa was only
fifteen years of age at the time. The ‘Print Room’ dated c.1765 is
attributed to Louisa. It is the only print room in Ireland to have
survived. The fashion of print rooms originated in England and
consisted of engravings and mezzotints being pasted onto the wall
and framed with decorative borders. In 1965, Castletown was put up
for auction by Lord Carew, whose mother was a member of the Conolly
family. It was bought by speculators who, after obtaining permission
from Kildare County Council, built a modern housing estate beside
the avenue of Castletown House. In 1967 Desmond Guinness bought the
house and made it the headquarters of the Irish Georgian Society.
The house was opened to the public. Money was spent on restoration
and refurbishment of Castletown, which had lain empty and decaying
for two years.
Punchestown Racecourse
The Home of Irish National Hunt racing since 1827 Punchestown
Racecourse is set amidst 450 acres of magnificent Irish countryside
in the heart of Ireland’s thoroughbred county. Today the state of
the art facilities at Punchestown play host to approximately
eighteen race meetings annually as well as numerous shows, concerts
and events. The undoubted highlight being the five day Irish
National Hunt Festival held at the end of April every year. Come
racing to Punchestown and you will experience the palpably vibrant
atmosphere that is unique to Punchestown and has captivated
generations of Irish and international racegoers.
Leixlip House Hotel
The creative, contemporary Irish cooking at Leixlip House Hotel is
evident in all its menus. The hotels commitment to seasonality,
using the finest, freshest produce and wherever possible producing
ingredients ourselves has been the kitchens emphasis over the last
12 months. Leixlip House Hotel Kildare is renowned for hosting
Wedding Receptions and all manner of Functions. Be it an On Site
Civil Wedding Ceremony, a small private Wedding Dinner in the
Bradaun Restaurant or the use of our beautiful newly renovated
Banqueting Suite, Leixlip House Hotel can successfully cater for
your event with flair, attention to detail and above all to make
every event truly memorable.
Maynooth
Maynooth is a pleasant 18th century "planned town" with a population
of 8,500. Maynooth College , founded as a Catholic seminary just
over 200 years ago, is an excellent day trip for groups and
families. The classically-styled college is now a bustling
university and the ruined castle at the gates of the college was
formerly the home of the Fitzgerald family. Maynooth offers horse
riding, pitch and putt and canal bank walks. The grounds of St.
Patricks College run parallel to the Royal Canal .
Local History
The town of Maynooth takes its name from Nuadha Neacht, a
pre-Christian King of Ireland, or perhaps from a later Mogh Nuadhat,
a ruler of the second century after Christ. In early Christian times
there were at least three churches within three miles of the present
town though the actual origins of Maynooth could be said to date
from the late 12th century when the Fitzgeralds were granted the
Manor of Maynooth. To establish themselves, the newcomers would at
first have built a castle of the motte-and-bailey type, and this
would have been replaced with a more permanent structure as time
allowed. The ruins, now a national monument, are of the castle
commenced in the 13th century and much enlarged in later centuries.
The great tower still stands to its original height. In 1521 the
Fitzgeralds founded a college but it did not survive the
Reformation. The town of Maynooth can be described today in much the
same way as it was in 1837.... "of one principal street, at one
extremity of which is the avenue leading to Carton, the magnificent
seat of the present Duke of Leinster, and at the other the Royal
College of St. Patrick". Maynooth could be described as a suburb of
Dublin. In 1967 St. Patrick's College opened it's gates to lay
students bringing further change. Today the population of Maynooth
is around 8,500.
Maynooth College
A visit to St. Patrick's College in Maynooth is a must. Just outside
the entrance to the College stands the ruin of the Medieval Maynooth
College. Many parts of the huge structure especially the keep, the
great wall and the gate tower are preserved. Visitors can get the
key from the care takers house which is located directly across the
road. Visitors will also get the chance to visit the beautiful
Bi-Centenary gardens and the visitor centre which includes a
souvenir shop.
Carton House
Situated about two miles west of Maynooth, this house was built
around 1760 and was the residence of the Dukes of Leinster. The
house contains an extensive library and a collection of family
portraits among which is an original portrait of Gerald, the 9th
Earl of Kildare. The house is surrounded by beautiful woods, gardens
and walks. In front of the house is set the council table of Gerald,
the 9 th Earl of Kildare, for whom it was made in 1533. Prior
request and arrangement must be made before visiting the house.
Connolly's Folly Obelisk
Located a little to the north on the main road from Celbridge to
Maynooth, it was built in 1740 to provide employment for the poor
during the famine at that time. Mrs. Connolly of Castletown, wife of
‘Speaker Connolly' undertook the project. The monument consists of a
50 foot high obelisk atop a 50 foot podium of arches.
Athy
Athy Heritage Town, situated where the river Barrow joins the Grand
Canal, is one of the most ancient of Irish towns. The name Athy
commemorates a famous battle between the Munster men under Ae and
King Lewy in 120 AD in which Ae was killed. The river crossing was
then called Ath Ae (Ford of Ae), later anglicised as Athy. The Earls
of Kildare were landlords of the town for many centuries
Towns and Villages
Some growing towns lie a little farther afield westwards, like
Kilcock, Kildare town, Monasterevin and Athy. Other places to
consider in the county of Kildare include Allenwood, Ballymore
Eustace, Brownstown Cross Roads, Carragh, Castledermot, Clane, Coil
Dubh (Blackwood), Derrinturn, Johnstown, Kilberry, Kilcullen, Kill,
Kilmeage, Milltown, Nurney, Prosperous, Rathangan, Rathcoffey,
Robertstown, Sallins and Suncroft.
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Kildare Holiday Homes