— Cathedral steps??
Start Canice’s church - the beginning
Cill Channagh - Ireland didnt have towns or castles, only monistaries.
St. Canice. One of 12 apostles of ireland at Clonard, Meath..
Spread christianity around Ireland.
(Brendan the navigator and Columba (Colmcil)
Ireland has three official patron saints. They are Saint Patrick, Saint Brigid and Saint Columba (also known as Saint Colmcille).
Born modern day donegal. Went to Scotland. Died Laois 600. Aged 85
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This area is the oldest in the city.
Kilkenny was least christian so established a church here- also good farm land.
Kilkenny gets its name from this place - Cill Chainnigh.
Round tower built in 800s.
Defense against vikings.
Tower 30metres high. used to have conical roof
Vikings raided ireland. Then established towns of Dublin, waterford, cork, limerick, wexford.
Rest of the country was rural.
4 Provinces - there were more. They changed a few times.
Ossory
Sub kingdoms. Lots of these names/areas are now the Catholic Diosese of ireland.
Thers still a bishop of Ossory. He used to live here but now this is a protestant church - ill tell you why later.
Layout of city - The two towers - competing powers
Kilkenny is really 3 towns.
Walled cities connected.
High town (English town)
The castle.
High street.
Parliament street
(separated by a little river)
Irish town
Outside the walls around the Canices church
St. John’s -
Johns monastery
Johns street
Johns bridge
Later johns church, Johns college - now kilkenny county council offices
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Black abbey
St. Francis abbey
- would become Smithwick brewery - John Clyn - Plague 1349
Monasteries - centres of knowledge. Lots of monasteries in the area
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Fierce rivals - High town council vs. Irish town council.
(sometimes years when no one was in the castle- until Butlers)
Gates and walls
Every medieval city has to deal with:
Plagues
Sieges
Famines
Fires
Floods
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— Bottom of cathedral steps???
Canices Head statue
‘Dick head’
Moved in 2016. Water feature doesnt work anymore.
Black marble - limestone.
2 varieties - Classic blue and black fossil.
Early cobble streets were made of it - the Marble city.
2 quarries (and 1 in carlow)
Out tullaroan road near airport, Paulstown.
Dunmore cave - limestone cave.
Viking coins and human skeletons found there.
2 mentions in poems -
Darkest place in ireland
There was said to be a viking massacare there. (did people hide out there?)
Coal mine in castle comer. and Zinc/lead mine in Galmoy
Black (and amber) - associating with black. Black abbey - black robes.
Black and amber - GAA - 1893 - bought old jerseys - proceeded to fight over what colours to use until 1913
The Kilkenny Cats- 2 stories.
1 is a joke - cats ate each other - only tails left.
2 represents the two fueding councils fighting like cats (could also be a reference to confederate wars)
Not many statues in Kilkenny. Kilkennys other religion - hurling has a disgusting statue.
(Keith Duffy lookalike)
Cat statues- different designs around the city.
Some statues in the castle park and churches.
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— Watergate theatre, Abbey quarter, Bull ring???
The water gate - gate over water.
Bull bating. Popular sport. Gamling. Bull tired to a post in a ring. Pepper blown up the bulls nose. Dogs attack bull. Mayor of the Bull Ring- organised events.
Smithwicks brewery - new brewery now on john street - abbey quarter development.
St. francis abbey still depicted on the smithwicks logo.
John Clyn - Black death - 1349
Wrote a diary - like a covid diary.
Documented what he saw. Understood that if you touched a dead person you were sure to get it. 10 monks went in one day. Last entry was his best friend dying. Plauge came down from dublin a decimated the inside walls of the city.
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—- Pump house lane???
Only surviving gate in the city
The black gate
Used to be two storey barbican
Black abbey
Marys cathedral - built during the famine. 1840s.
Now you can see who has the power now - the church.
2 cathedrals - but thats not really why Kilkenny is a city….
St. James Green
St. James gate.
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—- Market yard - riverside???
Floods. Big floods in 1763 and 1943.
1700s destroyed the two bridges. There are now 5 bridges in kilkenny, Greens, Johns, New greens bridge, pedestrian bridge, bridge on the ring road - ossory bridge (missing its artwork).
Waterford just got its 2nd a few years ago.
Tea house(s) - victorians took tea on their walks by the river.
Library - closing down - we past the new one.
Butler gallery -
est 1943 in the basement of castle. Moved here. Redeveloped Evans' Home, a former almshouse built in the 1800s for impoverished domestic servants.
Home rule club- only working homerule club left in ireland. Have to be a member to go in. but if the guys thinks you look ok he’ll let you in. rehearsal space upstairs.
War memorial- WW1 - my grandfather’s name is there - spelled incorrectly.
Kingdoms of ireland
4 Provinces - there were more. They changed a few times.
Meath, Brefine, Ossory.
Ossory in the nore river basin between the suir and the barrow.
Named after the ossaigh people who lived here.
Kings were always fighting each other or doing deals with each other, marrying into each other's families. Agreeing who would be the High King of ireland.
Famous High king Brian Boru.
2 kings started fighting each other. King of Leinster - Diarmait Mac Murchada. (1100s)
Tiernan O’Rourke - King Brefine.
Ruadari O’Connor - King of Connaght (last High king)
Tiernan O’Rourke tried to take Leinster. Killing livestock.
Mac Murchada abducts O’Rourke’s wife - Derval.
They marched on Leinster and took it - ousting Diarmuid.
Normans come
Who were they…
Normandy - france - North men. Land given to them my King of France.
(1066 - Normans win the battle of Hastings and take over england.)
Diarmuid goes in search of King Henry II, finds him in France.
King gives Diarmuid permission to ask his lords for help.
King Henry doesnt like strongbow - want him out of the way. Strongbow backed the other guy in a civil war.
Wales
Goes to Richard de clare (strongbow) and Robert FitzStephens and a few others. Promised them lands in ireland. Rule wexford for Fitzshephen.
Marry Diarmuid’s daughter - Aoife and inherit kingship of leinster - strongbow.
Spring Fitzstephen out of jail first. They promise he wont come back.
Diamuid and fitzstephen invade first - take wexford and south east with a small force.
They have horses and knights.
Strongbow comes next and they take the whole of Leinster.
Diarmuid dies. Strongbow becomes king of leinster.
Strongbow builds a wooden castle in the capital of Ossory - Kilkenny. On site of current castle.
Motte and bailey castle - 1170
King Henry doesnt want Strongbow getting too big so sends more invaders and does deals.
Burghers - rented plots inside walls from landlord. Long thin plots so residents can grow their own crops. Where dunnes is now is where their plots went all the way down to the river.
Only 1 original burgher plot left - Rothe house.
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—- Alms house - rose inn street > parade???
Victorian shop fronts, No plastic sign allowed.
Circle of friends filmed here as dublin.
Barry Lydon filmed in Kells. SK run out of Ireland. Letter under his door from IRA.
Young Irish Film Makers.
Cartoon Saloon - Wolfwalkers based on kilkenny.
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—- Front of kilkenny castle????
High cross garden.
St. Johns across the river
St. Johns church - no spire
Johns college - 1666 - Jonathan swift went there (guilivers travels)
(Modest proposal (1729) - poor should eat their babies)
Strongbow’s son-in-law builds the castle we see today.
William Marshall
Earl of Pembroke. ‘Marshall’ to the king. Norman’s names are their jobs.
Super knight. Mercenary.
Invade flanders.
Crusades.
Great with a lance. Jousting competitions.
Rewarded with a marriage to Isabel. Daughter of Strongbow and Aoife. He was prob in his 40s. She was 17.
He has houses and lands in lots of places.
They built up a lot of the city, invited people in. Burghers - got certain rights. Trade within the city. Long ‘gardens’ to grow their own crops.
Merchant families.
Serfs or peasants outside the city. Indentured slaves to landlords.
Marshall built the 4 towers - only 3 remain. And a thick curtain wall. It wasnt as fancy back then. It was a fortress first. Based on the same design as dublin castle and limerick castle - courtyard in middle.
Norman Castle was a symbol of power.
Siege while William was away. Isabel was pregnant. Sent a guy over the wall to call for help. She organised the knights and defended the castle. When the boys came back and stopped the attack. They caught the attackers. She wanted to kill them and string them up outside as a message but Willam let them go.
She was kind of the boss because her family inherited the lands and people knew that.
Windows blocked up
1799- daylight robbery
Tapestry of history of Norman invasion inside - 15 panels. Being sewn by volunteers.
Like a modern bayer tapestry
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— Back of castle - park side???
Head Butler of ireland.
Kind of like ‘chief secretary’ or something - just a title.
He had to ensure there was always enough “food and drink if the king should visit”.
Imposed a wine levey on all wine imports to ireland - kickbacks.
They changed their name to Butler.
James was created Earl of Ormond in October 1328 and was granted lands in Tipperary.
Ormond means butler- french for wine server.
So when you say the ‘Butler’s of Ormonde’ youre really saying the butlers of butlers.
Butlers bought castle in c1392
Sold it in 1967 for 50 punts.
(550 years)
Last butler (Duke of Ormode) ied 1997 in america - no male heirs.
Butlers started renovating the castle. Making it easier to live in over the years.
Missing back wall
Used to be the main entrance. But it was damaged by a guy called Cromwell. I’ll talk about him a bit later.
Then the Butlers eventually removed it so they could see the full length of their gardens.
Man make lake - ducks and swans
Ghosts - floating woman.
Graveyard - with dog grave - relief portrait - Sandy (17 years old - dies 1912. Most beloved friemd and companion)
Artwork at the bottom of the hill.
Jousting.
Park is the heart of the city.
Gallows hill - behind castle park - top of ring road
Civil war 1922
May 1922 - a month before the civil war started in Dublin. 22 men took over the castle. the Butlers refused to leave. The men were caught and arrested. No one was injured.
They took some other buildings in the city too but not for longer than a day or two.
Train station an military barracks.
Barracks named after James Stephens- Founder Irish Rep. Brotherhood.
Train station named after macdonnagh - Thomas mcdonnagh - executed in 1916.
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— Design centre???
Stables. Underground passage because they didnt want to see servants running back an forth.
Site of the Kilkenny design workshops.
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— Butler House???
A ‘dower house’. House for a widow when her husband dies and she has to leave the main house.
Ladies of Llangollen (late 1700s early 1880s)
Eleanor Charlotte Butler - Butler house - built 1783 for her mother also eleanor (widow)
Sarah Ponsoby - Woodstock
They were both book worms and wouldn't marry. Met each other at a ball.
Ran away together and started an artists retreat in wales. Visited by Byron, Shelly, Wordsworth. Worthworth wrote a sonnet about them.
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— Hole in the wall???
Oldest town house in ireland 1582 - archers
—— friary street
1921 ambush
Woman shouts out - soldiers you’re being attacked. 2 ira die.
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— Thosel??
1760s
toll house > City hall > guild hall > court house
City borough council until it was abolished 2014 - only county council now
Exection site of Petronella
Collection of tolls here.
Town speeches and declarations here.
kilkenny coat of arms on the wall
Rebuilt a few times. Recent fire 1985.
Monster House - dept store across the road. Fire. I remember going to see it burned down.
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— Butter slip???
Early 1600s - butter market stalls. Runs under two houses with bridges above it..
Colliers Lane - coal
You can get from Irish town to Patrick street by using the back slips only.
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— Kytlers Inn????
It's been an inn since 1639
1324- before the first plague and before the Butler’s buy the castle.
War with the Scots just over. Left ireland fucked.
Dame Alice Kytler
Wealthy merchant family from belgium. Most settlers in kilkenny were from outside ireland.
3 husbands dead. 4th husband very ill.
Bishop said she worshiped the devil and had sex with an Incubus (black cat/black man).
Husband 1 - William Outlaw - very rich
2 children - William and rose. William will play a big part in the story.
He died.
Husband 2 - Adam La Blund. Money lender. Had children from a preious marriage.
Growing resentment from the town. Raided her sons house. Found 3 thousand pounds.
Adam left his inheritance to Alice’s son William.
Died.
Husband 3 - Richard de Valle.
Died.
Went to court for her ‘widows third’ from his family.
Husband 4 - John Le Paor - powerful connections.
Irish Town vs. High town
Irish Town - bishop of ossory
High town - lord of kilkenny - council appointed for 3 De clare sisters who were in England. Arnold Le Paor (johns brother) most powerful on the council. (Stewart of Kilkenny)
New bishop on the way 1317 - Richard LeDred. Unknown in ireland. Came from france.
Previous Bishop fathered 14 daughters.
Began crackdown on his clergy - no more sex, no more singing secular songs, no more insulting the church. Ordered knowledge of heretics.
Alice was brought to court for profitting from her husbands deaths. From husbands children.
LeDred jumped on this accusation and called it witchcraft and heresy.
12 people accused in total.
BUT Alice had powerful friends. Arnold De Paor and Roger Outlaw. (Brothers of her husbands)
Bishop wanted to arrest Alice and her son. Issued warrant to Chancler - going over peoples heads- but the chancellor was Roger Outlaw - ex brother in law to alice and uncle to William.
Backfire!
Alice went to Arnold De Paor for help. Arnold told him to lay off. But Ledred was obsessed. Wouldn’t back down.
Alice fled to Dublin.
Arnold De Paor gets his men to arrest LeDred and sticks him in the jail of Kilkenny castle.
LeDred tells the church to go on strike (interdict). No baptisims, no communion, no burials.
This scared the local people.
De Paor offers bail but Ledred refuses. Ledred gets out after 18 days. Clergy bring his best clothes.
Walks through town in a triumphant procession back to the cathedral.
LeDred takes the case to dublin.
King’s man in dublin (Justister) supported him. He makes Arnold say sorry to LeDred.
Orders from Dubin to arrest Alice. She fled ireland.
8 women arrested. 4 men.
12 named in total.
Ledred confiscated all of Alice's stuff and threw it in the street.
Alices son William was made to go to mass everyday for a year and pay for a new roof for the cathedral. The roof collapsed years later.
Petronella - Alice’s servant was tortured by Ledred and made to admit to all kinds of crazy shit.
Burned at the stake - we think at the Thosel.
LeDred tried to accuse all the others involved too. He was run out of ireland for years but returned to ireland years later and lived until his 80s.
Alewifes - where we get depictions of witches
A way for widows to make money. Brew beer.
Men didnt like this - too much power.
Women had pointy hats so they could be seem in the market. Had cauldrons - for brewing beer.
Had cats to keep rats from their grain. Had brooms and wore aprons.
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— Rothe house???
Rich merchant family. Original Burgage plot.
Really long. Three houses stacked behind - courtyard between each.
Kilkenny Oligachs. We forced out when cromwell got here but came back.
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— Courthouse - Parliment house???
Courthouse
Old house for the Grace family - graces castle.
Rented out to the crown as a jail in the 1500s. Then converted to a courthouse in the 1700s
Confederate wars - 1642 - 7 years kilkenny is the capital
Civil war in England
Cromwell vs, the king Charles 1.
Irish lords take King’s side and declare the irish confederacy.
Kilkenny castle is their head quarters. Butlers friends of the king
They establish a parliament.
The King Charles 1, gives kilkenny a city charter
Cromwell wins
Cromwell comes to ireland
Kilkenny dealing with an outbreak of plague.
Destroys the place. Sacks kilkenny. Stables his horses in the Catherdral.
Sends people to Caribbean (Barbados) as slave labor/prisoners of war.
“To hell or to connacht”
”By Hook or my crook”
Butlers flee to france with Charles 2.
Ormond became one of Charles II most trusted advisors.
Cromwell dies
Crown is restored in England. King Charles 2.
Charles decreed that Cromwell be disinterred from Westminster Abbey, and that he be ‘executed’ – despite already being dead – for regicide.
Butlers are back in the castle.
Kilkenny - whats next: tourism, sport, arts