Blarney Castle: Its History, Development and Purpose

Samuel Mark

ISBN 10: 1859184111 / ISBN 13: 9781859184110

Published by Cork University Press, 2008

About this Item

2007. Illustrated. Hardcover. Describes Gaelic society and the castle's role within its clan organisation. This book includes a detailed history of the MacCarthy Muskerry clan that charts their rise to power and their ultimate loss of Blarney after the battle of the Boyne. It also decribes the families who owned the castle (the MacCarthys, the Jefferies and the Colthursts). Num Pages: 164 pages. BIC Classification: 1DBR; WQH; WTHM. Category: (G) General (US: Trade). Dimension: 258 x 195 x 16. Weight in Grams: 786. . . . . . Books ship from the US and Ireland.

Seller Inventory # V9781859184110

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Blarney Castle: Its History, Development and Purpose
• Publisher: Cork University Press
• Publication Date: 2008
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1859184111
• ISBN 13: 9781859184110
• Binding: Hardcover
• Condition: New

About this title

Synopsis

* A social history of one of Ireland's most famous sites

* Richly illustrated with color photos and maps throughout

* Demonstrates why the site is far more than just the Blarney Stone



Blarney Castle in County Cork is one of Ireland's oldest and most historic castles, an ancient stronghold of the McCarthys, Lords of Muskerry, and one of the strongest fortresses in Munster. It is also one of Ireland's biggest tourist attractions—over 300,000 people visit Blarney Castle each year.



This new book sets the castle in a wider context which includes aspects of social, architectural and local history with particular focus on County Cork, including the history of the area around Blarney, the Gaelic society which built the castle, the function of the castle and the gradual development of the property from a well-defended family seat to a major tourist attraction. At the same time it sets the castle within a wider context of national history and events. Since the site controlled a natural route to Cork City and was at the very edge of English Rule in Ireland, there is a relative wealth of extant documentation. Thus the book uses the evidence of both the building itself and of historical material to interpret the castle.



A new survey of the castle has been carried out and there is a fresh examination of the evidence it provides and how this illuminates the documentary accounts. The authors draw on their own archaeological expertise to pull together for the first time the historical material from a variety of published sources.

About the Authors

Mark Samuel is a freelance Archaeological Specialist.

Kate Hamlyn is a freelance writer who is active in Architectural Archaeology.