Rock of Cashel
History
According to tradition, St. Patrick came to Cashel and baptized the grandsons of Conall Corc. During the baptism, the saint's pointed crozier pierced the foot of King Áengus mac Nad Fraích, who believed that it was an essential part of the ceremony and suffered in silence.
The Rock of Cashel is one of Ireland's most sacred locations, still shrouded in myth and legend. Located in Tipperary, Ireland, it does not constitute an actual castle but a formidable stronghold that served as the traditional seat of the kings of Munster before the Norman invasion in the early 12th century, and it contains the most impressive cluster of medieval buildings in the country.
The Rock of Cashel first came to prominence as a centre of power in the late 4th or early 5th century, when the Eóganachta clan emerged as the kings of Munster, and one of their kings, Conall Corc, is considered the traditional founder of the Cashel kingship. Many of the Cashel kings were also churchmen. By the later 10th century, the Dál Cais clan, centered around Killaloe in County Clare, ousted the Eóganachta, and Brian Boru of the Dál Cais succeeded his brother as king of Cashel in 978. He became the first Munster king to achieve the high kingship of Ireland, and he died at the Battle of Clontarf in 1014.
In 1101, Brian's great-grandson, Muirchertach Ua Briain, gave the Rock of Cashel to the Church. It advanced his credentials as a church reformer and deprived his old enemies, the Eóganachta, of their ancient royal seat, and the Rock became the centre of the Diocese of Cashel. The Round Tower is the oldest surviving building on the Rock and may date to 1101. Between 1127 and 1134, Cormac Mac Cárthaigh, king of Desmond, built Cormac's Chapel, which was consecrated in 1134.
The Round Tower.
St. Patrick's Cathedral was built between about 1230 and 1270. There are no surviving records of its construction, and the dating is based on its architecture. It is a large cruciform Gothic church, which was ingeniously fitted between the Round Tower, Cormac's Chapel, and a rock-cut well. In the 15th century, a tower was built over the crossing, and a residential tower was built at the west end of the nave, which takes up the whole of the original west end of the church.
The Hall of the Vicars Choral.
In the early 15th century, Archbishop Richard O'Hedian, who held the see from 1406 to 1440, built the Hall of the Vicars Choral to house the men, both lay and clergy, who assisted in chanting the cathedral services. The dormitory to the east was added slightly later. It is the only surviving choir's residence in Ireland. The roof of the hall was restored in 1975, and the dormitory was excavated and restored in the 1980s.
In 1647, Cashel was sacked by English Parliamentarian troops led by Murrough O'Brien, 1st Earl of Inchiquin, during the Irish Confederate Wars. The Irish Confederate troops were massacred along with the Catholic clergy, including Theobald Stapleton, an Irish Roman Catholic priest who sought sanctuary inside St. Patrick's Cathedral but was slain by the Parliamentarian troops. Theobald was beatified by Pope John Paul II in 1992.
The Church of Ireland used the Rock until 1749, when Archbishop Arthur Price chose to build a new cathedral in the town and the site was abandoned. The decision has been criticized ever since. The old cathedral remained partly roofed for some time but gradually fell into decay, and by 1848, the roof had collapsed, as had part of the residential tower. In 1869, the Church of Ireland was disestablished, and the Rock was taken into State care. The Office of Public Works began its first monument work at the Rock, between 1874 and 1876. In 2011, Queen Elizabeth II visited the Rock of Cashel during a visit to Ireland.
Castle Highlights
The Rock of Cashel, a picturesque collection of medieval architecture and Celtic art, is one of the most iconic Irish monuments, mostly dating back to the 12th and 13th centuries.
The view from the Rock across the Golden Vale.
Cormac's Chapel is one of the finest, most complete, and earliest Romanesque churches in Ireland. It has a barrel-vaulted roof and wide arches. The towers on either side of the junction of the nave and chancel bear a Germanic style that is not found anywhere else in Ireland. It also contains the only surviving Romanesque frescoes in Ireland, and an ornate stone sarcophagus, probably that of Tadhg Mac Cárthaigh, Cormac's brother, which was moved from the cathedral in 1875. Conservation of the frescoes took place between 1986 and 1997, and the whole building was conserved between 2009 and 2017, so the interior can now be visited only on a guided tour.
Cormac's Chapel can be visited by guided tour only. These tour tickets are limited and can only be purchased on-site. However, calling ahead to confirm tour times and details is recommended, as they are subject to change.
The Round Tower, which stands 28 meters high, is complete up to its conical stone roof, and its entrance is 12 feet from the ground. The tower was initially built using the dry-stone method; however, some mortar has been added for safety reasons. In 1965, it was struck by lightning, which made a large hole that the Office of Public Works later repaired.
The original St. Patrick's Cross, kept in the undercroft of the Hall of the Vicars Choral.
Between the Hall of the Vicars Choral and the cathedral is a replica of the 12th-century St. Patrick's Cross, which is over seven feet tall, and the original is kept in the undercroft of the Hall. The cross has no ring around the cross head, which makes it unusual among Irish high crosses. High on the east wall of the Hall is a Sheela-na-gig figure, and the cathedral contains the wall tomb of Miler Magrath, the Protestant archbishop of Cashel from 1570 to 1622.
The Rock of Cashel is a must-see location for anyone visiting Ireland. A visit takes an hour to an hour and a half, and there is an audio-visual show and an exhibition. It can be explored in half a day. Cahir Castle is located close enough to see on the same day.
The Rock of Cashel has a legend.
