Irish Fortifications You Should Not Miss

Complete city walls are not too common anymore, so the Walls of Derry are a special treat. They have withstood the historic siege and years of civil war without major scars. A leisurely walk along the walls will take less than an hour but give you an insight into fortress-building and the still simmering tensions in Northern Ireland.

After Kinsale had been used for a major Spanish invasion, fortifying the important harbor seemed a good idea. And even today, in ruins afer being burnt down by the IRA, Charles Fort is an impressive and dominating site. With the slight disadvantage that is coukd not be defended against artillery attacks from the higher ground nearby.

Basically Martello Towers are round gun enplacements, designed to protect important coastal areas from invaders. The invaders in thus case being the French under Napoleon. French invasion fleets actually ached Ireland in both 1796 and 1798, a few years later Martello Towers sprang up everywhere. Several are in Dublin, one even having a Joycean connection - the James Joyce Tower.

Athlone's main attraction (apart from the Shannon and shopping facilities), the castle has been rebuilt several times. While there is nothing "romantic" about it anymore, one can see why it was strategically important - you would have to defeat the garrison to cross the river. The museum in Athlone Castle illustrates this fact with a fine exhibition.

Situated on high ground overlooking the Liffey, the Magazine Fort in Dublin's Phoenix Park is rarely seen by tourists. While not being aesthetically pleasing at all, it certainly is a tribute to the fortress-builders art. As it was once the main depository of arms and ammunition in the Dublin area, the rebels of 1916 decided to (literally) kick off their insurrection here. And in 1939 the IRA plundered the Free State's armory in the same spot.

On the shores of Lower Lough Erne you will find several fine ruins of "plantation castles", fortified manor houses. These were erected by Protestant-Scottish settlers to defend their domain from marauding Irish natives. Who slightly disagreed with them staying. The ruinous state of the castles often reflects a succession of gate-crashing objectors. Several splendid ones can be seen near Lough Erne.

During "the Emergency" (also known as World War 2 in other countries) Ireland stayed neutral - but was prepared to defend against any foreign invader. One of which was rumored to be a British-US-coalition force stationed in Northern Ireland. Designating the rivers Boyne and Blackwater as the main defense line, the Irish government proceeded to build hundreds of small bunkers. A number of them can be discovered by walking upstream along the Boyne near the battlefield of 1690.