Red is the Rose

Muckross Friary

Stardate 67299.4

20:35 - We spent our full day in Killarney at the Killarney National Park. Spanning over  100 acres, Killarney National Park is the first national park in the Republic of Ireland and consists of three lakes: Lough Leane, Muckross, and Upper Lake. The park became apart of the national portfolio when the Muckross estate donated it to the Republic of Ireland in 1932.

Max, our transportation and companion

 Before that time, most of Killarney National Park belonged to two families. The Herbert family originally bought the land and built the magnificent mansion that resides by Muckross Lake. Built in the Tudor style, the mansion, eventually known as Muckross House, went through extensive and costly renovation in preparation for Queen Victoria's visit. Apparently, hosting royalty is an expensive chore. It is not just the fact that you have a fancy house party lasting for days. This family bought huge pieces of solid wood furniture with ornate carvings from the Continent. They had to reorganize their household because Queen Victoria would only sleep on the first floor (side note: she had a huge fear of fires and needed an escape from them). Eventually, the Herberts sold the estate to American mining magnates. Their stay was short because of a death in the family, they gave the property to the Republic.

Today, they keep the mansion and gardens up by giving tours. We got to see where the families dined, their rooms, their billiards table, and even where Queen Victoria stayed. The tour even went through the kitchens where we were able to see the old cooking equipment. It was a regular Downton Abbey experience. Along with giving tours, the estate sponsors many local artisans, including weaving. They have looms onsite where tourists can purchase wool garments of all shapes and sizes. They even have their own label: Mucros Weaving. The guide informed us that the spelling for Mucros was no mistake, it takes after the Gaelic spelling of Muckross.

On our way back to the car, we stopped by the Muckross Friary. Today the Friary stands in ruins, but in the 1600s, the Friary was alive and kicking. The Friary belonged to the Observantine Franciscans. The order that lived and worshiped here were dedicated to the Holy Trinity. They were known to also have a miraculous statue of the Virgin Mary. King Henry VIII decided to disband the group of brothers, but they came back. They had a pretty good run until 1662 when Cromwellian forces sacked the place. After that, the friary sat in ruin. Today the ruins still stand and are helped by a few arm rails. We got to climb all over and go up 400 year old stairs.

After the Friary, we continued our walk back to the car through the national park. It was a lovely fall day. As it should be because it was Halloween.