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Rock of Cashel - The Royal Rock of Cashel in Ireland

The Rock of Cashel, or Cashel of the Kings, is a historic site in County Tipperary, Ireland. The Royal Rock of Cashel in Ireland is home to the very a lot of history. Among other things, the High Kings of Munster hung here and St Patrick himself came here. And the very first version of Guinness was brewed here.

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Rock of Cashel - Rock of Cashel in Ireland

The Rock of Cashel, or more formally St Patrick's Rock (Carraig Phádraig) is also known as Cashel of the Kings. Long before the Norman conquest of Ireland, this place was the seat of the High Kings of Munster, the kings of Ireland's southernmost province. This was an obvious stop for us on the way from Cork to Dublin!

Cashelklippan, Rock of Cashel
On the way up to the Rock of Cashel in Ireland, Rock of Cashel

This is where, according to legend, St Patrick himself came to the Rock of Cashel in 432 AD and where he baptised King Aengus, who became Ireland's first Christian ruler. This is also where the very first version of Guinness was brewed, if our guide is to be believed. A place with a lot of history!

Rock of Cashel, Cashelklippan på Irland
Rock of Cashel, Rock of Cashel in Ireland

The oldest and tallest of the buildings is the tall round tower, which is a typical Irish model. The tower is 28 metres high and was built in the 12th century.

Cashel Round tower
The Round Tower of the Rock of Cashel

Visiting the Rock of Cashel

To visit the Rock of Cashel, adults (in May 2018) have to pay a fee of 8 euros per person. The price includes a guided tour, and we got the guide's guide. This man must have been a born storyteller! I can't possibly reproduce the stories here, but he certainly took us through the roller coaster of history. And he made us feel like we were at the heart of... everything. If you want to know more about practical things like opening hours and prices, check out Rock of Cashel's website.

Rock of Cashel
Walls that have a lot to say
Kyrkogård Cashel
Seven elderly ladies of the county still have the right to be buried in this place, according to kinship.

Hore Abbey

Standing on the Rock of Cashel, you can look down on an old monastery called Hore Abbey. Unlike the big attraction on the hill, where there is an entrance and guides, this abbey is seemingly abandoned in a cow pasture. But Peter had seen pictures of the abbey online and was hooked. He wanted to take photos with a drone! Time to climb into the cow pasture, then ...

Hore Abbey
Hore Abbey, seen from the Rock of Cashel

By the way, there are seven (!) monasteries of this type in the area. As impressive as this is, I (Helena) answered in the negative to Peter's question about whether we could see them all ... No, no, time to experience some other things!

Hore Abbey
Hore Abbey, photographed with Peter's drone

Where can you stay with your campervan?

Could there be a campsite nearby? Yes! We found our way to O'Briens Cashel Lodge and Camping Park, which was only a few hundred metres from the sights of Cashel. The simple (but nice!) little campsite was indeed full when we arrived, but if there are hearts, there are tails. With a little crooked parking on a footpath and an extension cord, everything worked out!

camping Cashel
The Rock of Cashel is only a few metres away from the campsite.
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