Built upon a river or more precisely the town was on one side while the main road south was on the other. The approach was dominated by the ruins of Baltinglass Abbey rising up from the river bank. Not much remains of the abbey structure but the row of stone arches is most striking. We wandered round the site and there is much of interest: parts dating from the 12th century, some fine stone carving and curious burial chambers like the tomb topped by a pyramid (you can just see it in the photo). Beside the abbey remains is a working CofI church dating from the 19th century and quite attractive in its own right. We had dawdled too long amongst the ruins and were getting peckish...
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| Baltinglass Abbey |
Popped into a local second-hand book store for the customary browse, getting provisions in a local supermarket and eventually meeting up for lunch in a neat, busy little restaurant.
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| Baltinglass: 1798 memorial |
In the town "square" stands the first 1798 memorial we would come across. Wicklow and Wexford were the main centres in the south for the Untited Irishman rebellion. Perhaps more committed here than the efforts in the north commemorated in Ballynure cemetery. The revolt failing at the dreadful Battle of Vinegar Hill near Enniscorthy. This monument was erected in 1904 (well before separation) and is dedicated to those who fought in the insurrections of 1798, 1803, 1848 and 1867. After more than 300 years are can we be done with fighting?
Also on the wall of the old townhall - now the local library - was a plaque to a most unusual local fellow: John Thomond O'Brien who journeyed to South America where as a General O'Brien he is credited as a hero of the independence wars of Chile, Argentina, Uruguay and Peru. Quite an achievement for only one man. Odder still, he died in Lisbon, Portugal (Brazil, where Portuguese is spoken, is the only South American country that does not speak Spanish).
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