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| Glendalough Round Tower |
Glendalough
represents iconic Irish countryside. Nestled
in a glaciated valley in the heart of County Wicklow, this serene valley
boasts two lakes, monastic remains with a superb round tower, stone churches,
and decorated crosses in an historical graveyard. Literally the name, Gleann Dá
Loch, means “Valley of the Two Lakes.”
History
The early Christian ecclesiastical settlement was founded
in the 6th century by St. Kevin, a
hermit monk who died about 618 A.D. A
descendant of one of the ruling families of Leinster, he came to live at
Glendalough (pronounced ‘glenda-lock’) as a young man. According to legend, he lived a life of
sleeping on stones, wearing animal skins, barely eating, and making friends
with birds and animals.
By the 9th century, Glendalough rivaled only Clonmacnoise
as one of the leading monastic cities in Ireland. In its heyday, the settlement not only
featured a monastery and monk cells, but also an infirmary, workshops, areas
for manuscript writing and copying, guesthouses, farm buildings and
houses. Most of what survives today is
from the 10th-12th centuries.
In 1214, the dioceses of Glendalough and Dublin were
combined and the settlement fell into ruin destroyed by English forces in
1398. The Feast
of St. Kevin is celebrated on June 3.
Glendalough
is currently a titular
see in the Catholic Church. It is
used for bishops who hold no ordinary power of their own and thus are titular
bishops.
Visiting Glendalough
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| Upper Lake at Glendalough |
The two lakes at Glendalough are known as Upper
Lake and Lower
Lake, where the main entrance from the parking area, a visitor
centre, the
main monastic dwellings, and a hotel
are located. Walking
trails connect the two lakes and other monastic sites.
Visible at Lower Lake are the double-arched
medieval gateway; the Cathedral,
the largest building; St.
Kevin’s Cross with an unpierced ring; the reconstructed priests’
house; St. Kevin’s
Church (or Kitchen) with its distinctive round belfry; foundations of St.
Kieran’s Church; and the iconic round
tower.
The
round tower possibly served as a belltower, a place of refuge when under
attack, and/or a storage facility. It
originally had six timber-floored stories with the doorway to the tower 3-1/2
meters above ground to protect those inside from intruders.
Small
windows at the top face the four points of the compass, and stories were
accessed by internal wooden ladders. The
conical roof was replaced in 1876 from original stones.
Additional monastic structures – St.
Mary’s Church, the Caher, Reefert
Church, and St. Savior’s
Church – can be visited on the hike to Upper Lake. Temple-na-Skellig
and St.
Kevin’s Bed, a cave, are only accessible via boat.
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| Crosses of Glendalough |
There are nine marked walkingtrails in Wicklow Mountains National Park ranging from a short half hour
walk to a four-hour hillwalk. The park
is host to a wide
diversity of wildlife including red deer, sika deer, fallow deer,
feral goat,
red fox, mink, and over 100 species of
birds. The common lizard is
the only reptile in the park, as there are no snakes in
Ireland.
The visitor
center located nearby hosts an interesting exhibit and a 17-minute film
entitled “Ireland of the Monasteries.”
Join Rick Steves in this video: “Glendalough, Ireland: Exploring the
Wicklow Mountains.” (Watch only the
first 1:55 minutes.)
For a unique birds eye view, enjoy this video: “Glendalough.” (3:40)
