County Galway



"...the sun rises over Claddagh and sets over Galway Bay."


Irish name for Galway is Gaillimh. Galway is divided into two contrasting regions by the expanse of Lough Corrib. To the west is Connemara - a region of superb scenic grandeur, dominated by the rocky mountains known as the Twelve Bens. Many Connemara inhabitants are Irish speakers and much of the ancient Gaelic culture is preserved.



The Aran Islands lie thirty miles off the Connemara coast. Formed from a limestone ridge, their stunning coastal views and prehistoric stone forts are well worth a visit.

The historic and lively city of Galway, thought to be Europe's fasting growing metropolis, lies south of Lough Corrib. Galway is an excellent place to visit, with plenty of shops, continental-style cafes, fine restaurants and great bars where you can socialise or listen to live traditional Irish music.

Lovers of the arts can enjoy fringe theatre, live comedy and several annual festivals, including the Galway Arts Festival, and the Film Fleadh. Parts of medieval Galway still exist, and although the old city walls have all but disappeared, the famous 'Spanish Arch' remains. In Galway's seaside resort, Salthill, you'll find a beach, amusements, and great nightlife.

Aran Islands, Co. Galway



The earliest inhabitants are said to have been the Firbolgs, who, having escaped after the Battle of Moytura fled first to Meath. But they were not prepared to pay the exorbitant rents imposed upon themthere by Cairbre-Nia-Fer, King of Tara in the first century, A.D., and retired to Connacht where they were granted lands along the western seaboard, including the Aran Islands. They fortified themselves on the Islands, and called their fortresses after their chiefs Aengus, Eoghanacht and Eochla. The Firbolgs later lost the islands to the Eoghanacta of Munster. Some time around 490, St. Enda founded a monastery at Killeany on Inishmore, and many of the founders of other great Irish monasteries, such as St. Ciaran of Clonmacnois, St. Finnian of Moville and St. Jarlath of Tuam, came and studied under him.

St. Enda's monastery was one of the first and one of the most important monasteries in the whole of Ireland. It was set on fire in 1020, raided by the Northmen in 1081 and its last recorded abbot died in 1400. Possibly some time in the 11th century, the O'Briens took possession of the island, which was plundered and burned by Sir John Darcy, Lord Justice of Ireland, in 1334. As and from about 1400 the O'Flahertys were laying claim to the islands, or at least to parts of them, and they succeeded in expelling the O'Briens in the 16th century. A Franciscan monastery was founded on Inishmore in the 15th century. Arkin's Castle was erected also on Inishmore in 1587 by John Rawson who had been granted the islands by Queen Elizabeth. The castle was probably occupied by the Cromwellian forces when they invaded the islands in 1651. The islands were garrisoned by the English after 1691. John Millington Synge drew some of his best literary inspiration for his plays from the people on the Aran Islands. Because of their comparative isolation, the islands have preserved a considerable amount of traditional Irish culture, which has been lost elsewhere, and to this day it is one of Ireland's last and strongest Irish-speaking areas.

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