Clonony Castle was very close to my perfect castle of ruins. I love ruins, abandoned buildings or other such dilapidated architecture. I still love the beautiful castles that are in good condition, but there’s something eerie and strangely beautiful about this type of location. Especially when it’s historical as Ireland is full of!
We made an appointment to meet the owner of the castle at 11am on our fourth day in Ireland. Rebecca was a wonderful woman who greeted us on the grounds with one of her dogs and was more than willing to not only show us around, but also give us some the history and stories that surrounded the castle. The Tudor castle was once in the hands of Henry the VIII, and then Thomas Boleyn who was to be married to Anne! Talk about cool history
Mary and Elizabeth Boleyn (who were cousins of Queen Elizabeth I), lived out their lives in the castle and their tombstone under an old tree still stands there (photo below).
Rebecca and her husband were in the process of restoring the castle so that they can sell their home and move in, however, as this is an extremely expensive process and requires skilled workers and the right weather….it’s not something that is quickly finished. The castle inside is available for sleepovers and dinners, where Rebecca will act as your dinner host and you can even spend the night sleeping on the dirt floor! I really wish I’d had more time to experience that!
There are tiny little winding staircases that lead you up to the second floor and then the top of the 50-foot tower. Most of the original stone steps have long since crumbled away and I feared the makeshift wooden boards would give way a few times, but it was worth the climb.
While Michelle and I chatted with Rebecca, I mentioned how I had hoped to do a photoshoot of a bride or somehow get together with another photographer to shoot a wedding while in Ireland. I explained how I had tried for almost 2 months ahead of leaving, but all the plans fell through. She was so kind as to offer her 13 year-old neice who lived nearby and who fit into Rebecca’s wedding dress from when her husband and her were married many years ago! While she was very young and it wasn’t quite a bridal shoot, I had a lot of fun working around the castle grounds. Huge thanks to Rebecca for being such a gracious host and even bringing us into your home for delicous tea and treats. The people in Ireland are truly wonderful, and this was only the beginning!
When we first arrived it was sunny with blue skies for a change! In typical Ireland fashion however, literally as we were loading the car up to leave, it started to pour and didn’t stop until the next day!
The gravesite of the Boleyn sisters, Elizabeth and Mary
Rebecca, myself and her dog at the castle
Michelle took this behind the scenes photo of me in a rather awkward position. I do this often
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