Richard Boyle (1566–1643) – The Great Earl of Cork

Richard Boyle (1566–1643) – The Great Earl of Cork

Without question, Richard Boyle, 1st Earl of Cork,  was the dominant figure on Ireland’s Blackwater Valley for the first forty years of the 17th century.  Indeed, the entrepreneur from Canterbury was one of the most extraordinary and powerful characters in Western...
Molana Abbey: From the Stone Age to Dissolution

Molana Abbey: From the Stone Age to Dissolution

Molana Abbey is located on the Blackwater outside Youghal, County Waterford. Its history is astonishing - the birthplace of Canon Law, the burial place of Raymond Le Gros and the home of Thomas Harriot, one of the first Europeans to visit the Americas. Complete access...
Rathsallagh, County Wicklow: A Potted History of 6,000 Years

Rathsallagh, County Wicklow: A Potted History of 6,000 Years

An epic and sweeping saga of Stone Age genius, Normans warriors, Georgia gentlemen and noble revolutionaries in the Wicklow Mountains, homing in on the Ryves, Pennefather and O'Flynn families. Complete access to all articles on this website for €12 / year...
Wingfield, Viscounts Powerscourt of Co. Wicklow, Ireland

Wingfield, Viscounts Powerscourt of Co. Wicklow, Ireland

Powerscourt House is one of the most famous Georgian houses in Ireland. Built in the 1740s, it was devastated by fire in 1974 but subsequently rebuilt. The estate takes its name from the de la Poer family who built a castle here in Norman times. In 1608, the property...
De la Poer (Power) of County Waterford

De la Poer (Power) of County Waterford

Tracking the history of the de la Poer or Power dynasty, reputedly from Brittany, who became prominent in Ireland in the medieval period (despite some hefty criminals in the clan) and fetched up as Earls of Tyrone, a title that passed by marriage to the Beresford...