Legendary architecture
Cairns are earthen or stone burial mounds, often with a forecourt, whose sacred enclosure was protected by standing stones. The Creggandevesky Tomb and Ossian's Grave are two superb examples. Ireland also boasts earthen or stone-covered passage tombs with a narrow access passage lined with large stones leading to the burial chambers, as well as covered walkways made up of galleries serving the burial chambers. Once again, a courtyard precedes these buildings. You'll find some amazing examples of this in County Sligo, notably at Deerpark and Creevykeel. And let's not forget the dolmens (burial chambers crowned by a large flat stone), such as the porticoed dolmen at Labby Rock, not far from the Neolithic cemetery at Carrowkeel, home to sumptuous corbelled burial chambers. But the highlight is the Newgrange tumulus, a hill 11 m high and 85 m in diameter, made up of almost 200,000 t of stone, housing engraved galleries and a burial chamber that lights up every winter solstice! At the same time, Ireland has seen the development of other ritual sites, such as cromlechs (circles of standing stones) and stepped amphitheatres organized around a vast platform, as illustrated by the Dun Duchathair and Dun Aengus sites on the Aran Islands. Added to this is an astonishing series of circular forts and fortified enclosures. The raths are made of earth, while the cashel are made of stone. These forts are built on rocky promontories or hills, around which protective ditches are dug. Not-to-be-missed sites include Cahergeal Fort, Staigue Fort and, of course, Tara Hill with the three rings of the Raths of the Synods. And don't miss the crannogs, artificial islands built in lacustrine areas, consisting of wooden platforms supported by a series of stilts and housing wattle-and-daub houses with thatch or peat roofs, often conical in shape. Fine examples can be seen in County Clare.
Medieval Golden Age
The first Celtic churches were small and simple, made of stone, rectangular in plan, with a high gable roof and narrow, tapered windows. They are protected by a round tower with a crenellated top, with no openings except for loopholes and an entrance raised almost 2 m above the ground. These characteristics can be found in the first monasteries, which are often protected by a circular wall or moat. Originally composed of a single cell, they inherited their simplicity from the huts of the first Christian hermits, circular dry-stone huts called clochán, whose beehive shape also earned them the name of beehive huts. The Celtic crosses, stone giants with richly carved biblical decorations, are the other great symbols of the period. Among the most beautiful witnesses of this High Christian Age, do not miss the site of Skellig Michael, the High Crosses of Ahenny and Castledermot and especially the site of Monasterboice. Ireland knows then a real golden age of abbeys and monasteries. The architecture of the latter was influenced by the monastic orders of the continent, the Cistercians in the lead, with their sense of asceticism and harmony of lines and volumes. The influence of the Normans was also added to this. For their churches, the latter favored a simple plan with a nave, two aisles, a transept and an apse. In terms of style, the Norman-Romanesque style is characterized by sober but richly sculpted decorations with friezes and tympanums decorated with geometric motifs. The interior space, spacious and luminous, includes arcades, large bays and galleries of circulation. An impression of grandeur that will be reinforced by the appearance of the first ribbed vaults, allowing to gain height and announcing the great impulses of the Gothic. Not to be missed: Boyle Abbey, Clonfert Cathedral, Athassel Priory and the sites of Glendalough, Rock of Cashel and Clonmacnoise. The Normans are also famous for their castles, of massive proportions, with crenellated ramparts and thick, powerful stone walls, again decorated with geometric patterns, often in zigzag or sawtooth form. Built on rocky promontories or surrounded by defensive walls and ditches, these castles are dominated by a keep in the center of a central courtyard. The organization of the castles is reminiscent of the tower-houses that dot the country. Aughnanure Castle, Blarney Castle, Carrickfergus Castle and of course Dublin Castle are among the most beautiful fortresses of the country. And to taste the picturesque charm of medieval towns, go to Kilkenny. There you can stroll down High Street, the typical medieval shopping street, but also down the slips, small streets so steep that they have been transformed into staircases; all these streets are lined with arcaded houses. You will also discover the castle, the cathedral and a superb round tower. All of medieval Ireland in one city!
From the 16th to the 18th century
In the 16th century, fortification systems were adapted to the evolution of artillery. Walls were reinforced with earthen embankments to withstand cannon fire, and corner bastions and pointed or projecting forms were multiplied. The ramparts of the Derry Citadel, the Elizabeth Fort in Cork and the Charles Fort in Kinsale, whose star shape was inspired by Vauban citadels, date from this period. The 17th century was the century of the plantations, with English and Scottish settlers taking over the lands of the Ulster chiefs. Dominated by the big houses, the owners' homes, these estates retain their medieval appearance, with the occasional addition of classical elements borrowed from the Italian Renaissance, particularly in the art of gardening. Tully Castle, Crom Estate and Springhill are among the finest estates of the period. The 18th century saw the advent of Neoclassicism, and more specifically the Georgian style, heavily influenced by Palladianism, in which harmony and symmetry reigned, with building facades punctuated by high windows, columns and arches, as well as pediments, cornices and balustrades. This was the golden age of the great country estates of the English gentry, often consisting of a 3 or 4-storey main building flanked by 2 wings, creating a monumental entrance. Don't miss Florence Court and Castle Code in Fermanagh, or Castletown House in Kildare, whose superb gardens are dotted with "follies" - ornamental garden buildings in the most fanciful shapes. Another astonishing neoclassical fantasy is the Casino at Marino, a masterpiece by architect William Chambers, who recreated a veritable little Italian palace of astonishingly rich decoration in a Dublin suburb. In the city, neoclassical rigor is reflected in the great public buildings (the Irish Parliament and Custom House in Dublin), while a new urban form is emerging: terraced houses, an alignment of semi-detached houses along a street or around asquare, creating harmony and unity, a feeling reinforced by the sobriety of their facades, enhanced by the flights of steps leading up to their superb, colorful panelled doors, topped by richly decorated, semi-circular transoms. Dublin's terraced houses are famous the world over! A highly studied urban planning style, reflected in the alternating brick buildings and white colonnaded houses surrounding Belfast's Crescent Gardens. This urban effervescence culminated in the creation of new villages with harmonious proportions, wide avenues and tree-lined promenades. The motto of these new villages: order and calm. Visit Birr and Westport to enjoy them!
Victorian Era and Modernity
Victorian architecture was all about eclecticism, reviving the great styles of the past, especially Gothic and Tudor. This period was accompanied by major restoration campaigns for castles and churches, as well as the recreation of traditional villages. St Finbarr's Cathedral in Cork, for example, was rebuilt in exuberant Gothic style, with rose windows, mosaics and walls covered in blood-red Cork marble. Brick is the quintessential Victorian material, and can be found in the many educational buildings springing up everywhere. This marked the advent of the great universities, as exemplified by Trinity College Dublin and Queen's University Belfast, which also took on the trappings of the Gothic period. At the same time, beautiful metal architecture was developing, heralding the modern era to come. The botanical gardens and markets are masterpieces of glass and steel. Don't miss Belfast's St George's Market, the greenhouses of Dublin's National Botanic Gardens and, above all, the Belfast Botanic Gardens with their superb Palm House, with its round, organic shapes. The latter is the work of Charles Lanyon, the architect of 19th-century Belfast, who also designed the Queen's Bridge, Custom House, Crumlin Road Courthouse and Sinclair Seamen's Church, all of which combine engineering prowess with a very personal style. Industrial Belfast also boasts a number of working-class neighborhoods, with strings of red-brick houses and small backyards. The city also boasts a fine example of the Edwardian architecture that succeeded the Victorian era: Donegall Square, dominated by City Hall, whose white silhouette highlights its powerful green copper dome. Dublin's Guinness Building marks the definitive entry into modernity. Influenced by the skyscrapers of the Chicago School, it was the first building in Ireland with a metal structure supporting several storeys! The early 20th century also saw the emergence of the clean, geometric lines of Art Deco, as seen in the Church of Christ the King in Cork. The 1920s-1930s were also a period of urban planning reflection, particularly in Dublin, where it was decided to eradicate the shantytowns and replace them with "Dublin Corporation Houses", large estates divided into terraced houses and arranged in crescents around green spaces. Although concrete is now the norm, the Georgian urban pattern is still very much alive!
Contemporary architecture
With its concrete facade punctuated by a "monotonous" alignment of glass panes, Busaras, Dublin's central bus station built in 1953 by Michael Scott, is a perfect example of the austerity of the international style. Sam Stephenson, on the other hand, invented a brutalism with elegant contours, as evidenced by the Central Bank of Dublin and the two towers of the Civic Offices, with facades interspersed with concrete blocks and bands of black stone. A land of architectural innovation, Dublin has continued to redesign itself under the pencil strokes of famous architects. Santiago Calatrava created two iconic bridges: the James Joyce Bridge, whose silhouette is reminiscent of an open book, and the Samuel Beckett Bridge, whose shape is reminiscent of a harp, the country's emblem. Daniel Libeskind designed the Grand Canal Theater, with its superb mirror façade and fluid, transparent sculpted volumes, which has become the focal point of the new Grand Canal Harbor district. Among Dublin's other must-see contemporary achievements, don't miss the astonishing Umbrella Project in the heart of Temple Bar, with its retractable sunshade pillars protecting the central square, the Marker Hotel, with its façade elegantly alternating glazed and smooth white surfaces, and the Capital Dock, 79 m high. But Dublin is also, and above all, the city of Shelley McNamara and Yvonne Farrell, founders of Grafton Architects, and 2020 recipients of the prestigious Pritzker Prize, the Nobel Prize for architecture. Along with Zaha Hadid, they are the only women to have received it! Creators of sober, uncluttered architecture with brutalist overtones, the two architects' watchwords are humanism, altruism and generosity. This no doubt explains the astonishing number of schools they have built! We also owe them the beautiful Solstice Art Centre in Navan. Belfast is not to be outdone, and today enjoys a great deal of creative vitality. The docks and shipyards have been rehabilitated and now house two of the city's iconic buildings: the Titanic Building, with its 4 protruding volumes reminiscent of the legendary liner's bow, and the Odyssey Arena. Victoria Square is also a must-see. This huge shopping mall, with its intricate walkways and glass dome, incorporates the district's old streets into its structure. Belfast also boasts the country's tallest tower, the Obel Tower, at 85 m. Ireland is also home to a number of fine organic architectural projects that blend harmoniously into the landscape, such as the Giant'sCauseway Visitor Centre, with its green roofs and volumes inspired by basalt formations.
Vernacular richness
Ireland's wealth also lies in its rural and traditional heritage. Along the coast, it's impossible to miss the picturesque fishing villages with their small, colorful houses and harmonious unity. Dingle is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful. Inland, it's the cottage that's the ambassador of Irish identity. Most often single-storey, these deep, narrow, rectangular houses with sturdy stone or clay walls feature a main room lit by sash windows and accessed through an entrance door slightly offset from the center of the room. When the cottage is made up of several rooms, they follow one another without a corridor. How do you recognize an Irish cottage? By its whitewashed silhouette (or sometimes lightly colored in yellow or orange tones) topped by a thatched roof (slate is reserved for the more opulent cottages). Heather, straw or reed make up this resistant, insulating thatch. On the Atlantic coast, it's held in place by ropes to resist the wind. In Ulster and Munster, several overlapping layers of straw are laid on top of each other, while in the rest of the country, thatch is "pinned" to a mesh of tapered rods. Connemara boasts some fine examples. The vernacular architecture of Connemara is also reflected in its small-scale heritage: windmills, such as the Wellbrook Beetling Mill, as well as the low stone walls that divide the land everywhere. The most impressive of these can be seen on the Aran Islands. From the air, these walls look like tightly woven meshes. Each plot-owner has worked his low walls of broken stone like lace. Discover this vernacular architecture in one of the country's many ecomuseums or folk parks. Among the richest, don't miss the Sligo Folk Park and the Ulster-American Folk Park.
