For our July 2024 excursion, members of the West Wicklow Historical Society visited Huntington Castle and Gardens, Clonegal, County Carlow on Saturday 20th July.
Huntington Castle is situated near the picturesque village of Clonegal. It was built by Sir Laurence Esmonde in 1625, formerly a soldier serving in the armies of Elizabeth I and James I, as a defensive garrison on the strategically important Wexford to Dublin route. The building was later developed into a family home and the same family has acted as its careful custodians up to the present day. We were brought on a very interesting and entertaining tour of the house by Alex who shared with us information on its history, the various generations who occupied it, and its many historical artefacts and surprises. Afterwards, between the rain showers, we ambled about the beautiful gardens first laid out in the late seventeenth century. They include impressive formal plantings, a rose walk, stew ponds, a lake, peacocks and the world-famous Yew Walk (the yew trees are over 500 years old). After all that, the onsite tearooms beckoned! All told, this was a charming way to spend a Saturday morning.