High Town, Kilkenny

Parliament Street, running south from the Cathedral, crosses the little River Bregagh, the boundary between Kilkenny's Irishtown and High Town. On the right, in Abbey Street, are the Black Freren Gate (one of the old town gates) and beyond this Black Abbey Church, once the church of a Dominican friary, Black Abbey (c. 1230). Of the original church there remain only the nave, south transept (14th C) and tower (15th C). Notable features of the interior are a medieval alabaster carving of the Trinity and a crudely carved oak figure of St Dominic.

Off Kilkenney's Parliament Street to the left of Black Abbey Church can be seen the ruins of St Francis's Friary (National Monument), a Franciscan house founded about 1232 and extended in 1321, when the beautiful seven-light east window was inserted. The slender tower has fine sculpture.

On Parliament Street in Kilkenny going southwards from St Francis's Friary, Rothe House is worth visiting, an Elizabethan merchant's house built in 1594 around two courtyards (restored 1966). It is now the headquarters of the Kilkenny Archaeological Society, with their library and museum. On the opposite side of the street is the Court House (1794).The house consists of museum exhibits, a period costume collection and a genealogical study center.

To the right of Kilkenny's Rothe House on Parliament Street, higher up, can be seen St Mary's Cathedral (1843), with a tower 200ft/60m high.

Not far from the Kilkenny's Town Hall on Market Yards is the oldest building in the town, Kyteler's Inn, today restored with an old style interior. It is still an inn. It is said that in the 14th C. a certain Alice Kyteler lived here. She aroused suspicion, as she survived four husbands. Condemned as a witch, she could have escaped by fleeing; but a scapegoat was used and her old servant ended on the scaffold.

In High Street, the continuation southwards of Parliament Street, we come to the Tholsel (1761), now the Town Hall of Kilkenny, in which the civic insignia and muniments (dating back to 1230) are preserved.

Southeast of the Kilkenny Town Hall is St Mary's Hall, originally built as a parish church (13th C.?) and now a community house. It has a number of monuments from the old church, notably the tomb of Richard Rothe (d. 1637) and, in the churchyard, a monument with figures of Faith, Hope and Charity and the Twelve Apostles.

Adjoining St Mary's Hall, southeast of the Kilkenny Town Hall, is Shee's Almshouse, founded in 1582 by Sir Richard Shee, which remained in use as an almshouse until 1895. After a complete restoration the building now houses both the Tourist Information Office and the City Scope Exhibition which illustrates in miniature Kilkenny in the 17th C.The 22 minutes presentation used the computer to control battery of lights which gives one of the most exciting and imaginative portrayals of Ireland's colorful past.

In the Parade in Kilkenny rises Kilkenny Castle, begun by William de Marshal in the 13th C. From 1391 to 1931 the castle - in the course of the centuries much altered and enlarged, particularly in the 17th C. by the first Duke of Ormonde and in the 19th C. (picture gallery wing) - was the principal seat of the Butler family. Finely situated on the high river bank and surrounded by gardens, the castle is now open to the public. Some of the rooms have been restored; particularly charming is the Victorian Great Hall.The Butler Art Gallery has changed into the exhibitions of contemporary art.

Across the street from Kilkenny Castle in the Parade are the old stables, now housing the Kilkenny Design Centre. Here can be found a variety of Irish products (textiles, jewellery, glass, ceramics, etc.) And craftsmen can be seen at work. Their designs are used throughout Ireland. It is impressive that many artists make use of Celtic designs, for example, illumination from the Book of Kells.The Kilkenny Design Workshops, located at Setanta Centre near Nassau Street, is the leader in presenting the best of Irish workmanship and design. Key features include Graphics, Simon Pearce's hand-blown glass, ceramics, Luma rugs, home boutique, and more.