The Black Castle, Wicklow

On our way south from Dublin, we stopped in Wicklow and visited the Black Castle. This was early in our trip, and we were still easily impressed by ruins. Later we were much more exacting about our ruins, but this one is old enough to remain on the highlights list.


The ruin is just outside of town, standing on a rocky promontory. Construction started in 1176, when the labour must have been excruciating. The castle was held by the English for several generations and was frequently attacked by, and sometimes occupied by, the Irish. The castle was finally razed in the 1600s to prevent it being seized by the army of Sir Charles Coote.

It must have been a lonely, windy and miserable spot in its day. Now the town of Wicklow presses snugly against the side of the hill. I suppose they treat it as a sort of town park. While we were there some local women were using the castle as a place to gossip and get in the way of photographs. With a bit of entrepreneurial spirit this could be quite a lucrative strategy for Wicklow residents. If they'd held up a sign saying "Will move for 5 Euro" I would have paid up gladly.