This is a busy market town in Kinross-shire. It’s a great stop on any tours of Scotland. Just East of the town is Burleigh Castle. This is a fine tower house dating from about 1500. It has no roof but is otherwise quite complete. There is an angle tower, with...
This is a building in Galway which you could look at on any tours of Ireland. Galway is a great stop and this is a bit of a hidden gem. The Church of Saint Nicholas is a large cruciform building dating from 1320. Externally, the most noteworthy features...
This town is near Dunfermline and worth a stop on any tours of Scotland. Historically the town is famous for connections to the Bruce family, and the famous Robert the Bruce. There are a few interesting architectural historical antiquities in Clackmannan. Clackmannan Tower was built in the 14th...
Usually on our tours of Ireland we stop at Sligo on the way North. The original church was founded by Maurice Fitzgerald, Earl of Kildare, for the Dominicans in 1252. It was accidentally destroyed by fire in 1414. Then it was rebuilt in 1416. Unfortunately, it was destroyed again...
This is a village in Strathearn, Perthshire. Definitely worth a stop on any tours of Scotland. The present House of Gask dates from 1801, but the ruins of an earlier house are in the grounds. The name Gask refers to the nearby Gask Ridge. There are nearby remains associated...
This sits near the village of Ennis, and if you are passing on any tours of Ireland, you may want to stop. The Abbey sits on the shore of Lough Killone and was founded around the same time as Clare Abbey (around 1189). Interestingly the ruins include...
This is another hidden gem for any tours of Scotland. It is an area situated in Perthshire named after a local inn. Garth Castle is the attraction for us. The tall keep , built on the edge of a precipitous ravine in the bed of the Keltney Burn...
This abbey is in Killarney National Park, which is generally worth seeing on any tours of Ireland. Muckross Abbey is more correctly described as the Friary of Irrelagh. It is said to occupy the site of a church destroyed by fire in 1172. The site is absolutely beautiful. It...
This is an old Scottish town worth looking at on any tours of Scotland. On the high ground overlooking the town is Castle Law. This is a timber laced fort of the Iron Age. It was excavated at the beginning of this century and yielded a bronze brooch. The...
This is 8 miles south of New Ross and worth a look on any tours of Ireland. The abbey was founded in 1182 by Hervey de Monte Marisco, Marshal to King Henry the Second. He donated the abbey to the monks of Buildwas, in Salop, Shropshire. In turn...