Granted, this may not be the jolliest way to spend an afternoon in Dublin, but it will definitely be an afternoon well-spent.
Opened in 1796, this haunting and imposing structure held some of Ireland’s most notable political prisoners, including the 14 leaders of the 1916 Easter Rising who were also executed there. Eamon de Valera who was later to become the prime minister and president of a free Ireland was also imprisoned at Kilmainham Gaol.
Incarceration in the prison was a cold, dark, and crowded affair with many adult prisoners being ultimately deported to Australia.
The government of the Irish Free State abandoned Kilmainham Gaol as a prison in 1924 and the heavily restored building now houses a museum on the history of Irish nationalism and an art gallery on the top floor. The hour-long guided tour starts with a video about Ireland’s nationalist struggle before visitors are led to the East Wing which was added in 1861.
The massive skylight in this Victorian addition was designed to inspire the prisoners to repentance by flooding their souls with the ‘light of heaven’. The prison’s chapel is where rebel Joseph Plunkett married Grace Gifford on the eve of his execution.
Past the gallows lies the older West Wing containing the dark cells where the leaders of the Easter Rising were held. In the Stone-breaker’s Yard, a plaque commemorates their execution by firing squad. Their final letters as well as photos and memorabilia can be viewed at the Kilmainham Gaol museum which exhibits some pretty grisly material, including a display about hanging.
Tours at Kilmainham Gaol are available every day of the week although group tours would need to be booked at least a month in advance.
