For years commuters on the N17 wondered if it would ever be ready, but this weekend, Claregalway Castle which has been lovingly restored will throw its gates open and invite all of us to attend what will be the first ever Galway Garden Festival.
The new event to add to the myriad festivals each year in Galway will be a haven for plant and garden lovers as in attendance will be some of Europe's top botanists and environmentalists.
In addition, well-known singer Moya Brennan of Clannad fame will be singing in the castle grounds as all the proceeds from the event are going to her favourite charity, the Christian Blind Mission which funds educational projects in developing countries, aimed at preventing and treating blindness.
But aside from the festival, the real item of curiosity will be the castle itself which has been converted from a ruin in 2000 to a working castle that is set to become the focal point for many events in the future.
The charity was chosen by the castle owner, well known eye surgeon Mr Eamon O Donoghue who has funded and overseen the restoration of the castle for the past decade, bringing in some of Europe's top stonemasons and conservationists to ensure that the castle is returned to its original state. In the process, he had to overcome many obstacles in his mission to ensure that the castle was restored to the style in which it was constructed.
Were it not for his drive and pardon the pun, vision, the castle would be left to fall like the 27 other castles which are in various states of ruination in the hinterland of Claregalway and Turloughmore and Knockdoe.
When he acquired the castle in 2000, the building was in danger of collape. The roof of the castle had been removed in 1653, following the infamous Siege of Galway by Cromwellian forces. Mature trees sprung from the upper floors and the stone work was under threat. A major reconstruction programme was drawn up under conservation architect David Johnson, a former inspector of national monuments with The Office of Public Works.
Eamonn O’Donoghue never forgot the childhood picnic shared with his brothers and sisters and parents beside the bridge at Claregalway Castle. His father, Tom, a Toomevara man, a great hurler, and a civil engineer with Cork County Council, had a passion for Ireland’s romantic ruins. A photograph was taken of all seven O’Donoghues lined up grinning at the bridge. The family still have it at their Cork home. But Tom’s passion passed on to several of his children. Eamonn studied medicine in Cork, and archaeology under Michael J O’Kelly, the man who brilliantly interpreted the ancient tombs at Newgrange.
Shortly after his appointment as ophthalmic surgeon to the Western Health Board (HSE ), Eamonn set out to find the castle. He had no idea where it was, except that it was near the city. He drove out every approach road to Galway until one evening there it was ...a vast crumbling tower, ivy-clad, with ruined buildings within its courtyard, exactly as he remembered it as a child.
On that very first evening of re-discovery, Eamonn met Canon Callanan, the local parish priest and an entertaining classicist, who told him some of the history of the area. Taken in conjunction with the spectacular ruins of the near-by Franciscan abbey, the medieval bridges, the village itself, the ‘ghosts’of other buildings and landmarks (really only visible from the air ), it soon became clear to Eamonn that this was a monument of major significance. Its battlements not only protected a main road into Galway, but looked down on the ancient Barony of Clare, which originally incorporated the vast and fertile plains of east Galway, known in pre-Norman times as Magh Seola, and witnessed its evolving story.
The castle was owned by John Buckley jr (formerly of Spiddal House ), then living in Indonesia, who agreed to sell. The next challenge was to get the various permissions required for a major transformation, and the team to make it happen. Two friends, David Newman Johnson, former keeper of national monuments, and archaeologist Leo Swan, gave moral and expert support. Galway County Council was, from the start, supportive in principal, but there were difficulties with the many conservation agencies along the way. ‘I wanted to do the job as correctly as possible, but there is a need to re-evaluate the evolution of conservation principals in Ireland today,” said Mr O Donoghue.
Delays were costly and drawn out. And now a decade later, the restoration programme is almost complete on this important 15th century Tower House; one of the largest and most significant tower houses in the west of Ireland. Last week, the scaffolding surrounding the castle was removed to reveal the building in all its glory. At the weekend visitors can get a close view of the sympathetic restoration programme carried out by master builder Micheal Herwood from Cloonacauneen and French stonemason Jean Baptise Maduit.
However, trips to the summit of the castle will only be available at the end of this month, as the vast numbers expected this weekend would make it impossible for all to climb the stairs and admire the view, but that will be possible later this summer.
"Because of the large crowds expected to attend the Garden Festival, it would be impossible to take people on a tour of the building," said Mr O Donoghue. However they will have access to the ground floor or guard room of the castle. A small collection of 17th century furniture will also be on show."
Later in the year, from the end of July to Mid-October, the entire castle will be open to visitors. "This weekend," he said " is about plants and about raising funds for a wonderful organisation, the Christian Blind Mission" and to this end, an entrance fee of €5 will apply and all funds will go to the CBM.
For the festival, plant and garden lovers from all over the west will converge on the Castle, to hear lectures from well known botanists and environmentalists including Tim Robinson, Professor David Jeffrey, Dr Matthew Jebb, Gordon D'Arcy and Klaus Laitenberger.
In addition to the trade stands displaying a range of plants and garden equipment , a number of environmental organisations will have a presence at the Festival. The Irish Seed Savers Association, The Beekeepers Federation, The Organic Centre Rossinver, Birdwatch Ireland and other eco-friendly bodies will be on hand to offer advice and provide information to the public.
Moya Brennan ,legendary singer as a solo artist and as a member of Clannad, who has sold more than 20 million albums worldwide, is a Goodwill Ambassador for the Christian Blind Mission. She will perform at the castle on Saturday afternoon She has a high regard for the CBM which funds educational projects in developing countries, aimed at preventing and treating blindness.
Rather than sending in teams of doctors to carry out surgery and run programmes in these regions, the CBM provides education and training to local medical practitionists. There are currently 1,000 partnership programmes underway in places as far flung as South America, Asia, and Africa.
Mr O'Donoghue regularly participates in these missions which include projects aimed at: preventing childhood blindness; treating and preventing river Blindness; training cataract surgeons; eradicating trachoma; and dealing with nutritional blindness.
While visitors sip teas and enjoy the talks, they will also be entertained by music in the courtyard, with sweet sounds provided by St Patrick's Brass Band, Galway; Castlebar Brass Band; The Galway Baytones; The Galway Jazz Band and box player Mairtin O'Connor and daughters.
The Garden Festival is being organised and managed by Eamonn's sister, Padraigin O'Donoghue. She is a secondary school teacher, with a keen love of gardening and bee-keeping. She teaches at Colaiste Choilm in Ballincollig in Cork, where she has involved her pupils in a major horticultural project. This involved planting an orchard, constructing a stone archway and a willow fence. The students also organised garden days which were open to the public.
The Galway Garden Festival runs from 11am to 6pm on Saturday and Sunday next July 10 and 11. Get along and support a worthy cause and get one of the first looks inside the castle.
For the unfolding story of the history of the castle and its environs, read Ronnie O’Gorman’s Galway Diary in this week’s paper and continuing next week.
