Connacht Tribune
Historical tour offers insight into Galway – and what lies beneath
You may not always be aware of it, but every time you walk through Galway City centre there are centuries of history right under your feet.
Michael Quinn of Galway Civic Trust (Dúchas na Gaillimhe) describes the stories in the stones, starting with the Hall of the Red Earl on Druid Lane and winding through the narrow cobbled streets of the Latin Quarter all the way around to the Kings Head on High Street.
“The intrigue of the medieval story in Galway is as colourful as any episode of Game of Thrones, with beheadings and sieges and murders all over the place,” he reveals in a matter of fact way.
Among the many sites of interest are the Hall of the Red Earl, The King’s Head pub, St. Nicholas’ Church, and Lynch’s Castle.
One of the oldest and most significant landmarks in the city, the Hall of the Red Earl is associated with the establishment of the town of Galway by Anglo-Normans in the 13th century.
It was built by Richard de Burgo shortly after completing the city walls and functioned as a key municipal building, acting as revenue office, court house, and town hall.
Customers know the King’s Head as a popular pub – but when it was built in the 13th century, this was the home of Galway Mayor Thomas Lynch Fitz-Ambrose before it was seized from him by Cromwell’s henchman Col. Peter Stubbers in 1654. The building still houses two medieval fireplaces, cut-stone windows and the walls of Bank’s Castle at the rear. St. Nicholas’ Collegiate Church has the distinction of being the largest medieval parish church in continuous use in Ireland.
Founded in 1320 and dedicated to St. Nicholas of Myra, legends have it that Christopher Columbus worshipped here in 1477. Leabhar na nGenealach, or Book of Genealogies, was written in the church by Dubhaltach MacFhirbhisigh in 1650.
Lynch’s Castle – dating from the late fifteenth or early sixteenth century – started life as a town house belonging to the most powerful family of Galway’s 14 tribes, and still stands on the corner of Shop Street and Abbeygate Street.
It’s been part of AIB for a lifetime – but the old carvings and crests still adorn the four-story limestone exterior. Michael Quinn covers these and other notable historic Galway landmarks in free bi-weekly walking tours, which take place at 2pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays from May until September.
Galway Civic Trust has been running the tours for five or six years now. “We’re funded by the Galway City Council, so we sort of see it as a public service obligation, a way to give back to the community,” he says.
But next week – for a little extra medieval kick – Michael Quinn and Galway Civic Trust are partnering with the Kings Head to run a Medieval Walk, Talk, & Banquet tour in aid of Galway Simon Community.
The one-off event next Wednesday, May 10, will include a guided tour of the city’s most colourful medieval monuments starting with a welcome wine reception at the Hall of the Red Earl at half five.
After the walking tour, which includes a special appearance by Dave Swift of medieval re-enactment group Claíomh, the evening will end at the King’s Head for a special medieval banquet of food, drink, and festivities bookended by Galway Early Music.
“People will get to experience the living history thing, the education side of it, and then it’s back to the pub for craic,” Michael explains.
He came up with the idea for the unique fundraising event as a way to get locals involved in history.
“It’s a way for people to appreciate their own city, and the medieval fabric of the town,” he says. “The streets are still laid out as they were in medieval times. So much of Galway’s character comes from its history, and people aren’t always aware of it.”
Tickets for the Medieval Walk, Talk & Banquet tour are €50, available at the King’s Head pub or online at www.galwaysimon.ie
Significant state investment is required to address ‘shocking’ inequalities that leave cancer patients in the West at greater risk of succumbing to the disease.
A meeting of Regional Health Forum West heard that survival rates for breast, lung and colorectal cancers than the national average, and with the most deprived quintile of the population, the West’s residents faced poorer outcomes from a cancer diagnosis.
For breast cancer patients, the five-year survival rate was 80% in the West versus 85% nationally; for lung cancer patients it was 16.7% in the west against a 19.5% national survival rate; and in the West’s colorectal cancer patients, there was a 62.6% survival rate where the national average was 63.1%.
These startling statistics were provided in answer to a question from Ballinasloe-based Cllr Evelyn Parsons (Ind) who said it was yet another reminder that cancer treatment infrastructure in the West was in dire need of improvement.
“The situation is pretty stark. In the Western Regional Health Forum area, we have the highest incidence of deprivation and the highest health inequalities because of that – we have the highest incidences of cancer nationally because of that,” said Cllr Parsons, who is also a general practitioner.
In details provided by CEO of Saolta Health Care Group, which operates Galway’s hospitals, it was stated that a number of factors were impacting on patient outcomes.
Get the full story in this week’s Connacht Tribune, on sale in shops now, or you can download the digital edition from www.connachttribune.ie. You can also download our Connacht Tribune App from Apple’s App Store or get the Android Version from Google Play.
Galway 3-18
Cork 1-10
NEW setting; new opposition; new challenge. It made no difference to the Galway minor hurlers as they chalked up a remarkable sixth consecutive double digits championship victory at Semple Stadium on Saturday.
The final scoreline in Thurles may have been a little harsh on Cork, but there was no doubting Galway’s overall superiority in setting up only a second-ever All-Ireland showdown against Clare at the same venue on Sunday week.
Having claimed an historic Leinster title the previous weekend, Galway took a while to get going against the Rebels and also endured their first period in a match in which they were heavily outscored, but still the boys in maroon roll on.
Beating a decent Cork outfit by 14 points sums up how formidable Galway are. No team has managed to lay a glove on them so far, and though Clare might ask them questions other challengers haven’t, they are going to have to find significant improvement on their semi-final win over 14-man Kilkenny to pull off a final upset.
Galway just aren’t winning their matches; they are overpowering the teams which have stood in their way. Their level of consistency is admirable for young players starting off on the inter-county journey, while the team’s temperament appears to be bombproof, no matter what is thrown at them.
Having romped through Leinster, Galway should have been a bit rattled by being only level (0-4 each) after 20 minutes and being a little fortunate not to have been behind; or when Cork stormed out of the blocks at the start of the second half by hitting 1-4 to just a solitary point in reply, but there was never any trace of panic in their ranks.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
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GARDAÍ and the IFA have issued a joint appeal to all road users to take extra care as the silage season gets under way across the country.
Silage harvesting started in many parts of Galway last week – and over the coming month, the sight of tractors and trailers on rural roads will be getting far more frequent.
Inspector Conor Madden, who is in charge of Galway Roads Policing, told the Farming Tribune that a bit of extra care and common-sense from all road users would go a long way towards preventing serious collisions on roads this summer.
“One thing I would ask farmers and contractors to consider is to try and get more experienced drivers working for them.
“Tractors have got faster and bigger – and they are also towing heavy loads of silage – so care and experience are a great help in terms of accident prevention,” Inspector Madden told the Farming Tribune.
He said that tractor drivers should always be aware of traffic building up behind them and to pull in and let these vehicles pass, where it was safe to do so.
“By the same token, other road users should always exercise extra care; drive that bit slower; and ‘pull in’ that bit more, when meeting tractors and heavy machinery.
“We all want to see everyone enjoying a safe summer on our roads – that extra bit of care, and consideration for other roads users can make a huge difference,” said Conor Madden.
He also advised motorists and tractor drivers to be acutely aware of pedestrians and cyclists on the roads during the summer season when more people would be out walking and cycling on the roads.
The IFA has also joined in on the road safety appeal with Galway IFA Farm Family and Social Affairs Chair Teresa Roche asking all road users to exercise that extra bit of care and caution.
“We are renewing our annual appeal for motorists to be on the look out for tractors, trailers and other agricultural machinery exiting from fields and farmyards,” she said.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App
Download the Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App to access to Galway’s best-selling newspaper.
Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Or purchase the Digital Edition for PC, Mac or Laptop from Pagesuite HERE.
Get the Connacht Tribune Live app
The Connacht Tribune Live app is the home of everything that is happening in Galway City and county. It’s completely FREE and features all the latest news, sport and information on what’s on in your area. Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Families queue up for school’s offer of free house
West has lower cancer survival rates than rest
Galway minors continue to lay waste to all opponents
Gardaí and IFA issue a joint appeal on summer road safety
Marathon Man plans to call a halt – but not before he hits 160 races
