Anyway, we found our way round the cobbled streets and enjoyed lunch in what was once the stables of Kilkenny Castle. So, having seen their stables, and while we were in town and had nothing better to do, we decided to pay the The Butlers a visit. Alas, they weren't in.
In fact, they haven't been in since 1935..
Even tho' they weren't there, we decided to have a look around their house. It was a bit like an episode of Cribs. If you've every seen one of those programs, you'll know what I mean. Everything neat and tidy, beds made, table set, nursery kitted out, library well stocked, garden landscaped, nothing out of place, but looks like nobody lives there! Well that was what we saw, it was like they had only moved out yesterday. It all made for very exciting viewing!
Here I am on the terrace that leads into the very posh dining room and out to the well groomed rose garden.
There were no roses in bloom, but the garden was still impressive! Actually the whole house was very impressive. I really liked the last room I was in, they call it the picture gallery, obviously because it was full of pictures! And speaking of pictures, on our way in, they told us not to take photos. But, of course, Dad wasn't listening, and overcome by the spectacular light in the room, he took a photo. I can be clearly seen in the photo talking to one of the OPW workers questioning her about the beautiful wooden floor. It looks like I was distracting her so that Dad could take his banned photo! When I pointed out to him that the taking photos was against the rules, in true criminal style, he put the camera in my bag, took off his hat so that he couldn't be identified by the CCTV and ran for his life, leaving me behind carrying the evidence.
It's a pity that the Butlers, or the Earls of Ormond to give them their full title, had to leave, but they couldn't maintain this lovely dwelling. The fortunes of the Earls went up and down over centuries and eventually a visit by the then Queen of England in 1900 which cost a pretty penny to stage, and the Wall Street Crash in 1929 which depleted their coffers even more caused them to eventually sell up. Sad for them, but nice for us now to be able to visit their Castle.
And so Sunday dawned, and being the Sabbath and all that, we decided to be a bit religious and visit the Monks of Jerpoint Abbey. Well, guess what? They weren't in either!
They haven't been in since 1530..
They left when that other English Monarch, Henry the Eight embarked on his dissolution of the Monasteries and politely asked them to vacate the premises. I'm noticing a pattern here.
(Note to myself: in future make sure that you visit stately homes and Abbeys before the English Kings or Queens do!)
I'm sort of glad that the monks weren't there when we called as apparently they were a bit miserable.
A very jolly and well informed tour guide showed us round the ruined Abbey and described to us the Monks daily routine, and to be quite honest, it sounded like she was reading the script from Monty Pythons sketch "The Four Yorkshire Men"!! The Monks got up at 2 in the morning, after sleeping in their clothes on a straw bed, and straight away went to work. No breakfast! Unbelievable. They didn't stop work until 12 noon, when they had their one meal of the day, and all they got was watery vegetable soup. On a special occasion they might get some white meat, but never red meat. After dinner (if that's what you could call it) they went back to work until an hour before sunset. I'm still trying to work out how many hours that would be in the summer. They fared a bit better in the winter as the sun goes down earlier (obviously!). They lit one fire in one room in November and it stayed lighting until Good Friday, when it was put out. There were allowed to warm themselves in front of the fire, but only for 5 minutes at a time, up to a total of one hour per day. Seriously? In between all that work and lack of food they also had to spend time praying. Life expectancy for a Monk at the time was 36 years. I can't blame them for dying young. I wouldn't want to be a Monk for 36 hours never mind 36 years! I suppose the only thing that made their life bearable, was the eight pints of beer (which they brewed themselves) that they were allowed daily...
So, next time you are in Kilkenny, spare a thought for the Monks, and have a beer in their honor!
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