The architecture of
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
is one of the most visible features in the Irish countryside – with remains from all eras since the
Stone Age abounding. Ireland is famous for its ruined and intact
Norman and
Anglo-Irish castle
A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...
s, small
whitewash
Whitewash, or calcimine, kalsomine, calsomine, or lime paint is a type of paint made from slaked lime (calcium hydroxide, Ca(OH)2) or chalk calcium carbonate, (CaCO3), sometimes known as "whiting". Various other additives are sometimes used. ...
ed
thatch
Thatching is the craft of building a roof with dry vegetation such as straw, water reed, sedge (''Cladium mariscus''), rushes, heather, or palm branches, layering the vegetation so as to shed water away from the inner roof. Since the bulk of ...
ed
cottage
A cottage, during Feudalism in England, England's feudal period, was the holding by a cottager (known as a cotter or ''bordar'') of a small house with enough garden to feed a family and in return for the cottage, the cottager had to provide s ...
s and
Georgian urban buildings. What are unaccountably somewhat less famous are the still complete
Palladian
Palladian architecture is a European architectural style derived from the work of the Venetian architect Andrea Palladio (1508–1580). What is today recognised as Palladian architecture evolved from his concepts of symmetry, perspective and ...
and
Rococo
Rococo (, also ), less commonly Roccoco or Late Baroque, is an exceptionally ornamental and theatrical style of architecture, art and decoration which combines asymmetry, scrolling curves, gilding, white and pastel colours, sculpted moulding, ...
country houses
An English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a town house. This allowed them to spend time in the country and in the city—hence, for these peopl ...
which can be favourably compared to anything similar in northern Europe, and the country's many
Gothic
Gothic or Gothics may refer to:
People and languages
*Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes
**Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths
**Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...
and
neo-Gothic
Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...
cathedrals and buildings.
Despite the oft-times significant British and European influence, the fashion and trends of architecture have been adapted to suit the peculiarities of the particular location. In the late 20th century a new economic climate resulted in a renaissance of Irish culture and design, placing some of Ireland's cities, once again, at the cutting edge of
modern architecture
Modern architecture, or modernist architecture, was an architectural movement or architectural style based upon new and innovative technologies of construction, particularly the use of glass, steel, and reinforced concrete; the idea that for ...
.
Pre-Christian Ireland
Grange stone circle
A stone circle is a ring of standing stones. Most are found in Northwestern Europe – especially in Britain, Ireland, and Brittany – and typically date from the Late Neolithic and Early Bronze Age, with most being built from 3000 BC. The ...
is the largest such megalithic construction in Ireland. The earliest date from the
Neolithic
The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several part ...
or late Stone Age.
Megalithic
A megalith is a large stone that has been used to construct a prehistoric structure or monument, either alone or together with other stones. There are over 35,000 in Europe alone, located widely from Sweden to the Mediterranean sea.
The ...
tombs are relatively common, with
court grave
A court is any person or institution, often as a government institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between parties and carry out the administration of justice in civil, criminal, and administrative matters in accord ...
s or
court tombs being the oldest, some dating back to around 3500 BC. Such tombs consisted of a long chamber, with a large open area (or court) at the entrance. This "court" was generally marked out with
standing stone
A menhir (from Brittonic languages: ''maen'' or ''men'', "stone" and ''hir'' or ''hîr'', "long"), standing stone, orthostat, or lith is a large human-made upright stone, typically dating from the European middle Bronze Age. They can be fou ...
s, with the rest of the structure also built in stone.
Passage tombs consisted of a central burial chamber, with a long passageway to the entrance. Again, standing stones were often used for the walls, with slabs of stone over the roof. Newgrange in particular is more interesting in that the inner chamber uses
corbelling to span the roof. The chamber and passageway were usually contained in an earthen mound, with the chamber at the centre (Newgrange is again notable in having exterior stonework on the mound). Other notable passage graves are
Knowth
Knowth (; ga, Cnóbha) is a Neolithic passage grave and an ancient monument of the World Heritage Site of Brú na Bóinne located 8.4 km west of Drogheda in Ireland's valley of the River Boyne. It is the largest passage grave of the Brú ...
and
Dowth, also in the
Boyne Valley
The River Boyne ( ga, An Bhóinn or ''Abhainn na Bóinne'') is a river in Leinster, Ireland, the course of which is about long. It rises at Trinity Well, Newberry Hall, near Carbury, County Kildare, and flows towards the Northeast through C ...
near
Drogheda
Drogheda ( , ; , meaning "bridge at the ford") is an industrial and port town in County Louth on the east coast of Ireland, north of Dublin. It is located on the Dublin–Belfast corridor on the east coast of Ireland, mostly in County Louth ...
.
From some time beginning around the Iron Age, Ireland has thousands of
ring forts, or "raths". These consist of an earthen embankment around a central enclosure, sometimes sited on a raised mound. In some cases a
souterrain
''Souterrain'' (from French ''sous terrain'', meaning "under ground") is a name given by archaeologists to a type of underground structure associated mainly with the European Atlantic Iron Age.
These structures appear to have been brought north ...
(tunnel) forms part of the structure. These were built also as
hill fort
A hillfort is a type of earthwork used as a fortified refuge or defended settlement, located to exploit a rise in elevation for defensive advantage. They are typically European and of the Bronze Age or Iron Age. Some were used in the post- ...
s depending on the local terrain, or indeed
promontory fort
A promontory fort is a defensive structure located above a steep cliff, often only connected to the mainland by a small neck of land, thus using the topography to reduce the ramparts needed. Although their dating is problematic, most seem to da ...
s.
Dún Aengus on the
Aran Islands
The Aran Islands ( ; gle, Oileáin Árann, ) or The Arans (''na hÁrainneacha'' ) are a group of three islands at the mouth of Galway Bay, off the west coast of Ireland, with a total area around . They constitute the historic barony of Aran ...
one of the best examples of these forts, which may have been occupied at various times, even in the mediaeval era.
Early Christian Ireland

One feature not usually found outside Ireland is the
round tower
A fortified tower (also defensive tower or castle tower or, in context, just tower) is one of the defensive structures used in fortifications, such as castles, along with curtain walls. Castle towers can have a variety of different shapes and ful ...
, such as that at
Clonmacnoise
Clonmacnoise ( Irish: ''Cluain Mhic Nóis'') is a ruined monastery situated in County Offaly in Ireland on the River Shannon south of Athlone, founded in 544 by Saint Ciarán, a young man from Rathcroghan, County Roscommon. Until the 9th ...
in
County Offaly
County Offaly (; ga, Contae Uíbh Fhailí) is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the province of Leinster. It is named after the ancient Kingdom of Uí Failghe. It was formerly known as King's County, in hon ...
or the one on
Devenish Island
Devenish or Devinish () is an island in Lower Lough Erne, County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. Aligned roughly north–south, it is about one and a quarter miles (2 km) long and two-thirds of a mile (1 km) wide. The main place to catch a ferry ...
near
Enniskillen
Enniskillen ( , from ga, Inis Ceithleann , ' Ceithlenn's island') is the largest town in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. It is in the middle of the county, between the Upper and Lower sections of Lough Erne. It had a population of 13,823 ...
in
County Fermanagh
County Fermanagh ( ; ) is one of the thirty-two counties of Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the six counties of Northern Ireland.
The county covers an area of 1,691 km2 (653 sq mi) and has a population of 61,805 a ...
. These were usually built within the
monasteries
A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone ( hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer whic ...
that sprang up all over the island, as the country became the "land of saints and scholars". They were possibly defensive in nature, serving as lookout posts and a place of refuge during an attack (the door to such structures was usually quite high off the ground). Viking raids on Ireland's shores and monasteries were relatively common.
St. Cronan's Church in
Tuamgraney
Tuamgraney (; archaically spelled ''Tomgraney, Tomgrenei''; ) is a village in eastern County Clare in the west of Ireland and a civil parish by the same name. Situated a kilometre from the River Graney which flows into Lough Derg, it is an anci ...
,
County Clare
County Clare ( ga, Contae an Chláir) is a county in Ireland, in the Southern Region and the province of Munster, bordered on the west by the Atlantic Ocean. Clare County Council is the local authority. The county had a population of 118,817 ...
, a
pre-Romanesque church which dates from the 10th century, is the oldest church in continuous use in both
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
and
Great Britain
Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...
.
Eventually some Vikings settled permanently in Ireland, and the main cities were established by the
Vikings
Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden),
who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and se ...
. Although no buildings from that era are now intact, some street arrangements have their origins in the original Viking layouts. Remains of Viking dwellings have been discovered in many locations, but notably at
Wood Quay in Dublin,
King John's Castle in
Limerick
Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...
and near
Waterford
"Waterford remains the untaken city"
, mapsize = 220px
, pushpin_map = Ireland#Europe
, pushpin_map_caption = Location within Ireland##Location within Europe
, pushpin_relief = 1
, coordinates ...
(where what is thought to be the original settlement at Waterford has been uncovered in 2004 during construction of the city's
ring road
A ring road (also known as circular road, beltline, beltway, circumferential (high)way, loop, bypass or orbital) is a road or a series of connected roads encircling a town, city, or country. The most common purpose of a ring road is to assist i ...
).
Medieval Ireland

After early stone remains, the next most visible features in the Irish countryside are the innumerable castle remains,
tower house
A tower house is a particular type of stone structure, built for defensive purposes as well as habitation. Tower houses began to appear in the Middle Ages, especially in mountainous or limited access areas, in order to command and defend strate ...
s and intact castles. Apart from well-known and restored castles such as
Bunratty Castle
Bunratty Castle (, meaning "castle at the mouth of the Ratty") is a large 15th-century tower house in County Clare, Ireland. It is located in the centre of Bunratty village ( ga, Bun Ráite), by the N18 road (Ireland), N18 road between Limerick ...
, many unknown remains (particularly of tower houses) exist next to newer farmhouses, or again, simply in fields.
Carrickfergus Castle
Carrickfergus Castle (from the Irish ''Carraig Ḟergus'' or "cairn of Fergus", the name "Fergus" meaning "strong man") is a Norman castle in Northern Ireland, situated in the town of Carrickfergus in County Antrim, on the northern shore o ...
, built by
John de Courcy
{{Infobox noble
, image = Sir John de Courcy (1150-1219).jpg
, caption =
, alt =
, more = no
, succession =
, reign =
, predecessor =
, successor =
, ...
in 1177, as his headquarters after his invasion of
Ulster
Ulster (; ga, Ulaidh or ''Cúige Uladh'' ; sco, label=Ulster Scots, Ulstèr or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional Irish provinces. It is made up of nine counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United Kin ...
, is the most perfectly preserved Norman castle on the island. The castle at
Cahir is also a particularly well-preserved example.
Many fine churches in Ireland were also built during this time, such as
St. Canice's Cathedral in
Kilkenny and
St. Mary's Cathedral in
Limerick
Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...
. Most common was the
Romanesque style, as seen at Cormac's Chapel on the
Rock of Cashel
The Rock of Cashel ( ga, Carraig Phádraig ), also known as Cashel of the Kings and St. Patrick's Rock, is a historic site located at Cashel, County Tipperary, Ireland.
History
According to local legends, the Rock of Cashel originated in the ...
, and at Clonfert Cathedral in
Galway
Galway ( ; ga, Gaillimh, ) is a city in the West of Ireland, in the province of Connacht, which is the county town of County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lough Corrib and Galway Bay, and is the sixth most populous city ...
. It was the
Normans
The Normans ( Norman: ''Normaunds''; french: Normands; la, Nortmanni/Normanni) were a population arising in the medieval Duchy of Normandy from the intermingling between Norse Viking settlers and indigenous West Franks and Gallo-Romans. T ...
who brought the
Gothic
Gothic or Gothics may refer to:
People and languages
*Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes
**Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths
**Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...
style to Ireland, with such buildings as
Christ Church and
St. Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin.

Some of Ireland's main cities were built up and fortified before and during the mediaeval period. Limerick remained a walled city until the 18th century, while
Derry
Derry, officially Londonderry (), is the second-largest city in Northern Ireland and the fifth-largest city on the island of Ireland. The name ''Derry'' is an anglicisation of the Old Irish name (modern Irish: ) meaning 'oak grove'. Th ...
's medieval walls still stand today. Such features as
King John's Castle were built as major fortifications.
Cork and
Galway
Galway ( ; ga, Gaillimh, ) is a city in the West of Ireland, in the province of Connacht, which is the county town of County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lough Corrib and Galway Bay, and is the sixth most populous city ...
flourished as sea ports, with the establishment of extensive
quay
A wharf, quay (, also ), staith, or staithe is a structure on the shore of a harbour or on the bank of a river or canal where ships may dock to load and unload cargo or passengers. Such a structure includes one or more berths ( mooring locati ...
s in those cities, as well as Limerick and
Dublin
Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...
. Many ancillary buildings were built, such as granaries, storehouses, and early administrative buildings such as
custom houses
Custom, customary, or consuetudinary may refer to:
Traditions, laws, and religion
* Convention (norm), a set of agreed, stipulated or generally accepted rules, norms, standards or criteria, often taking the form of a custom
* Norm (social), a ...
,
tholsels and
market houses. Some were replaced, rebuilt or removed – many remaining port facilities date from more recent centuries.
The Restoration and after

In the early 18th century classical
Palladian architecture
Palladian architecture is a European architectural style derived from the work of the Venetian architect Andrea Palladio (1508–1580). What is today recognised as Palladian architecture evolved from his concepts of symmetry, perspective and ...
swept through Ireland, the driving force behind this new fashion was the Irish architect
Edward Lovett Pearce
Sir Edward Lovett Pearce (1699 – 7 December 1733) was an Irish architect, and the chief exponent of Palladianism in Ireland. He is thought to have initially studied as an architect under his father's first cousin, Sir John Vanbrugh. He is ...
. Pearce, born in
County Meath
County Meath (; gle, Contae na Mí or simply ) is a county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Ireland, within the province of Leinster. It is bordered by Dublin to the southeast, Louth to the northeast, Kildare to the south, Offaly to the ...
in 1699, had studied architecture in Italy, before returning in 1725 to Ireland to oversee, and later, almost, co-design Ireland's first Palladian mansion
Castletown House.
Castletown house was a milestone in Irish architecture, designed originally by the Italian Alessandro Galilei, circa 1717, in the manner of an Italian town palazzo, for Ireland's most influential man, the politician Speaker
William Conolly, it set a new standard and fashion in Irish architecture. The original architect had returned to Italy before the first stone was laid, subsequently the Irish Pearce was responsible not only for the construction, but modification and improvement to the original plan. From the mid-1720s onwards almost every sizeable building, in Ireland, was cast in the Palladian mould.
Through Castletown and his later work, including the
Irish Houses of Parliament, Pearce had firmly established many of the Italian architectural concepts in Ireland. Following Pearce's death in 1733, his protégé
Richard Cassels
Richard Cassels (1690 – 1751), also known as Richard Castle, was an architect who ranks with Edward Lovett Pearce as one of the greatest architects working in Ireland in the 18th century. Cassels was born in 1690 in Kassel, Germany. Alth ...
(also known as Richard Castle) was to design many of Ireland's finest buildings in a similar, if not more robust, form of Palladian. Many fine
country houses
An English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a town house. This allowed them to spend time in the country and in the city—hence, for these peopl ...
were built in the Palladian style around the country by the rich Ascendancy in Ireland. Some, such as
Leinster House
Leinster House ( ga, Teach Laighean) is the seat of the Oireachtas, the parliament of Ireland. Originally, it was the ducal palace of the Dukes of Leinster. Since 1922, it is a complex of buildings, of which the former ducal palace is the core, ...
and
Russborough House
Russborough House is a stately house near the Blessington Lakes in County Wicklow, Republic of Ireland. Located between the towns of Blessington and Ballymore Eustace, it is an outstanding example of Palladian architecture, designed by Richard ...
(''illustrated above''), were among the finest examples of
Palladian architecture
Palladian architecture is a European architectural style derived from the work of the Venetian architect Andrea Palladio (1508–1580). What is today recognised as Palladian architecture evolved from his concepts of symmetry, perspective and ...
. Palladianism in Ireland often differed from that elsewhere in Europe because of the ornate
rococo
Rococo (, also ), less commonly Roccoco or Late Baroque, is an exceptionally ornamental and theatrical style of architecture, art and decoration which combines asymmetry, scrolling curves, gilding, white and pastel colours, sculpted moulding, ...
interiors, often with
stucco
Stucco or render is a construction material made of aggregates, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as a decorative coating for walls and ceilings, exterior walls, and as a sculptural and a ...
by Robert West and the
Lafranchini brothers. Although many of these mansions, such as Pearce and Cassels' joint design Summerhill House, were destroyed in the numerous Irish rebellions, many examples of this unique marrying of the rococo and Palladian still remain today as unique examples of Irish Palladianism.
Also notable was
Thomas Burgh (1670–1730), the architect of
Trinity College Library (1712),
Dr Steevens' Hospital
Dr Steevens' Hospital (also called Dr Steevens's Hospital) ( ga, Ospidéal an Dr Steevens), one of Ireland's most distinguished eighteenth-century medical establishments, was located at Kilmainham in Dublin Ireland. It was founded under the terms ...
(1719) and the
Royal Barracks (1702). Elsewhere in Dublin,
George Semple built
St Patrick's Hospital
St Patrick's University Hospital ( ga, Ospidéal Ollscoile Naomh Pádraig) is a teaching hospital at Kilmainham in Dublin. The building, which is bounded by Steeven's Lane to the east, and Bow Lane West to the south, is managed by St Patrick’ ...
(1747) and
Thomas Cooley the
Royal Exchange (1769; now City Hall).
Georgian Ireland

In the later half of the 18th century, one of the most important architects in the country was the London-born
James Gandon
James Gandon (20 February 1743 – 24 December 1823) was an English architect best known for his work in Ireland during the late 18th century and early 19th century. His better known works include The Custom House and the surrounding Beresfor ...
. Gandon came to Ireland in 1781 at the invitation of
Lord Carlow and
John Beresford, the Irish commissioner of revenue. Gandon's buildings in Dublin include
the Custom House
The Custom House ( ga, Teach an Chustaim) is a neoclassical 18th century building in Dublin, Ireland which houses the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage. It is located on the north bank of the River Liffey, on Custom House Quay ...
, the
Four Courts
The Four Courts ( ga, Na Ceithre Cúirteanna) is Ireland's most prominent courts building, located on Inns Quay in Dublin. The Four Courts is the principal seat of the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeal, the High Court and the Dublin Circuit ...
, the
King's Inns
The Honorable Society of King's Inns ( ir, Cumann Onórach Óstaí an Rí) is the "Inn of Court" for the Bar of Ireland. Established in 1541, King's Inns is Ireland's oldest school of law and one of Ireland's significant historical environment ...
and the eastern extension to the Irish parliament building in College Green. By this time the Palladian style had evolved further, and the strict rules of mathematical ratio and axis dictated by Palladio had been all but abandoned. This subsequent evolution is generally referred to as
Georgian architecture. It is in this style that large parts of Dublin were rebuilt, causing the city to be referred to as
Georgian Dublin
''Georgian Dublin'' is a phrase used in terms of the history of Dublin that has two interwoven meanings:
# to describe a historic period in the development of the city of Dublin, Ireland, from 1714 (the beginning of the reign of King George ...
.
Francis Johnston was the third great Irish architect of this period. Johnston served as Architect to the Board of Works for a time and was thus responsible for much of the planning of
Georgian Dublin
''Georgian Dublin'' is a phrase used in terms of the history of Dublin that has two interwoven meanings:
# to describe a historic period in the development of the city of Dublin, Ireland, from 1714 (the beginning of the reign of King George ...
. He also left a number of very fine buildings, including St. George's Church, Hardwicke Place and the Viceregal Lodge in the
Phoenix Park
The Phoenix Park ( ga, Páirc an Fhionnuisce) is a large urban park in Dublin, Ireland, lying west of the city centre, north of the River Liffey. Its perimeter wall encloses of recreational space. It includes large areas of grassland and tr ...
. This latter now serves as
Áras an Uachtaráin
(; "Residence of the President"), formerly the Viceregal Lodge, is the official residence and principal workplace of the President of Ireland. It is located off Chesterfield Avenue in the Phoenix Park in Dublin. The building design was credite ...
, the official residence of the President of Ireland, and is one possible model for the
White House
The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest, Washington, D.C., NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. preside ...
in Washington. Leinster House also claims this distinction, and the
Neoclassical Castle Coole in
County Fermanagh
County Fermanagh ( ; ) is one of the thirty-two counties of Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the six counties of Northern Ireland.
The county covers an area of 1,691 km2 (653 sq mi) and has a population of 61,805 a ...
designed by
James Wyatt
James Wyatt (3 August 1746 – 4 September 1813) was an English architect, a rival of Robert Adam in the neoclassical and neo-Gothic styles. He was elected to the Royal Academy in 1785 and was its president from 1805 to 1806.
Early life
W ...
bears an even greater similarity.

In addition to these large-scale buildings, the defining characteristic of Georgian city planning was terraces and squares of elegant family homes. In Ireland, many of these became tenements during the course of the 19th century and a significant proportion were demolished as part of various 20th-century
slum clearance
Slum clearance, slum eviction or slum removal is an urban renewal strategy used to transform low income settlements with poor reputation into another type of development or housing. This has long been a strategy for redeveloping urban communities; ...
programmes. However, many squares and terraces survive in both Dublin and Limerick. Of particular interest are
Pery Square in the latter city and
Merrion Square
Merrion Square () is a Georgian garden square on the southside of Dublin city centre.
History
The square was laid out in 1752 by the estate of Viscount FitzWilliam and was largely complete by the beginning of the 19th century. The demand ...
in the former. Some smaller towns in Ireland also have Georgian architecture of interest, such as the fine Georgian squares and terraces of
Mountmellick
Mountmellick or Mountmellic () is a town in the north of County Laois, Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-wester ...
,
County Laois, and
Birr,
County Offaly
County Offaly (; ga, Contae Uíbh Fhailí) is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the province of Leinster. It is named after the ancient Kingdom of Uí Failghe. It was formerly known as King's County, in hon ...
, which is a designated Irish Heritage Town.
Near the end of
George III
George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of the two kingdoms on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Br ...
's reign, one of Ireland's most famous Georgian buildings was completed. The
GPO was built in 1814 and located on Dublin's main street,
O'Connell Street
O'Connell Street () is a street in the centre of Dublin, Ireland, running north from the River Liffey. It connects the O'Connell Bridge to the south with Parnell Street to the north and is roughly split into two sections bisected by Henry ...
. Designed by
Francis Johnston, the building's most striking feature is its hexastyle Ionic portico. Above the building are three statues representing
Fidelity
Fidelity is the quality of faithfulness or loyalty. Its original meaning regarded duty in a broader sense than the related concept of ''fealty''. Both derive from the Latin word ''fidēlis'', meaning "faithful or loyal". In the City of London ...
,
Hibernia
''Hibernia'' () is the Classical Latin name for Ireland. The name ''Hibernia'' was taken from Greek geographical accounts. During his exploration of northwest Europe (c. 320 BC), Pytheas of Massalia called the island ''Iérnē'' (written ). ...
and
Mercury. The interior is made up largely of a postal hall with a high ceiling. The building has been largely rebuilt since its original construction, mainly due to severe damage incurred in the
Easter Rising in 1916.
To enhance the new buildings and cope with larger traffic volumes, the
Wide Streets Commission was established in 1757. It bought houses by
compulsory purchase
Compulsion may refer to:
* Compulsive behavior
Compulsive behavior is defined as performing an action persistently and repetitively. Compulsive behaviors could be an attempt to make obsessions go away. The act is usually a small, restricted a ...
to widen streets or to create new ones.
Victorian period

During the 19th century, because all of Ireland was a constituent part of the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
, British architecture continued to influence building styles in Ireland. Many prominent Irish buildings were designed and built in Ireland during this period (1837–1901), including Findlater's Church on Parnell Square, the Royal City of Dublin Hospital, Olympia Theatre, the Central Markets in
Cork, the
National Museum of Ireland
The National Museum of Ireland ( ga, Ard-Mhúsaem na hÉireann) is Ireland's leading museum institution, with a strong emphasis on national and some international archaeology, Irish history, Irish art, culture, and natural history. It has thr ...
, the
National Library of Ireland
The National Library of Ireland (NLI; ga, Leabharlann Náisiúnta na hÉireann) is the Republic of Ireland's national library located in Dublin, in a building designed by Thomas Newenham Deane. The mission of the National Library of Ireland i ...
, the Natural History Museum, and the National Gallery of Ireland. Many of these new buildings were located in the Southside of
Dublin
Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...
in places like Kildare Street and Baggot Street and in the centre of
Cork. An important contributor was the notable English architect,
Decimus Burton
Decimus Burton (30 September 1800 – 14 December 1881) was one of the foremost English architects and landscapers of the 19th century. He was the foremost Victorian architect in the Roman revival, Greek revival, Georgian neoclassical and Reg ...
. He remodelled much of
Cobh
Cobh ( ,), known from 1849 until 1920 as Queenstown, is a seaport town on the south coast of County Cork, Ireland. With a population of around 13,000 inhabitants, Cobh is on the south side of Great Island in Cork Harbour and home to Ireland's ...
commissioned by
George Brodrick, 5th Viscount Midleton
George Alan Brodrick, 5th Viscount Midleton (10 June 1806 – 1 November 1848) was a British nobleman.
The son of George Brodrick, 4th Viscount Midleton and Maria Benyon, he succeeded to the peerage in 1836. He was educated at Eton College. He m ...
in the 1840s. He was the designer of Martinstown House in
Co. Kildare. Prior to that he spent almost two decades renovating the vast neglected public areas of
Phoenix Park
The Phoenix Park ( ga, Páirc an Fhionnuisce) is a large urban park in Dublin, Ireland, lying west of the city centre, north of the River Liffey. Its perimeter wall encloses of recreational space. It includes large areas of grassland and tr ...
in Dublin and incidentally designing
Dublin Zoo
Dublin Zoo ( ga, Zú Bhaile Átha Cliath), in Phoenix Park, Dublin, is a zoo in Ireland, and one of Dublin's most popular attractions. Established and designed in 1830 by Decimus Burton, it opened the following year. Today it focuses on conse ...
.
However, few buildings were built outside the major cities other than a few railway stations in the provincial towns.
During the Victorian period, many new statues were erected in Ireland, particularly in Dublin,
Belfast
Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingd ...
and
Cork. These included several rather elegant statues of figures such as
Queen Victoria
Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previ ...
,
Daniel O'Connell
Daniel O'Connell (I) ( ga, Dónall Ó Conaill; 6 August 1775 – 15 May 1847), hailed in his time as The Liberator, was the acknowledged political leader of Ireland's Roman Catholic majority in the first half of the 19th century. His mobilizat ...
and
Henry Grattan
Henry Grattan (3 July 1746 – 4 June 1820) was an Irish politician and lawyer who campaigned for legislative freedom for the Irish Parliament in the late 18th century from Britain. He was a Member of the Irish Parliament (MP) from 1775 to 1 ...
.

One of Ireland's finest Victorian buildings is the cathedral dedicated to
St Mary
Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother o ...
at
Killarney
Killarney ( ; ga, Cill Airne , meaning 'church of sloes') is a town in County Kerry, southwestern Ireland. The town is on the northeastern shore of Lough Leane, part of Killarney National Park, and is home to St Mary's Cathedral, Ross ...
; it is built in a
Neo-Gothic
Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...
style known as '
Lancet-arched Gothic', so called because the cathedral has many long, slender lancet-shaped windows with acutely pointed arches. The architect was
August Pugin, one of the greatest of Victorian architects. The cathedral—begun in 1842, funded by public subscription, and interrupted by the horrors of
famine
A famine is a widespread scarcity of food, caused by several factors including war, natural disasters, crop failure, population imbalance, widespread poverty, an economic catastrophe or government policies. This phenomenon is usually accom ...
—was finally dedicated in 1855. The design is typical of Irish Gothic; it blends
Corinthian and
Doric orders and is decorated with
Sicilian marble
Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite. Marble is typically not foliated (layered), although there are exceptions. In geology, the term ''marble'' refers to metamorpho ...
and
Caen
Caen (, ; nrf, Kaem) is a commune in northwestern France. It is the prefecture of the department of Calvados. The city proper has 105,512 inhabitants (), while its functional urban area has 470,000,[spire
A spire is a tall, slender, pointed structure on top of a roof of a building or tower, especially at the summit of church steeples. A spire may have a square, circular, or polygonal plan, with a roughly conical or pyramidal shape. Spires are ...]
of . Pugin's work was eminently suited to Ireland. A convert to
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...
ism, he believed Gothic architecture to be the only style suitable for religious worship and attacked the earlier Neoclassical architecture as pagan and almost
blasphemous
Blasphemy is a speech crime and religious crime usually defined as an utterance that shows contempt, disrespects or insults a deity, an object considered sacred or something considered inviolable. Some religions regard blasphemy as a religio ...
. This philosophy embraced by the church in Ireland at the time helped to popularise the Gothic style in Victorian Ireland.
20th century – present

In the 20th century, Irish architecture followed the international trend towards modern, sleek and often radical building styles, particularly after
Partition and the independence of most of
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
as the
Irish Free State
The Irish Free State ( ga, Saorstát Éireann, , ; 6 December 192229 December 1937) was a State (polity), state established in December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921. The treaty ended the three-year Irish War of Independ ...
in the early 1920s. Two major exceptions to this were the
Royal College of Science for Ireland
The Royal College of Science for Ireland (RCScI) was an institute for higher education in Dublin which existed from 1867 to 1926, specialising in physical sciences and applied science. It was originally based on St. Stephen's Green, moving in ...
(now
Government Buildings
Government Buildings ( ga, Tithe an Rialtais) is a large Edwardian period, Edwardian building enclosing a quadrangle on Merrion Street in Dublin, Ireland, in which several key offices of the Government of Ireland are located. Among the offices o ...
), on Upper
Merrion Street
Merrion Street (; ) is a major Georgian street on the southside of Dublin, Ireland, which runs along one side of Merrion Square. It is divided into Merrion Street Lower (north end), Merrion Square West and Merrion Street Upper (south end). It ...
in central Dublin, and
Parliament Buildings at
Stormont in East Belfast, both built in more traditional architectural styles. New building materials and old were utilised in new ways to maximise style, space, light and energy efficiency. 1928 saw the construction of Ireland's first all concrete Art Deco church in
Turner's Cross, Cork. The building was designed by Chicago architect Barry Byrne and met with a cool reception among those more accustomed to traditional designs.
In January 1940 the
Art Deco
Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unit ...
Dublin airport
Dublin Airport ( Irish: ''Aerfort Bhaile Átha Cliath'') is an international airport serving Dublin, Ireland. It is operated by DAA (formerly Dublin Airport Authority). The airport is located in Collinstown, north of Dublin, and south of ...
opened, designed by
Desmond FitzGerald and the
Office of Public Works
The Office of Public Works (OPW) ( ga, Oifig na nOibreacha Poiblí) (legally the Commissioners of Public Works in Ireland) is a major Irish Government agency, which manages most of the Irish State's property portfolio, including hundreds of ow ...
.
In 1953, one of Ireland's most radical buildings,
Bus Éireann
Bus Éireann (; "Irish Bus") is a state-owned bus and coach operator providing services throughout Ireland, with the exception of Dublin and the Greater Dublin Area, where bus services are provided by sister company Dublin Bus. It is a subs ...
's main Dublin terminal building, better known as
Busáras
Busáras (; from ''bus'' + '' áras'' "building") is the central bus station in Dublin, Ireland for Intercity and regional bus services operated by Bus Éireann. Designed in the International Modern style, Busáras is also a stop on the Red L ...
was completed. It was built despite huge public opposition, excessive costs (over £1m) and even opposition from the
Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
.
Michael Scott, its designer, is now considered one of the most important architects of the twentieth century in Ireland – however the original structure has become dilapidated and dated.
The main proponent of
Brutalist architecture
Brutalist architecture is an architectural style that emerged during the 1950s in the United Kingdom, among the reconstruction projects of the post-war era. Brutalist buildings are characterised by minimalist constructions that showcase the ...
in 1970s Dublin was
Sam Stephenson, who designed the Civic Offices (1979) and the
Central Bank of Ireland
The Central Bank of Ireland ( ga, Banc Ceannais na hÉireann) is Ireland's central bank, and as such part of the European System of Central Banks (ESCB). It is the country's financial services regulator for most categories of financial fi ...
(1980).
In 1987, the government started to plan what is now known as the
IFSC. The complex today houses over 14,000 office workers. One of the most symbolic structures of modern Irish architecture is the
Spire of Dublin
The Spire of Dublin, alternatively titled the Monument of Light ( ga, An Túr Solais), is a large, stainless steel, pin-like monument in height, located on the site of the former Nelson's Pillar (and prior to that a statue of William Blakeney) ...
. Completed in January 2003, the structure was nominated in 2004 for the prestigious
Stirling Prize
The Royal Institute of British Architects Stirling Prize is a British prize for excellence in architecture. It is named after the architect James Stirling, organised and awarded annually by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA). The S ...
.
A significant change in Ireland's architecture has taken place over the last few years, with a major move from one- and two-story buildings to four-, five-, and six-story apartment and office blocks. There are currently three buildings in planning that would eclipse the island's current tallest building record – held by
St John's Cathedral in Limerick – these include the ''U2 Building'', ''Players Mill'' and ''The Tall Building'', all of them in
Dublin
Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...
.
Vernacular architecture
The
thatched roof
Thatching is the craft of building a roof with dry vegetation such as straw, water reed, sedge (''Cladium mariscus''), rushes, heather, or palm branches, layering the vegetation so as to shed water away from the inner roof. Since the bulk of ...
cottage and
blackhouse
A blackhouse ( ga, teach dubh ; gd, t(a)igh-dubh ) is a traditional type of house which used to be common in Ireland, the Hebrides, and the Scottish Highlands.
Origin of the name
The origin of the name blackhouse is of some debate. On the Is ...
have a tradition dating back 9,000 years. Now considered quaint, thatched cottages are often rented out for tourists on holidays. A characteristically exuberant vernacular expression is often found in shopfronts throughout Ireland. Patrick O'Donovan has observed that in the nineteenth century there was "a brilliant explosion" of domestic architecture borne of the opportunities that plate glass, Art Nouveau and classical and gothic themes all offered up at the time. "In Ireland", he wrote, "the villages were not the places where people lived, but where they came for supplies and, most regularly, to attend church. Yet the shops did almost everything that the Church could not do, and offered an alternative, perhaps, to the latter's solemnity."
[John Murphy, ''Irish Shopfronts'', photographs by John Murphy, with an introduction by Patrick O'Donovan. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1981.]
See also
*
Architecture of Limerick
*
Georgian Dublin
''Georgian Dublin'' is a phrase used in terms of the history of Dublin that has two interwoven meanings:
# to describe a historic period in the development of the city of Dublin, Ireland, from 1714 (the beginning of the reign of King George ...
*
Irish Architectural Archive
*
List of Irish towns with a Market House
See:
* Market houses in Northern Ireland
* List of market houses in the Republic of Ireland
{{DEFAULTSORT:Irish towns with a Market House
Market House
Market House
A market house is a covered space historically used as a marketplace to ex ...
*
Listed buildings in Northern Ireland
*
Pebbledash
Roughcast or pebbledash is a coarse plaster surface used on outside walls that consists of lime (material), lime and sometimes cement mixed with sand, small gravel and often pebbles or Seashell, shells. The materials are mixed into a slurry and ...
*
Sheela na gig an
architectural grotesque which adorns numerous ancient buildings.
Notes and references
Bibliography
*Becker, Annette, and Wilfried Wang. ''20th-century Architecture: Ireland''. Prestel: 1997. .
*Craig, Maurice. ''Dublin 1660–1860''. Allen Figgis: 1980. .
*McParland, Edward. ''A New Way of Building: Public Architecture in Ireland, 1680–1760''. Yale University Press: 2001. .
*Dennison, Gabriel, and Baibre Ni Fhloinn. ''Traditional Architecture in Ireland''. Royal Irish Academy: 1994. .
*McCullough, Niall. ''A Lost Tradition: The Nature of Architecture in Ireland''. Gandon Editions: 1987. .
External links
Archiseek, Irish Architecture OnlineIreland at the first Lisbon Architectural Triennale(2007)
Details of Arts Council support for architecture in IrelandArchitectural Association of IrelandDictionary of Irish ArchitectsIrish Architecture FoundationLoving Architecture FestivalRoyal Institute of the Architects of IrelandCivic and Ecclesiastical Architecture of Georgian Dublin Collection. A UCD Digital Library Collection.Domestic Architecture of Georgian Dublin Collection. A UCD Digital Library Collection.The Irish Architectural ArchiveUrban Design IrelandThe Irish Georgian Society(2007)
National Inventory of Architectural Heritage – NIAH(Michael Sundermeier)
Dublin Town Planning Competition 1914. A UCD Digital Library Collection.Dataset comprising photographic documentation of 444 buildings in Dublin, Ireland. A UCD Digital Library Collection.HIBERNIA: Inventories include historical, geographical, and architectural information collected from 1993 to 1995 for 1,280 of Dublin's buildings. A UCD Digital Library Collection.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Architecture of Ireland
Cultural heritage of Ireland