Jennifer Anda in the Earl's High Chair
A visit to Bunratty Castle is worth the hassle and the crowds of tourists. It is, after all, the best ancient castle in western Ireland. Built in about 1425 on the site of two previous strongholds, the castle was restored in the 1950s and 60s by Lord Gort and his family to appear much as it did in the 1500s, during its heyday. The furniture inside is all original to the period, brought from other castles around England and Ireland. The tall chair in the audience room was for the Big Guy, the Earl Thomond, owner of the estate and all of the lands, farms and fields around the castle. He sat there while his secretary took note of the various taxes collected from the poor slobs who toiled their lives away. (Short lives too. People only lived to be about 40 in the 15th century) The reason for the tall back on the chair? In case an errant arrow actually found its mark. The tall wooden back would protect the Earl’s neck.
Bunratty Castle, touristy yes, but worth the visit all the same