Open Year Round
Regular guided tours are available
Exhibition centre on site

Perhaps the best-known historical attraction in Kinsale, Charles Fort, is on the road just beyond Summercove. It is open all year, and regular guided tours are available. Charles Fort is one of the finest surviving examples of a 17th Century star-shaped fort, and much of the construction begun in 1678 remains. The fort has two enormous bastions overlooking the estuary, and three facing inland. Within its walls were all the barracks and ancillary facilities to support the fort’s garrison. The fort continued in military use until 1922.

Opening Hours: 21st April – 21st September: Daily 10.00 – 18.00.

Built as an urban tower house by the Earl of Desmond c. 1500, Desmond Castle has served as Customs House, Prison, Ordnance store and a Workhouse. The Museum details the history of the Wine Geese; the intriguing story of Ireland’s wine links with Europe and the wider world. This is an essential half-hour all-weather activity. (Photo: John Collins.)

Desmond Castle was built in about 1500 by Maurice Bacach Fitzgerald, Earl of Desmond. It has had many uses. In 1600 and 1601 it was used as an arsenal by Don Juan Aguilla during the Spanish occupation of the town which lasted for 100 days prior to the Battle of Kinsale in 1601.

Kinsale was a designated Wine Port, and a supplier of ships for the Vintage Fleet as far back as 1412. In that year, the Vintage Fleet of some 160 vessels plying to and fro from Bordeaux included five Irish vessels, three of which were from Kinsale, and two from Dublin. More information on the wine trade can be found at www.winegeese.ie. Desmond Castle was also used as a customs house.

In the 17th century the castle became popularly known as the “French prison” and was used for prisoners of war, most of whom were captured at sea. The majority of the prisoners were French, but many nationalities were ransomed or exchanged for their British counterparts. Some prisoners were housed in nearby huts, and the conditions were grim, with overcrowding, lack of food, starvation and disease. A disastrous fire in 1747 killed 54 prisoners.

During the American War of Independence, the crews of many American vessels were held prisoner in Kinsale in poor conditions. Help came from Rev. William Hazlett, a Presbyterian Minister in nearby Bandon, and from Reuben Harvey, a Quaker merchant in Cork. Through their influence conditions were improved. In 1783, George Washington thanked Harvey for “his exertions in relieving the distresses of such of our fellow citizens as were prisoners in Ireland”.

The “Wild Geese” was the name given to the thousands of families who migrated from Ireland from the 17th to the 19th centuries due to religious persecution, violation of treaties and prohibitive commercial legislation. Some of them entered the wine trade and are often referred to as the “Irish Wine Geese”. Their descendants can be found in the four corners of the world. Desmond Castle was restored by the Office of Public Works and now houses the International Museum of Wine which opened in 1997. The exhibition uses a variety of media to recall the castle’s eventful history and the amazing story of the Irish links to the wine trade which stretch back to Irish mythology and continue into the present day.

This interesting building was built about 1600, with additions in 1706 that included the frontage with the loggia on the ground floor. The courthouse was used for the inquest into the sinking of the liner Lusitania on Monday May 10th 1915.

Town Center, Kinsale, Co. Cork, Ireland
Tel: 021 477 7930

This interesting building was built about 1600, with additions in 1706 that included the frontage with the loggia on the ground floor. Offices and a jury room were provided on the first floor, and part of the original building was converted into an interesting panelled courtroom. In this building the Kinsale Town Corporation and Sovereign conducted their affairs. The courthouse was also used for ceremonial occasions in the 18th century. On Monday 10th 1915, the Courthouse was used for the inquest into the loss of the liner Lusitania. Captain Turner gave evidence before a jury of twelve shopkeepers and fishermen. The Regional Museum is now housed in the Courthouse.