Stonebreaker's Yard
Dublin: Kilmainham Gaol provides visitors with a chilling if poignant reminder of the Irish struggle for independence.
Feels colder in than out. This despite the shelter from the October wind offered by the refuge of the dull grey stone walls of the jail.
Dublin's Kilmainham Gaol was the most infamous prison in
For 130 years Kilmainham Gaol operated as a prison (from 1796 when it was built until 1926).
The prison has a dark history that is intrinsically linked with struggle. Executions, torture and injustice are forever associated with what is often called the Irish Bastille. For Dubliners, it was the most feared building in the city.
The entrance to the jail sets the tone. Public hangings were performed here in the early days. Before you even enter the building you get a hint of its macabre past. The balcony over the front door entrance was used as a gibbet for public hangings.
The door with its spyhatch and the Five Devils of Kilmainham – the bronze sculpture of five entwined serpents – mark the threshold to this grim place.
Now into the interior of the jail. The Victorian main hall of the prison is a bit of an architectural surprise. Symmetrical in design it seems comparatively spacious and light despite the caged staircases.
Good ventilation and light are elements not seen in many previous jail designs and were quite revolutionary at the time. Despite its relative modernity when constructed, the central tenet of constant surveillance was of paramount importance. The hallway may be spacious but the cells themselves are small, cramped and spartan. They are pretty much presented as they would have been when last used so you can get a flavour of what it was like to be a prisoner, especially if you ask the guide to lock you temporarily in one of the cells.
This part of the prison may seem familiar to some, as it has featured in scenes in the movies. Some of In the Name of the Father, Michael Collins and The Italian Job were shot here.
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