Third class went on a heritage trail around Ashbourne recently. We walked to the Parish Hall, Arkle, 10 Mile Stone, Rath Cross, RIC Barracks, Ashbourne House Hotel and other places along the way. We talked about the history of Killegland Castle that used to be near St. Declan’s hundreds of years ago and we learnt about Frederick Bourne.

Ashbourne is very special in the 1916 commemorations. We had one of the only successful battles outside Dublin. The inspiration for Rath Cross came from a poem by Thomas Ashe, called ‘Let Me Carry Your Cross For Ireland’.

You can read more about the history of Ashbourne here:

The Rath Cross