Dublin Guided Walking Tour of Tallaght
Full description
Included / Excluded
- Small Tours
- Local Tour Guide
- Gratuities
Itinerary
We will start the tour in Kingswood Heights, you will be briefly introduced to Tallaght and we will examine Tallaght's beginnings in ancient Irish history
Our next stop will be just outside, the former residence of Katharine Tynan - Whitehall. We will examine Katharine's life, how she partook in the Irish and English literary circles of her time, to her own rich literary contributions - AE described Katharine as "the earliest singer in that awakening of our imagination which has been spoken of as the Irish Renaissance". We too will explore Katharine's friendships with W.B Yeats to George William Russell (AE) who would frequent her residence, Whitehall. Contents of letters from Katharine to W.B. Yeats and George William Russell (AE) will be shared.
We will explore the life of William Howard Russell who was born in Jobstown, Tallaght. William is considered one of the first ever war correspondents and he became synonymous with the work of a war correspondent. We will examine his early life in Tallaght to his very long and rich life in reporting primarily for 'The Times' - from his reports on the meetings of Daniel O'Connell to the Great Famine in Ireland to his reporting on the Crimean War to the American Civil War. We will also brielfy examine his friendship with the famed, Charles Dickens. Some writings and letters of William's will be shared.
We will briefly explore the background of Irish mythology -before diving into one of Ireland's best known legends - 'Oisín I dTír na nÓg' - 'Oisín in the Land of Youth' - a bilingual version(Irish and English) of this lengend will be shared and we will learn of the link this legend has with Dublin Mountains as we have a lovely view of these beautiful mountains on this stop.
We will explore the history of the former Tallaght Aerodrome (its role in WW1, the Irish War of Independence to the Irish Civil War) formely built on lands belonging to the father of Katharine Tyan (a poem of Katharine's on this development will be shared). We will also explore the fascinating story of the Gallagher family, how they brought Urneys Chocolates into being and how Urney Chocolates (a brand which offers nostalgia to many in Ireland) would find its home in Tallaght for many decades until it would close in 1980 - we will also chat a little about how the Urney Chocalates brand lives on. We too shall chat briefly about another well-known brand, Jacob's, which too for a time operated in Tallaght and will shall discuss the transformative impact these businesses had on the area.
We will examine in more depth the transformation of Tallaght in the span of a few short decades (1970s-80s) into one of the largest urban areas in Ireland - (Tallaght in the 1980s was one of the fastest growing urban centres in Western Europe). We will also examine the impact this had on the area and its populace in particular against the backdrop of an Ireland which was experiencing economic difficulties, to high unemployment to high emmigration. We too shall spend time learning and seeing how Tallaght has grown and transformed from this period into what we know as Tallaght today.
St.Maelruain's Church now stands on what used to be a former monastery, which had such importance in ancient Ireland - it along with with a monastery at Finglas were known as the 'two eyes of Ireland'. We will briefly examine this period of history, the life of St.Maelruain himself and how the present day church came into being.
Alice Furlong is buried on the grounds of St.Maelruain's church and until quite recently was lost to time. We will explore Alice's life, from her being one of the founding members + Vice-President’s of Inghinidhe na hÉireann ‘Daughters of Ireland’, + to a talented poet/writer. She too was a Irish-language advocate and her love of the Irish language was shared with her love of Tallaght. Some of Alice's poetry will be shared -(works in Irish(professional translations of her work into English will be provided) and English).
A plaque in Tallaght Village has been erected to commemorate the Fenian Rising of 1867, we will explore this period in Irish history, in particular Tallaght's role in it. Writings from the famed, Charles Dickens on this period of history in Tallaght will be shared.
We will end the tour in Tallaght Village, we will see the cottages which were designed by the architect, Thomas Joseph Byrne, who was one of the most influential architects of this day. We too shall briefly chat about the former Dublin and Blessington Steam Tramway (DBST) which would run through the area before closing in 1932. To end the tour, you will be taught some basic Irish and we will briefly chat about the Irish language. You are more than welcome to use some of the Irish you have learned in a special local café right in the heart of Tallaght Village at the end of the tour if you would like.
Meeting point
Start Location
Unknown location
Cancellation policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Accessibility
- Stroller Accessible
- Service Animals Allowed
- Easy Public Transport
Traveler reviews
The most satisfying history tour of Ireland.
Sophie is an exceptional tour guide planner! My mom and I did not know what sort of history we would find interesting when we were visiting Ireland for the first time. We met Sophie on one of her other tours she advertised which touched on Gaelic calligraphy. That tour was embedded with history of Ireland and so for this tour, she offered to dig in a little deeper on how the city of Tallagh evolved with some of its literary giants that were relevant to her hometown. She was extremely prepared with probably 50 laminated sheets of notes that she brought to show us which was so helpful for the visuals. She has absolutely spent days if not weeks looking in the archives to create a story that was captivating. Think of this tour as storytelling. I am still blown away by her knowledge and that she was able to thread the needle so precisely on past history and looping it back to modern day, government decisions, and how these affect the people of Ireland. You leave the tour, wondering if you are going to hear her name again in some capacity with helping Ireland become self sustaining instead of North American investment.
Well worth it
There's so much to Tallaght history that one tour alone couldn't cover everything but Sophie packs a huge amount into this two-hour session. Being a native and having a limited knowledge of the area, I was delighted to learn more about people and places I had previously only been vaguely familiar with. It's truly amazing that rural Tallaght has changed so much.
Walking back through some of Dublin's finest History
I recently took this historical walking tour of Tallaght and it was amazing! Our guide was knowledgeable, and brought Tallaght's history to life. The tour was quite scenic and full of insightful stories along the way. Highly recommend this tour to anyone interested in history or just fancies a fun day out!
Great history tour of Tallaght from mountain side village to urban town over the years
Great tour with lots of information on historical figures from Tallaght that I never knew about. Learned loads. Also shows urban sprawl over the years and how Tallaght has developed.
The Rich History of Tallaght
I feel like the first thought many people will have after this tour is that there is far more history in Tallaght than one might have originally expected. I know it was true for me. The tour guide was not only well-informed and able to share the information conversationally, but also incredibly resourceful, able to provide additional insight and historical photographs that helps you see just how much Tallaght has changed. You'd be surprised how deeply rooted certain historical figures were in Tallaght, even having threads that tie them together, or to other historical figures from Ireland and abroad. There's so much interesting history in an area oft overlooked by Dublin and the tour guide was able to walk us through every area of significance, no matter the weather. I cannot recommend it enough if you're a history buff, or even a Dublin native. You really would be at what you would learn.