West Cork Islands
Go on, get out there!
Throughout Heritage Week 2026, explore the built and natural heritage, as well as the culture, of the West Cork Islands through the generations. National Heritage Week, an initiative by the Heritage Council, celebrates every aspect of Ireland’s past from its military history to its everyday traditions. The West Cork islands have a unique heritage of …
Lonehort Battery, which was operational during World War One, is the largest of seven gun batteries built on Bere Island by the British Admiralty. The Admiralty wanted to protect its fleet when it lay at anchor in Berehaven harbour. It is estimated that, when the British fleet dropped anchor in the harbour, the local population …
Lonehort Harbour on Bere Island is an intriguing heritage site that casts light on the maritime history of an island with a key strategic position at the head of Bantry Bay. The place name Lonehort / Longphort is Norse in origin – it means a fortified ship harbour – and it gives us clues about …
The Dursey Island Signal Tower at Tilickafina was developed around 1805 as part of a set of defences – including Martello towers – along the Irish coastline. The signal station is one of over eighty similar structures around the whole coastline of Ireland. The plan to build them represented a major engineering feat of its …
Cape Clear Island Museum, Cape Clear Island, Baltimore, Co. Cork, Ireland is open daily from June to early September each year. Its main focus is the island’s maritime heritage, and it also explores the traditions, language, customs, and culture of island life. Learn about boatbuilding and shipwrecks, as well as Hedge Schools, Placenames and Folklore …
The Franciscan friary on Sherkin Island was founded by a local chieftain – Fineen O’Driscoll – in 1460. Its foundation is recorded in the Annals of the Four Masters – one of the principal Irish-language sources for Irish history up to 1616. The friary stands on a sheltered spot above a small rocky strand, Traigh …
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