Maynooth

Here are the ruins of the Geraldines’ Castle, built in 1480. St. Patrick’s Roman Catholic College, a quadrangular edifice, containing chapel, rooms, and noble library of 18,000 volumes, covering 54 acres. It was founded in 1795, and supported, until 1845, by a parliamentary grant of £8,900, since increased to £26,360 per annum. Close by is the princely mansion and domain of Ireland’s only Duke (his Grace of Leinster), Carton, beautifully built, in Rye Water, erected by Cassels. It consists of a large centre, with wings. The dining-room is 52 feet by 24, and 24 high. Here is a splendid picture gallery, containing some of the chef d’œuvres of Holbein, Claude, Poussin, and several Dutch masters. The grounds, park, &c, cover 1,000 acres. Queen Victoria visited here in 1849; and in 1855 one of the wings was partly destroyed by fire, when the Duchess narrowly escaped an untimely fate.