The MacCarthys were noted as generous patrons of Irish culture, and the Bardic School at Blarney attracted scholars from all over Munster. By about 1600 Blarney had become well known as the seat of a Court of Poetry where poets gathered on festive occasions to read their compositions, many of which have survived in the original Irish form and in English translations. There was always a bard in residence at Blarney Castle, serving the MacCarthy clan as poet, historian and musician.

Kissing the Blarney Stone!!! The origin of the Blarney Stone is lost in the mist of antiquity; it may have been brought back from the crusades, or it may be the portion of the royal Stone of Sconce which Robert Bruce of Scotland gave to Cormac MacCarthy, King of Munster.

Richard Millikin composed the first eight verses of a poem that is legendary to the Blarney Stone, with Francis Slyvester Mahony adding the final sixteen.

"THE GROVES OF BLARNEY"

The groves of Blarney,
They look so charming,
Down by the purlings
Of sweet silent brooks,
All decked by posies
That spontaneous grow there,
Planted in order
In the rocky nooks.
There is a stone there,
That whoever kisses,
Oh! he never misses
To grow eloquent.
Tis he may clamber,
To a lady's chamber,
Or become a member
Of parliment.
A clever spouter
He'll sure turn out, or
An out-and-outer
To be let alone.
Don't hope to hinder him,
Or to bewilder him.
Sure he's a pilgrim
From the Blarney Stone.

Blarney Castle has been a part of the history of Ireland for the past 500 years, and is one of the most toured castles in Ireland. One may feel blessed when getting to visit a place such as this, but the real heros are in fact the ones who have lived and recorded the history here throughtout the ages!

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Page last updated September 6, 1999

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