Killua Castle (Clonmellon)

Ballinlough Castle  Bective Abbey  Clonmellon Cemetery  Drewstown House  Dublin  Grove Gardens p.1  p.2  Irish National Stud  Kells p.1  p.2  p.3  Kilkenny  Killua Castle  Russborough House  Trim Castle

Welcome to Killua Castle (no, not the coffee)! Ready for more educational information? Well, here it is anyway:
"The Chapman family, of whom the legendary Lawrence of Arabia, is the most famous, lived in Killua at Clonmellon and Southill at Delvin. Cousins of Sir Walter Raleigh, the first Chapmans settled in Cork and Kerry. Benjamin became a captain in Cromwell's army and was granted Killua -- land confiscated from the Knights Hospitallers of St. John. Thomas Chapman was born in 1848 and lived in Southill. He married a Rochford and they had four children. But his wife was a keen traveler and spent little time at home. Discontented, he abandoned his home, his marriage and his name to live with his paramour in Wales, adopting the name Robert Lawrence. They had seven children, the most famous of whom was Thomas Edward, an intriguing and enigmatic figure who led the Arabs in World War I, earning himself the title 'Lawrence of Arabia.'
Today, Killua is a spectacular ivy-clad ruin, and an obelisk monument on the grounds commemorates the Chapman relationship to Sir Walter Raleigh. Close to the rear entrance to the estate is Clonmellon cemetery where the Chapman family graves may be seen. Southill, on the Athboy approach to Delvin, now belongs to the nursing Sisters of Jesus and Mary." (text taken from a leaflet by Delvin ICA)

A good website relating to T. E. Lawrence and the Chapmans in Killua Castle is http://www.castle-hill-press.com/teweb/NPG/part1/001.htm.

To my suprise, I just found Killua Castle for sale on the web (as of 30 August 2000)!  Check it out at Property Ireland: Killua Castle (if the link's working).  I think that 300,000 pounds is roughly converted to around $365,000.  Not bad for a historic castle, even if it is in ruins.

This is the deteriorated interior of Killua Castle.

The daring soul can climb the stairs pictured above.  Many of the old stairs are missing which only adds to the "fun" seeing as how the only thing holding the stairs up is their connection to the wall.  If you do make it to the top, however, you can get a nice view of the surrounding countryside as well as a close-up view of the two towers pictured below.

This obelisk is in honor of Sir Walter Raleigh.  It is said that where the obelisk stands is the site where Sir Walter Raleigh planted the first potato in Ireland.

The house below is just across the street from Killua Castle. As far as I know, it has nothing to do with the castle or the Chapmans, but it's still a cool little house.

Ballinlough Castle  Bective Abbey  Clonmellon Cemetery  Drewstown House  Dublin  Grove Gardens p.1  p.2  Irish National Stud  Kells p.1  p.2  p.3  Kilkenny  Killua Castle  Russborough House  Trim Castle