STAIRBHEO: DONEGAL CASTLE

I took the tour of Donegal Castle, as I always do when I'm in Donegal. I drove in to Donegal Town from GleannCholmCille on Saturday after the first week of the Summer School. Beryl and Madeleine came along for the ride. I asked Yvonne from London if she would like to join us for the day. It took about an hour to drive straight through from Gleann to Donegal.
As soon as we got to Donegal there was a problem. I wanted to go off by myself and spend the day alone investigating the town. The women wanted us to spend the day together doing everything together. They were worried that they might not be able to find me when it was time to go home - a typical American anxiety, the need to bond closely to the familiar in foreign places. I was having none of that. How can you get lost in a place as small as Donegal Town? I told them to meet me at the car at 5 o'clock - that I wouldn't leave without them!
The castle was the highlight of my day, though I did see some other interesting things in Donegal. I never get tired of hearing the story of the O Domhnaills and the O Neills. I love the history of that time, of how the O Domhnaills developed trade with Spain and France, then later prevented the English from completely dominating Ireland during the Nine Years War. I like the metaphor of Donegal holding out when the rest of Ireland has succumbed to the Gold Rush ethos.
The guide touched on the story of ColmCille and the copied manuscript. A copy of the manuscript is in the castle but the original is in Dublin, along with the bejeweled ark of precious metel that was made to house it. Since ColmCille was an
O Domhnaill the O Dohmnaills got possession of the manuscript when they came to power in the 12th century. It was their greatest possession and was always carried at the head of the army into any battle, hence the name An Cathach, or the Battler. The Cathach assured them of victory, at least until the final great battle at Kinsale in 1601. The defeat of the Irish, really the O Domhnaills and their Spanish allies, precipitated the Flight of the Earls and the end of the Gaelic order.