athlone castle and visitor centre

Tourist Office:
Occupying the old guard house, this modern tourist office caters for the needs of visitors to Athlone and the Castle. Apart from offering information and a room reservation service, the Tourist Office has a wide range of literature and souvenirs to suit all tastes.

Reception Area:
Within this modern glass and steel structure the medieval castle walls have been preserved. The Tour of the Castle complex commences from here.

Exhibition Centre:
Introduction to Athlone.
Introduction to the Castle
The atmosphere of the Siege of Athlone is recreated through an exciting
audio-visual presentation.
The John McCormack story. The story of the life of Athlone's most honoured son John Count McCormack (1884-1945).
Military Exhibition. Athlone has been a garrison town for 300 years This exhibition highlights the role of the Irish Army in international peacekeeping.
The Flora and Fauna of the Shannon, a colourful and educational exhibition sponsored by the E.S.B.
Museum:
The polygonal keep houses a local museum founded in 1967 by the Old Athlone Society and run on a voluntary basis.


Tea Room and Gallery:
Set above the old armaments store is our tea room. The ideal spot in which to enjoy a snack and light refreshments while you admire the works of art on view.
The Castle provides panormaic viewing points for the Shannon and the town. The key viewing points are marked 'V.P.' on the plan.


The guns to be seen on the Castle include two magnificent cannons dating from the reign of George II and a pair of ten inch mortars which were cast in 1856. The cannons would have fired a cannonball of eighteen pounds weight.. An estimated 12,000 of these were fired at this castle in 1691. The mortars were of the type used in the Crimean War and fired shot of twenty pounds weight over a distance of a mile and a half.

Athlone (Ath Luain - the Ford of Luan) is situated on the principal fording point of the middle Shannon. In 1129 King Turlough O'Connor recognised its strategic importance and built a wooden castle here.