Description

This is a reproduction of part of the original text of 'Travels in Ireland' by J.G. Kohl (1808-1878), German travel writer and historian, first published in 1844. It takes through Dundalk, Newry, Belfast and the Antrim Coast, Rathlin and the Giant's Causeway. It gives a picture of Ireland prior to the Great Famine. Having visited the Boyne and New Grange, he spends an evening of Gaelic story telling and music. The neat orderliness of County Down is contrasted with the wretchedness of the rest of rural Ireland. Newry and Belfast are marked by of the emergence of new world of enterprise and mechanization. In contrast, his trip up the north coast is into the remnants of Gaelic Ireland. His account of life on Rathlin Island and his speculations on the origin of the Giant's Causeway reveal the breadth of his informed interest in both folklore, scientific investigation and the emerging rationalism of his age. This edition has been enhanced by the inclusion of footnotes and an index.