Get ready to explore the quirky, surprising and fabulously fascinating side of one of Ireland's oldest cities! Whether you're a proud local or a curious visitor, these entertaining tidbits will make you see Limerick in a whole new light. Curious yet? Start scrolling and see how much you really know about Limerick.
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The River Shannon
Love the Three Bridges Walk? Impress your friends along the walk with some of these facts about the River Shannon! The name Shannon comes from the Gaelic word seanchaidh, which means “skilled storyteller” but there is a legend that the Shannon river actually got its name from the Celtic goddess ‘Sionna.’ It is said that Sionna sought out the well of Wisdom (also known as the Connla’s Well or the Well of Segais), believed to be a source of immense knowledge and enlightenment. According to the legend, Sionna tried to gain the wisdom of the well, but the waters of the well rose up, swept her away, and created the River Shannon.
The Treaty Stone
I bet you didn’t know....that Limerick’s iconic Treaty Stone was once used as a mounting block for horses! The Treaty Stone is the rock that the Treaty of Limerick was signed on in 1691, marking the surrender of the city to William of Orange.
King John's Castle
I bet you didn’t know....that the iconic 12th Century King John’s Castle, standing proudly over Limerick’s Medieval Quarter is Europe’s most westerly Norman castle.
St. Mary’s Cathedral
Did you know?....That, founded in 1168, St. Mary’s Cathedral remains the oldest building in Limerick still in use for its original purpose? Behind the elaborately carved Romanesque door lies century old features including the original High Altar, exquisite stained glass windows and the only set of misericords still to exist in Ireland.
Georgian Limerick
I bet you didn’t know….that Limerick’s Georgian architecture is amongst the finest in Ireland and that the grid plan layout of our Georgian streets, running north/south, east/west is what New York is based on (albeit on a much smaller-scale).
Cleeves
Did you know?.…That Limerick has a very sweet history? Originally built as a flax spinning and weaving mill, the riverside site was was repurposed in 1889 by the Cleeve family as a milk processing factory, the largest of its kind in Ireland. At the height of business, 60,000 tins of condensed milk were produced daily at the Limerick headquarters, requiring milk from over 10,000 cows, which saw Cleeves Slab Toffee being exported all over the world! Hands up if you remember the toffee hammers?! The former factory’s imposing red brick chimney stack remains one of the city’s most distinctive landmarks today.
The Living Bridge
Did you know?....That Ireland’s longest (and dare we say, best looking) footbridge is located at the University of Limerick? The unique design of the 350m-long steel ‘Living Bridge’, linking counties Limerick and Clare, moves in a beautiful flowing line across the Shannon, mirroring the river.
Now you know!
Still curious? See: 10 Facts You Didn't Know About Limerick
