FINISHED AT LAST - KING JOHN'S CASTLE

So here it is...King John's Castle...finished at last!

As I said in an earlier post, it's a present for my mother-in-law and I really hope she likes it.  I enjoyed painting this as it was my first attempt at painting an old building.  I hope you like it too.

It's an acrylic painting reproduction of W.H. Bartlett's drawing, originally titled "The Castle Of Limerick" and published in 'The Scenery and Antiquities of Ireland'  circa 1884; a publication illustrated with 120 engravings by Bartlett.  Read on for more interesting information that I researched about Bartlett and King John's Castle.

William Henry Bartlett

W.H.Bartlett 1809 - 1854

Bartlett was born in London in 1809 and became one of the foremost illustrators of Topography of his generation.  He travelled extensively throughout Britain, Europe, The Balkans, Middle East, Canada and the USA.  He is best known for his numerous steel plate engravings.  He produced Sepia wash drawings from which he created finely detailed steel engravings which were then published uncoloured.  His prints were affectionately referred to as "Bartlett prints".  The picture on the left is of Bartlett and is an example of a steel engraving which was handcoloured.  Below it, is the 18th century Bartlett print of King John's Castle, published circa 1884 and is over 125 years old.  
William Henry Bartlett died at sea in the Mediterranean in 1854, age 45 yrs.

1884 Antique Engraving - King John's Castle Limerick

King John's Castle

King John's Castle is a mighty fortress, with a dramatic history and has over 800 years of stories of siege and warfare, within it's walls.  The year 1172 saw the arrival of the Anglo-Normans.  During their campaign across Ireland, Limerick was burned to the ground in 1174 by Domhnall Mor O'Brien in an effort to keep Limerick out of the hands of the new invaders.  21 years later, in 1195, Limerick finally came under the new leadership of John, Lord of Ireland (soon to become King of England).  John ordered a castle to be built in his name and Limerick Castle (King John's Castle) was completed in 1200.  When the Norman's imposed a general peace, Limerick then prospered as a shipping port and trading center.  Over time, the city was divided into two areas; 'English Town', located on King's island near the castle and 'Irish Town' which had grown up on the south bank of the river Shannon.  Limerick was described in documents prepared for the Spanish ambassador in 1574 as follows:

Limerick is stronger and more beautiful than all the other cities of Ireland, well walled with stout walls of hewn marble.  There is no entrance except by stone bridges, one of the two had 14 arches, and the other, 8.  The houses are of square stone of black marble and built in the form of towers and fortresses.

During the siege of Limerick in 1642, the castle walls were damaged in the first of five sieges of the city which would take place during the 17th century.  At that time, the castle was occupied by Protestants fleeing the Irish rebellion of  1641 and was besieged by an Irish Confederate force, under Garret Barry.  Barry didn't have any siege artillary so he undermined the castle walls by digging away their foundations.  The castle was surrendered before it collapsed but there was so much damage to the walls that some of them had to be pulled down.  The following Cromwellian siege of 1651 meant more damage to the castle and subsequent major sieges in 1690 & 1691 which resulted in the signing of the Treaty of Limerick, led the French commander, Lauzan to express reservations about the ability of the city to withstand another siege.  He felt that it's old and decayed walls could be "knocked down with roasted apples".  The Treaty stone is clearly visible from the castle battlements today.

King John's Castle today.

Between 1993 & 1995, archaeological excavations were carried out on the site which revealed foundations, walls, doorways and paths, including a sallyport (secret entrance)  all of which have been restored and are open to the public.  There are further plans in 2013 to open a new visitor center where the castle's dramatic history will be brought to life in a stunning new exhibition.