How to Find Yeats Landmarks in Ireland

If you find yourself interested in literary history, head for Ireland and the haunts of three literary giants in three genres: James Joyce, the novel; Samuel Beckett, drama; and William Butler Yeats, poetry. If you like Yeats' poetry, you might wish to see some of the places that are described in his work. Yeats (1865-1939) spent most of his life in County Sligo and County Galway, so many landmarks are located there. However, in Dublin, you won't want to miss the Abbey Theatre.

Difficulty:

Moderate

Instructions

1. Visit County Sligo for place names that figure in famous Yeats poems: Lissadell, Knocknarea, Ben Bulben, Ballisadare and especially Innisfree.

2. Make a pilgrimage to Yeats' grave under the mountain that dominates the landscape, and also serves as the name and subject of one formidable poem, "Ben Bulben," written five months before his death. The famous inscription on the grave runs: Cast a cold eye on life, on death. Horseman, pass by!"

3. Explore County Galway to find the Gregory family estate at Coole Park. Lady Augusta Gregory was Yeats' famous patroness. He spent much of his time at her mansion (sadly, destroyed) and grounds. The grounds remain and you can see his initials, along with those of many of her other visitors, carved in a tree there. In "Coole Park, 1929" he had already imagined the future destruction of the house. Coole Park is located near in southern County Galway, near the village of Gort.

4. Make a stop at Thoor Ballylee, the famous fourteenth-century tower where Yeats resided during the summers from 1917-1929 with his wife and son and daughter. He composed many famous poetry collections here as well, including "The Tower" (1929) and "The Winding Stair and Other Poems" (1933). The tower is also near Gort in County Sligo. Climb the same winding stair to the Secret Room where Yeats tried to conjure spirits from another world.

5. Visit the Abbey Theatre in Dublin, which defined itself as a seat of Irish Nationalism in its artistic revival of classic plays by Irish playwrights, steeped in the revival of Irish culture. Yeats' own mythologically-based plays were also produced here.

6. Honor the artistic memory of the Yeats Family by joining aspiring writers and avid readers at the Yeats International Summer School (now in its 50th year) or Yeats Winter Weekend in the town of Sligo.