The next free public lecture from the Galway Archaeological and Historical Society will focus on The Blakes of Menlo Castle. It’s on next Monday, January 13, at 8pm in the city’s Harbour Hotel, and the speaker will be Patrick Larkin.

Menlo Castle is on the banks of the river Corrib, a few miles upriver from the city. It was built in the 1500s as a defensive English outpost in a Gaelic world and gradually transformed over time, becoming a grand home to its wealthy, aristocratic owners, the Blakes.

The Blakes were one of the merchant Tribes of Galway, who were knighted for their services to the Crown. The castle was occupied for three and a half centuries, until a tragic, accidental fire in the early 1900s destroyed the iconic building, the ruins of which still stand.

Patrick Larkin from Galway, is a graduate of University College Galway and a chartered chemist. A former president of the Galway Archaeological and Historical Society, he is a widely published, independent scholar with a special interest in 13th century East Galway. All are welcome to next Monday night’s talk.

Pictured: The ruins of the once-glorious Menlo Castle.