Ireland (Lonely Planet, 9th Edition) - Fionn Davenport [77]
The deer were first introduced by Lord Ormond in 1662, when lands once owned by the Knights of Jerusalem were turned into a royal hunting ground. In 1745 the viceroy Lord Chesterfield threw it open to the public and it has remained so ever since. (The name ‘Phoenix’ has nothing to do with the mythical bird; it is a corruption of the Irish fionn uisce, meaning ‘clear water’.)
In 1882 the park played a crucial role in Irish history, when Lord Cavendish, the British chief secretary for Ireland, and his assistant were murdered outside what is now the Irish president’s residence by an obscure Nationalist group called the Invincibles. Lord Cavendish’s home is now called Deerfield and is used as the official residence of the US ambassador.
Near the Parkgate St entrance to the park is the 63m-high Wellington Monument. This took from 1817 to 1861 to build, mainly because the Duke of Wellington fell from public favour during its construction. Nearby is the People’s Garden, dating from 1864, and the bandstand in the Hollow.
Established in 1830, the 12-hectare Dublin Zoo (Map; 677 1425; www.dublinzoo.ie; Phoenix Park; adult/child/family €14/9.50/40; 9.30am-6pm Mon-Sat, 10.30am-6pm Sun Mar-Sep, 9.30am-dusk Mon-Fri, 9.30am-dusk Sat, 10.30am-dusk Sun Oct-Feb) is one of the oldest in the world, but is mainly of interest to children. It used to be a run-down zoo where depressed animals used to depress visitors, but a substantial facelift has made it a much more pleasant place for animals to live and for visitors to stroll around.
The large Victorian building behind the zoo, on the edge of the park, is the Garda Síochána Headquarters. It was designed by Benjamin Woodward in the 19th century. His work also includes the Old Library in Trinity College.
In the centre of the park, the Papal Cross marks the site where Pope John Paul II preached to 1.25 million people in 1979. The Phoenix Monument, erected by Lord Chesterfield in 1747, looks very un-phoenix-like and is often referred to as the Eagle Monument. The southern part of the park is a 200-acre stretch (about 81 hectares) known as the Fifteen Acres (don’t ask, nobody knows), which is given over to a large number of football pitches – winter Sunday mornings are the time to come and watch. To the west, the rural-looking Glen Pond corner of the park is extremely attractive.
Back towards the Parkgate entrance is Magazine Fort on Thomas’ Hill. Built at a snail’s pace between 1734 and 1801, the fort has served as an occasional arms depot for the British and, later, the Irish armies. It was a target during the 1916 Easter Rising and again in 1940, when the IRA made off with the entire ammunitions reserve of the Irish army (they retrieved it after a few weeks).
The residence of the Irish president, Áras an Uachtaráin (Map; 617 1000; Phoenix Park; admission free; guided tours hourly 10.30am-4.30pm Sat) was built in 1751 and enlarged in 1782, then again in 1816, this time by noted Irish architect Francis Johnston, who added the Ionic portico. From 1782 to 1922 it was the residence of the British viceroys or lord lieutenants. After independence it became the home of Ireland’s governor general until Ireland cut ties with the British Crown and created the office of president in 1937.
Tickets for the tour can be collected from the Phoenix Park Visitor Centre ( 677 0095; adult/concession/family €2.75/1.25/7; 10am-6pm daily Apr-Sep, 10am-5pm daily Oct, 10am-5pm Mon-Sat Nov & Dec, 10am-5pm Sat & Sun Jan-Mar), the converted former stables of the papal nunciate, now devoted to the park’s history and ecology over the last 3500 years. Next door is the restored four-storey Ashtown Castle, a 17th-century tower house ‘discovered’ inside the 18th-century nuncio’s mansion when the latter was demolished in 1986 due to dry rot. You can visit the castle only on a guided tour from the visitor centre.
Take bus 10 from O’Connell St, or bus 25 or 26 from Middle Abbey St to get to Dublin’s beloved playground. The best way