Chapelizod

Séipéal Iosóilde, meaning “Isolde’s Chapel” (or Chapel-lizard as it’s locally pronounced), rests in a sylvan section of the Liffey Valley near the Phoenix park. The village is associated with the Arthurian legend of Tristan and Isolde.

The ruin in the grounds of the Church of Ireland church on Mill Lane is said to mark the place where Tristan asked Isolde for her hand in marriage. The belfry tower which dates from the late medieval period is built around a much earlier one.

There is evidence of a settlement in this valley stretching back to the Neolithic period and Chapelizod remains an important crossing on the Liffey even today, where its position enclosed by wooded valleys, the Phoenix park and the Strawberry Beds, but positioned only 6km from O’Connell Street, provides the village with both a rustic appeal and ready access to the city.