Kilmainham Prison was built between 1792 and 1795.
It has been the site of death sentences and is a testament to some of the darkest moments in Ireland’s history.
It was one of the most feared prisons in the whole country and over the years criminals who had been guilty of all kinds of crimes have been locked up there, not distinguishing between a petty theft and a murder.
Kilmainham Prison, however, has sadly gone down in history above all as it was a place of detention and torture for prisoners who had been convicted of crimes against the British Crown.
Today, you can visit Kilmainham Prison on guided tours that take you through its long, gloomy corridors and also show the various inmate cells.
Narrow and decidedly small places, without windows, where even today you can read the writings of the prisoners on the walls.
After visiting the cells, we move on to the many courtyards of the prison, the most famous of which is the Invincibles Yard, which takes its name from an organization whose members were hanged there.
At the end of the Civil War in 1921, Kilmainham Prison was closed and abandoned for several years until it was refurbished in 1960 and then opened to the public.
Today, Kilmainham Prison is visited by many tourists every year.
Kilmainham Prison continues to have a special place in the memory of the Irish, as thanks to the struggle of brave patriots who were imprisoned and killed, Ireland gained its independence from the United Kingdom.
The last prisoner was freed in 1924, shortly before the prison closed, and was Éamon de Valera, the one who later became President of Ireland.
