Above: View in Munster

Munster comprises the whole of the south-west of Ireland. The entire coast is washed by the Atlantic, which enters the land by long narrow opening’s like those on the west coast of Scotland. This province contains six counties.

Couty Clare lies north of the Shannon and south of Galway. It is surrounded by
water – the Atlantic, the Shannon, and Lough Derg – except for about forty miles on its northern borders.

The coast on the Atlantic is one long line of cliffs, some of which stand up like pillars in the sea. There are also a great many sea caves, and at one part two natural rock bridges span the waves.

The grandest part of the coast is the Cliffs of Moher, which form a rocky wall for four miles, sometimes reaching a height of six hundred feet, broken into most curious forms, and tunneled by the constant action of the waves. Black Head on the north, and Loop Head on the south, are the chief headlands.

Ennis, the county town, on the Fergus, has the ruins of a fine old abbey. Kilrush
at the head of an inlet of the Sliannon, is a watering-place. Kilkee, on the shore of a lovely inlet of the Atlantic, is one of the finest watering-places in Ireland. Killaloe, on the Shannon, has slate and marble quarries.

County Limerick, on the south of the Shannon, lies between Kerry and Tipperary. The centre of the county is a great plain almost surrounded by mountains. It consists of the finest land in Ireland, and part of it is so rich that it is called the “Golden Vale“.

Limerick, on the Shannon, the county town, is the fourth city in Ireland and a large seaport. Bacon is one of the chief exports. The treaty of Limerick in 1691 made William the Third master of Ireland. Rathkeale and Newcastle are market towns.

Three miles from Limerick there are the ruins of an old priory, once a great seat of
learning, where 1,500 monks studied at one time. This county abounds with the ruins of castles, abbeys, churches, and other buildings, showing that at one time this part of the country was a great centre of religious life, and the home of princes and clergy of high rank.