Listowel
Listowel lies on the River Feale in North Kerry and originated as a Celtic settlement; in Irish it is Lios Tuathail, or the ring fort of Tuathail, who was a chieftain.
The town developed further in the 15th Century, when the Normans built the castle as a fortress for the Knights of Kerry. The castle is one of the town’s key attractions, together with the Lartigue Monorail, Kerry Writers’ Museum, Garden of Europe and St. John’s Theatre & Arts Centre.
Listowel, with a population of 4,820, has been referred to as the ‘Literary Capital of Ireland’ with its strong literary heritage; many famous writers such as John B. Keane came from there and it is also home to Ireland’s oldest literary festival; Writers’ Week, now in its 50th year.
_296_167_c1.png)
