We went on a travel journey to Knights and Conquests in Granard, Co Longford to learn about the history of Normans in Ireland.
When we arrived in Granard at the interpretive centre we were greeted by our tour guide Tara. The journey began by entering a room where we would turn into Normans. I mean figuratively of course! We got Norman outfits. When everyone had gotten a Norman outfit we took a photograph. We sat down while Tara told us an interesting story about the Normans.
As soon as we were all finished getting in Norman outfits, each person sat on a throne, chose a button, pressed it and listened as they were told their Norman name, job and attitude. We were given our names and we wrote them on our quiz sheet then we moved on to the next room. I was amazed by how much I learned already. We were watching a video when we got the first answer to the quiz. Next we went into rooms based on Norman times, we did activities, we watched a video of Kitty Kiernan and we did our quiz.
During the journey we met some of the Kings and the Pope during Norman times. They had pictures on the wall of the Kings and the Pope talking. First Rory O’Connor spoke, then King Henry and finally Pope Adrian. I really enjoyed the tour of this room. There was also writing on the wall about the Motte and Bailey in County Longford which Richard De Tuite built in the twelfth century.
After the Kitty Kiernan room, we went back to the first room to return our Norman outfit. When we took off our outfit we sat down and ate lunch. Tara told us many amazing and interesting stories and facts while we ate our lunch.
I would definitely go there again as it was fun and educational. It is such a wonderful amenity and resource in County Longford. We learned to appreciate the Medieval Times by being actively involved in learning about Normans. We really were transported into another world during our tour. We were so impressed by the way Tara delivered the information in a fun and exciting way, while weaving stories and art.
We had a wonderful and magical day!
