Old Head of Kinsale
Encyclopedia
The Old Head of Kinsale, (in Irish, An Seancheann) is a headland near Kinsale
, County Cork
, Ireland
. An early lighthouse was established here in the 17th century by Robert Reading
. It is notable for being the nearest land point to the site of the sinking of the RMS Lusitania
in 1915.
Today the Old Head of Kinsale is popular with golfers who come to play on its 18 Hole golf
course that opened in 1997.
The Old Head's transformation from public beautyspot to private golf course has been controversial. It is rumoured that to get planning permission for the golf course, the owner had to allow the public access but since 1997 very few general public are allowed on the course. The golf course has also been criticised for being elitist and is one of the most expensive golf courses in Ireland.
Kinsale
Kinsale is a town in County Cork, Ireland. Located some 25 km south of Cork City on the coast near the Old Head of Kinsale, it sits at the mouth of the River Bandon and has a population of 2,257 which increases substantially during the summer months when the tourist season is at its peak and...
, County Cork
County Cork
County Cork is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and is also part of the province of Munster. It is named after the city of Cork . Cork County Council is the local authority for the county...
, Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
. An early lighthouse was established here in the 17th century by Robert Reading
Robert Reading
Sir Robert Reading, first and last Baronet Reading, built several privately owned lighthouses in Ireland under letters patent from Charles II of England.He was educated at Christ Church, Oxford, receiving a BA in 1658....
. It is notable for being the nearest land point to the site of the sinking of the RMS Lusitania
RMS Lusitania
RMS Lusitania was a British ocean liner designed by Leonard Peskett and built by John Brown and Company of Clydebank, Scotland. The ship entered passenger service with the Cunard Line on 26 August 1907 and continued on the line's heavily-traveled passenger service between Liverpool, England and New...
in 1915.
Today the Old Head of Kinsale is popular with golfers who come to play on its 18 Hole golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
course that opened in 1997.
Geographical Information
The old head of Kinsale was formed by differential erosion. An outcrop of hard sandstone is lodged between two layers of shale. The shale is eroded by marine action at a faster rate than the sandstone. The sandstone anticlines were much more resistant to erosion than the slate filled synclines. Thus over time the headland was formed.Protests
Since the golf course opened, access to the Old Head of Kinsale has been restricted to golfers and guests only, and there has been a long-running campaign for the restoration of public access organised by the Free the Old Head of Kinsale Campaign. This campaign has mainly taken the format of "People's Picnics", some of them involving "incursions" onto the headland and holding the picnics at the Old Head lighthouse.The Old Head's transformation from public beautyspot to private golf course has been controversial. It is rumoured that to get planning permission for the golf course, the owner had to allow the public access but since 1997 very few general public are allowed on the course. The golf course has also been criticised for being elitist and is one of the most expensive golf courses in Ireland.