When you are visiting IMMA in Kilmainham, you should walk on over to Islandbridge about half a kilometer further on. The gardens there are dedicated to the memory of the 49,400 Irish soldiers who died in the 1st World War. The names of all the soldiers are contained in the beautifully illustrated Harry Clarke manuscripts in the granite bookrooms in the gardens. Not merely a place of remembrance, they are also of great architectural interest and beauty.
They are one of only four gardens in this country designed by the famous architect Sir Edwin Lutyens (1869-1944). The others being Heywood Gardens, Lambay Island and those in Howth Castle. The sunken rose gardens, herbaceous borders and extensive tree planting on view here make it well worth that extra bit of a walk.
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