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Welcome to Kilmainham Gaol Museum. For over 100 years Kilmainham Gaol held thousands of men, women and children for crimes that ranged from minor offences to being involved in some of the most momentous events in Irish history. A visit to Kilmainham Gaol will take you on a journey through Irish history.
Kilmainham Gaol is a very busy site and tickets must be pre-booked online. Access is by guided tour only. Tickets for the public tours are only available on https://www.kilmainhamgaolmuseum.ie/ and https://heritageireland.ie/visit/places-to-visit/kilmainham-gaol/.
© The Office of Public Works
When the Gaol was first opened in 1796, there were two symmetrical wings flanking a central block. Today, just one of those wings survives in its original state, and that is the West Wing. This is the oldest section of the Gaol.
1848. The leaders of the Young Ireland Rebellion in Ballingarry, Co. Tipperary, were brought to Kilmainham Gaol to be hung, drawn and quartered but Queen Victoria commuted their sentences to transportation to Australia instead. Loading.
The details of those who were incarcerated in Kilmainham Gaol are contained in twenty-four large volumes. These are now located in the National Archives of Ireland . Read what happened to those prisoners who were sentenced to transportation.
Since the first donation of an original copy of the Proclamation of the Irish Republic by Kathleen Clarke in 1963, Kilmainham Gaol Museum has collected approximately 10,000 objects to date.
The Building. Kilmainham Gaol was opened in 1796. Known as ‘the New Gaol’ at the time, it replaced an earlier prison which was located around the area of present-day Mount Brown. In line with most eighteenth-century gaols, this prison was a disorderly place.
The main exhibition at Kilmainham Gaol Museum tells the story of the social and political history of the prison. Three main themes are explored on three levels of the exhibition space: social history of Kilmainham Gaol and Irish prisons in the 1800s. the history of Irish nationalism and republicanism, 1796-1924.
Please see below for answers to questions and queries frequently asked by visitors to Kilmainham Gaol. How do I visit Kilmainham Gaol and should I book in advance? Access to Kilmainham Gaol is by guided tour only.
