File:THE VILLAGE OF ENNISKERRY - panoramio.jpg

THE VILLAGE OF ENNISKERRY

Enniskerry is a village in County Wicklow, Ireland. It had a population of 1,811 at the 2011 census.

Photographed using the original Canon 5D. 30 June 2007. I really liked the 5D but I had terrible dust problems, which can be seen of these old photographs if you look hard enough. At a later date I switched to using a Canon 1DsMk3 which I still have but do not frequently use [mainly because of weight].

The village is situated on the Glencullen River in the foothills of the Wicklow Mountains to the east of the island, just 5 minutes south of the Dublin border and some 24 km (15 mi) south of Dublin city centre. The R117 road, colloquially known as "The Twenty-One Bends" connects the town to the main N11 road to Dublin. The 185 Dublin Bus route connects the village hourly to Bray, the nearest large town. The 44 Dublin Bus route connects the village with Dublin City Centre.

The Protestant population of the village attended church in the grounds of the Powerscourt Demesne until 1859. Mervyn Wingfield, 7th Viscount Powerscourt built a new church, Saint Patrick's, in the village which was completed two years later, in 1861. This coincided with an extensive renovation programme that also established the Italian gardens at Powerscourt. The Viscount Powerscourt claimed the old church following the disestablishment of the Church of Ireland by the Irish Church Act 1869. The consequences were that only those with a right to be buried next to the old church within the Demesne could claim these rights thereafter.

Powerscourt Estate, comprising a large house and gardens today occupying 47 acres (190,000 m2), is located near the town and is a popular visitor attraction. The extensive formal gardens form the grounds of an 18th-century Palladian house, designed by Richard Cassels, which was destroyed by fire in 1974, and lay as a shell until extensive restorations were carried out in 1996. Powerscourt Waterfall in the grounds of the estate, at 121 metres, is the highest waterfall in Ireland.