Naul, or An Aill (‘the cliff’), stands above the Delvin valley on the north side of Fingal. The Séamus Ennis Arts Centre on Main Street presents live music, film and other events. Check its programme and ticket arrangements before travelling.
Fourknocks
The Four Knocks passage tombs are a separate stop in County Meath. The main tomb is known for carved stones inside the mound, with the zig-zags and lozenges of Neolithic art and what has been called one of the earliest depictions of a human face in Irish prehistory. It is roughly 4,000 years old, and it was excavation in the 1950s that brought the carvings to light.
You can’t count on being able to go inside. Confirm chamber access before making a special trip, and treat the mound and its setting as the draw if the chamber is closed. Naul sits in a genuinely old landscape: the earthworks of Knockbrack hill-fort and its tumuli mark much later Bronze- and Iron-Age settlement above the Delvin valley.
Two castles, two counties
Naul grew up where the River Delvin marks the boundary between County Dublin and Meath, and the border still carries a castle on each bank. On the Dublin side is the Black Castle, a ruined tower house known variously as the Castle of the Roches, Cruise’s Castle or simply Naul Castle. Across the water in Meath stands the White Castle, built of lighter stone – the two were a matched pair guarding the crossing.
The surviving Black Castle tower is 15th-century, but there was a castle here from the late 12th century, when Anglo-Norman settlers set up a manor. The De Geneville family built the first one; around 1200 the manor passed by marriage to Stephen de Crues, who is also credited with the small medieval church nearby.
The river and the falls
Below the village the Delvin runs through steep wooded banks, with cliffs rising to about 20 metres at one point. There is a natural waterfall on the river, the Waterfall of the Roches. Much of the land along the valley is private, so enjoy the river scenery from public roads.
Traditional music at the Séamus Ennis centre
The Séamus Ennis Arts Centre is named for the uilleann piper, folklorist and song collector who grew up in the area. It opened on 23 October 2001, converted over five years from a pair of cottages, and presents live music, film and other events. Check its programme before you go.
The 2019 community dig
During National Heritage Week 2019, Naul Community Council ran an excavation in Sexton’s Field, the plot just north of the old graveyard. Nearly 40 volunteers turned up medieval pottery, a plough pebble and clear evidence of cultivation running from the 13th right through to the 19th century, confirming the field as farmland within the medieval manor the whole way through. The findings were written up in a public heritage guide.
Getting there
Naul is north of Dublin, off the M1 towards Drogheda. Use the TFI journey planner for current services to Naul and plan any onward travel separately. The village is small and its food options are few, so bring what you need for a meal.
Nearby
- Balbriggan – a seaside town with a harbour, a sandy beach and cafés.
- Lusk – a round tower, medieval church and heritage centre.
- Ardgillan Castle – an 18th-century house in parkland above the Irish Sea.
- Drogheda – medieval walls, St Peter’s Church and the Boyne.