We are delighted to offer primary schools tours of the nearby historic Goldenbridge Cemetery.
Goldenbridge Cemetery, located beside Richmond Barracks in the heart of Inchicore, was Ireland’s first garden cemetery and non-denominational burial ground, founded by Daniel O’Connell almost 200 years ago.
Below, our Historian in Residence for Children, Dervilia Roche, tells us about the school tours and how they were developed. The tours were created through working collaboratively with children and teachers in the local area.
“In developing the school tours, we worked with local school children and teachers from Gaelscoil Inse Chór and Our Lady of Lourdes National School to hear their opinions on the most important and interesting parts of the tour. We listened to their ideas about how we could make the tours engaging for schools.
“The tours are all about storytelling, and finding fun ways of exploring our rich Irish history through stories. We talked with the children about the mysterious underground vaults, the armed guards and Cuban bloodhounds, and about the ways the cemetery was protected from body snatchers.
“We also worked with teachers to make sure the tours were relevant and curriculum-linked, with some of the links including O’Connell, Catholic Emancipation, and 1916.
You can see more information about the tours including booking details here.
The school tours link to many parts of the primary history curriculum, as students learn about the 1916 Easter Rising, Daniel O’Connell, epidemics, and changes in religious practices. It is also an opportunity for exploring local history, as well as learning about the ways grave markers can be used as historical sources.
Here’s what a student and a teacher said about the school tour:
"Pat was very engaging and children really enjoyed it! Pitched at the correct level just enough information" - 6th class teacher
“I liked the way Pat was telling us cool facts about the cemetery” - 5th class student
To book a school tour, contact us at info@richmondbarracks.ie or 01 524 2532.
Posted 24 September 2025
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