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Go to the centre of Eyre Square, and there you will find the Quincentennial Fountain, put there in 1984 to mark the five-hundreth anniversary of the granting of a Charter to the city by King Richard III (1484). Galway had already been founded long before, in 1232, by Norman warlord Richard de Burgo, but the Charter finally freed the city from the feudal lordship of the de Burgo family, and established the rule of the fourteen major families - the famous 'Tribes of Galway' (Athy, Blake, Bodkin, Browne, Darcy, Deane, French, Joyce, Kirwan, Lynch, Martin, Morris, Skerritt). These families were the descendants of the settlers who came to Galway after the Norman invasion of Connacht. Near the fountain is one of the monuments of these families - the Browne Doorway, once the entrance to that families' mansion which stood in the town. Note the intricate carvings, particularly the coats of arms, over the door.
Near the doorwar are two cannon - booty of the Crimean War which were presented to the city of Galway by the local British Army regiment, the Connacht Rangers. Also there is the statue of local author Paraic O'Connaire, who was active in the Gaelic Revival. Just above the green space is a plaque ot President of the United States, John Fitzgerald Kennedy who was made a Freeman of Galway on this spot in 1963. At the south end of the square is the massive pile of the Great Southern Hotel (1), built in the 1850s after the linking of Galway and Dublin by rail. This was a decisive event in the history of Galway, bringing to an end a long isolation and giving the West is first all-year-round means of land communication. Near this end of the square, you will find the Bank of Ireland at no. 19(2). In this establishment, you will find an exhibition of the city's antique ceremonial sword and mace, returned to Galway after a long stay in foreign hands. Continue on through the bank and at the back of the Eyre Square Shopping Centre you will find restored some of the old walls of the city. The 'old city' of Galway stood between this point and the river. Our walk will take us through it. The most convenient way is to go back to Eyre Square and go to the top corner, following the route on the map.
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