Date formed: 1474 A.D., Donegal Castle Keep Stairs

Feet trod: Countless

Battles Waged: Unknown

Imaginations Kindled: As many as are willing

Dream a little today; it always makes my day better.  🙂  Slainte, Lisa

*For those interested in more history of the Donegal Castle, check this out:

540 Year Old Trip Stairs

This amazing spiral stairway, built of stone, was designed to give the O’Donnell Chieftain a few strategic advantages during combat . . .

1. The steps are uneven and vary in height, to trip the unsuspecting assailant – hence their name!
2. The steps are narrow, so potential invaders would have to ascend in single file, making it easier to overpower them.
3. The stairway turns clockwise going up.  That gave the right-handedO’Donnells more leeway while sword-fighting defensively downwards.  It also forced any potential invader to either sword-fight with his left hand, or awkwardly maneuver his sword around the stairwell’s solid central axis.

Found on http://www.ourdonegal.com/donegal-castle.html