architectureliterary

Mountjoy Square: the north side's only true Georgian square

The one perfect square on the north side, the ghosts of Joyce and O'Casey, the run to Croke Park.

Photo: William Murphy / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0

Drafted by Claude — the editor hasn’t walked this one yet. We’ll update this notice once it’s been verified on the ground.

Distance

2.8 km

Time

~ 60 min

Difficulty

Easy

Start

Connolly (DART / Luas Red Line)

End

Dublin Bus 1 / 11 (Gardiner Street)

Best at

afternoon

Right now

24°C· Mostly clear

Open in Maps for turn-by-turn, or take it offline as GPX.

Mountjoy Square is the one the north side got exactly right — the only truly square Georgian square in Dublin, each of its four sides a measured 140 metres, laid out in the 1790s for the cream of the city before the Act of Union pulled the money south.

Climb up Gardiner Street from Connolly, past terraces that have seen better centuries, and the square opens at the top. Stand at a corner for the symmetry, then walk the east side, where Seán O'Casey lived and set Shadow of a Gunman in the tenement rooms hidden behind the grand fronts. The central garden, locked for years and open again, is the place to sit; from the middle the four ranges close in and the city goes quiet.

Off the south-west corner is Belvedere College, the Jesuit school where Joyce was a boy and which he made the Belvedere of A Portrait of the Artist. Then walk north-east and Croke Park rises over the rooftops — the cathedral of Gaelic games, and the ground of the first Bloody Sunday. Buses home run from Gardiner Street.

The route

On the map.

A soft dashed line, numbered stops. It’s a suggestion, not a turn-by-turn.

Elevation

↑ 22 m·↓ 19 m·6–22 m ASL

Stops along the way

Things to notice.

01
1
Gardiner Street approach
Walk up Gardiner Street from the Connolly end. It climbs steadily, lined with tall faded Georgian terraces that were once the grandest addresses in Dublin. The rise is gentle but real; you feel the square before you see it.
01
Gardiner Street approach
Walk up Gardiner Street from the Connolly end. It climbs steadily, lined with tall faded Georgian terraces that were once the grandest addresses in Dublin. The rise is gentle but real; you feel the square before you see it.
02
2
Mountjoy Square, south side
Arrive at the only genuinely square Georgian square in Dublin — each side exactly 140 metres. Stand at a corner and look along two sides at once. The south and east ranges are the best preserved; the symmetry is the whole reason to come.
02
Mountjoy Square, south side
Arrive at the only genuinely square Georgian square in Dublin — each side exactly 140 metres. Stand at a corner and look along two sides at once. The south and east ranges are the best preserved; the symmetry is the whole reason to come.
03
3
The O'Casey houses, east side
Seán O'Casey lived on the east side and set Shadow of a Gunman in these rooms. The tenement Dublin of his plays was right here, behind the elegant fronts. Read the doors and imagine the crowded floors above them.
03
The O'Casey houses, east side
Seán O'Casey lived on the east side and set Shadow of a Gunman in these rooms. The tenement Dublin of his plays was right here, behind the elegant fronts. Read the doors and imagine the crowded floors above them.
04
4
The central garden
The railed park in the middle, open to the public now after years locked. Go in and sit; from the centre the four ranges close around you and the traffic drops away. The best ten minutes on the north side.
04
The central garden
The railed park in the middle, open to the public now after years locked. Go in and sit; from the centre the four ranges close around you and the traffic drops away. The best ten minutes on the north side.
05
5
Belvedere College, Great Denmark Street
Off the square's south-west corner, the Jesuit school where James Joyce was a pupil — the Belvedere of A Portrait of the Artist. The Georgian house has Michael Stapleton plasterwork inside; from the street, the doorcase is the tell.
05
Belvedere College, Great Denmark Street
Off the square's south-west corner, the Jesuit school where James Joyce was a pupil — the Belvedere of A Portrait of the Artist. The Georgian house has Michael Stapleton plasterwork inside; from the street, the doorcase is the tell.
06
6
Croke Park view, toward Clonliffe
Walk north-east out of the square toward Jones's Road and the great bowl of Croke Park rises ahead — the home of Gaelic games and the site of the first Bloody Sunday in 1920. You needn't go in; the scale from the street is the point. Buses back run from Gardiner Street.
06
Croke Park view, toward Clonliffe
Walk north-east out of the square toward Jones's Road and the great bowl of Croke Park rises ahead — the home of Gaelic games and the site of the first Bloody Sunday in 1920. You needn't go in; the scale from the street is the point. Buses back run from Gardiner Street.

Mountjoy Square: the north side's only true Georgian square

On the map.

Things to notice.

Gardiner Street approach

Gardiner Street approach

Mountjoy Square, south side

Mountjoy Square, south side

The O'Casey houses, east side

The O'Casey houses, east side

The central garden

The central garden

Belvedere College, Great Denmark Street

Belvedere College, Great Denmark Street

Croke Park view, toward Clonliffe

Croke Park view, toward Clonliffe

Two more, on similar days.

The Quays: the Liffey bridges, the boardwalk and the Custom House

Parnell Square: the cultural quarter and the Garden of Remembrance