County Carlow Military Museum

About the museum

The County Carlow Military Museum was founded in 1995 and opened to the public in 1996 in the headquarters of the local Army Reserve. Its first display was the uniform of a young local soldier who had died in a helicopter crash in 1995. In 2001 the museum moved to a nineteenth-century church in the grounds of St Dympna's Hospital on the Athy Road, a building that contains stained glass by the German artist August Weckbecker.

The displays follow Carlow's military history from the Middle Ages, with replica armour and a scale model of Carlow Castle, through the 1798 Rebellion, the First World War trench, the Irish War of Independence and Civil War, and the Second World War. They include uniforms of the Irish Defence Forces from the founding of the state to the present and a section on Irish service in United Nations peacekeeping in the Congo, Lebanon and Somalia.

The collection was donated by the families of former service men and women, and the museum is run by volunteers. It also has a research library and archive and organises events and school tours.

Highlights

• 1798 Rebellion display with weapons, uniforms and personal accounts
• Replica First World War trench
• Irish Defence Forces uniforms and UN peacekeeping displays
• Scale model of Carlow Castle
• Nineteenth-century church with stained glass by August Weckbecker

Permanent exhibitions

• 1798 Rebellion – Weapons, uniforms and personal accounts of the United Irishmen rising in Carlow.
• World War I – Medals, letters from the front and the stories of Carlow men who served, with a replica trench.
• Irish Defence Forces and UN peacekeeping – Uniforms and equipment of the Irish Defence Forces and of Irish peacekeeping missions.

Founded

1995

Admission & discounts

Prices are taken from the Carlow tourism listing; the museum's own website does not publish admission prices.

Accessibility

• Wheelchair accessible: no information
• Elevator: no information
• Accessible restroom: no information
• Accessible parking: no information
• Service dogs welcome: no information
• Tactile models & exhibits: no information
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description: no information

No accessibility information is published.

Kids & families

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Getting there & parking

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Amenities & dining

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

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