The Inheritance on location with Cauvery Madhavan

Submitted: 29th September 2024

The Inheritance on location

The Inheritance is set in Glengarriff in the Beara Peninsula, in the very south-west of Ireland.

The Inheritance Cauvery Madhavan

Bookmap of The Inheritance

First of all, there is something about the untamed scenery, its geological formations and fantastical mountains that energizes from within. Precious pockets of ancient Atlantic rainforests, pristine beaches and mystical standing stones dot the landscape. Together they calm the soul, forming a creative cocoon for artists, sculptors, writers and poets who flock there looking for inspiration.

Cauvery Madhaven in Glengarriff National Forest (c) Cauvery Madhavan

It is the remote rural character of this peninsula that captures my character Marlo O’Sullivan’s heart and shapes his destiny in more ways than one. The Inheritance evokes the rich landscape of Beara, its history of conflict and resistance. It is an
unforgettable and lyrical tale of longing, identity and the search to find peace.

Bookmap of The Inheritance

Cable car (c) Cauvery Madhavan

As a writer I often head to our tiny cottage in Glengarriff to immerse myself in my writing. The ancient Beara landscape always works its magic on my senses, getting the best writing out of me. For the last 20 years while I wrote and published three other books, I constantly mulled over the characters in my new novel The Inheritance. Fascinated by the tragic history of O’Sullivan Beare and his people I was determined to work that story into a thread that ran through this book.

Bookmap of The Inheritance

What drove me to center the historic part of the story around how the O’Sullivan clan evaded the English forces and remained hidden in Glengarriff was an amazing discovery. The ridge on which our cottage is situated straddled the ancient
battlegrounds of the very siege that I was trying to weave into my novel. I discovered that in the winter of 1602, the English army had camped in the swampy forests in the valley to the left of our cottage. Meanwhile, in the valley to the right O’Sullivan Beare and his followers had remained hidden for six months. Well, this was a game changer! I felt I was meant to
write this book – to honor the memory of those many hundreds who had perished in what is now Glengarriff National Forest.

At cable car station overlooking Dursey Island (c) Cauvery Madhavan

Bookmap of The Inheritance

All in all, I spent many months living full time in Beara. As I researched and read, I explored in great depth those parts of the peninsula where the story unfolds. All together, I spent many hours a week walking the forests, beaches and high cliffs along the rugged coasts. I also made daytrips via cable car over the sea to Dursey Island, to the site of the Dursey massacre and to see the ancient O’Sullivan family vault. Driving along the Ring Of Beara Loop and walking the marked hiking trails of the Beara-Breifne Way was part of the immense joy of writing this book.

Dursey from mainland

Bookmap of The Inheritance

In order to further research location and setting, I looked up historical documents and contemporaneous accounts of the battles and sieges. And I also examined maps and state papers of the Elizabethan court. I used the work of scholars of Early Modern Ireland as well as geographers, ancient and modern to inform my writing.

Caseys Hotel:

Bookmap of The Inheritance

Finally, if readers want to experience the setting of the book, I would recommend traveling to Bantry. You can use it as a base to explore the Beara peninsula. The village of Glengarriff has a magical setting and Caseys Hotel is real! Further south, there’s Adrigole with superb kayaking and beyond is Castletownbere. This is where the ruins of Dunboy castle can be easily explored on foot. Half an hours drive south of Castletownbere is the cable car station to Dursey Island. When all is said and done, this is an unforgettable place. There’s history singing from every rock and ruin, each meadow and stonewall.