7 Cross Street Boutique Hotel, Galway 3.29

If the stone walls of this centuries-old building could talk, they would undoubtedly have countless tales to tell. 7 Cross Street is almost as old as the city of Galway itself, and has a long and fascinating history.

7 Cross Street is located in the heart of Galway’s Latin Quarter, home to some of the city’s best and brightest restaurants, bars and cafes.

People were sleeping in these rooms when Shakespeare’s plays were first being performed, when the French Revolution was happening, and when the American Civil War was raging. Closer to home, the streets below have seen foreign invaders, famine escapees, famous poets and visiting US presidents walking.

Galway City began as a crossing point on the River Corrib and was granted a charter and city status in 1484 by King Richard III. It was in this era that 7 Cross Street was first established.

The most westerly point of Europe, Galway prospered and quickly developed a strong tradement with the continent, most especially Spain. 7 Cross Street was built as a lodging house for Spanish merchants, traders and ship’s captains.

Following the Cromwellian Siege in 1652, the building was occupied for a time by the English invaders. Given that the hotel was then considered one of the finest medieval buildings in the city, Cromwell himself is thought to have slept here.

7 Cross Street served at various times as a private townhouse to prosperous merchants, a lodging house for travellers and for one brief period, as a notorious bordello. The bordello was forced to close shop in 1686 when Dominican nuns moved into the adjoining building (which is now Busker Brown’s pub).

During the Great Irish Famine - or the “Great Hunger” - between 1845 and 1852, 7 Cross Street housed the captains of the famine ships that carried tens of thousands of starving Irish emigrants across the Atlantic to the relative safety of America.

Thankfully, happier and more prosperous times followed. In the late 1800s, the wealthy businessman Richard Martin, founder of the RSPCA - who lived in the Cross Street corner house (now Neachtain’s pub) - built a theatre for his actress wife in Kirwan’s Lane. 7 Cross street then regularly played host to visiting troupes of actors, playwrights and musicians.

So take a moment to stand still and listen carefully to what these walls are telling you… and hear the whispers of soldiers, sailors, ships captains, poets and performers far from home, regaling you with stories of war and conflict, love and laughter, creativity and drama, friendship, warmth, comfort and a real Irish welcome.

Stay with us and become a part of 7 Cross Street and someday these walls be well be whispering about you.