What is recorded here

A splayed limestone block from the lost castle of Castlegregory still stands behind Egan's shop, its keyhole opening perhaps shaped to guide a musket ball through stone. Walter Hussey garrisoned that place during the Cromwellian conquest before fleeing to Minard Castle, leaving behind fragments that men later reused in fireplaces and gardens. The castle vanished entirely by 1841, yet this rough block remains, holding the shape of a weapon and the memory of a house that no longer exists.

Castlegregory (KE027-008----) is probably that which is referred to as the 'House of Hore' by A. O'Daly in his satire 'The Tribes of Ireland' (O'Donovan 1852, 75). By 1601 the castle was in the possession of the Husseys (Fiants Irel. Eliz., No's. 6494, 6498, 6504). During the Cromwellian conquest, probably in 1649, Smith records that Walter Hussey garrisoned the castle, but being pressed by Parliament forces the garrison escaped to Minard Castle where they were subsequently 'blown up by powder' (Smith 1756, 195-6). Though standing in Smith's time, no trace of the castle remained in 1841 (OSL). A number of fragments, some undoubtedly from the Castle, are preserved in a garden at the rear of Egan's shop in Castlegregory: (2) Fig. 216b. A rectangular limestone block with splayed keyhole-shaped opening may have been a musket loop. Hitchcock (1855, 351) records that 2 of these stones were set on either side of a fireplace in a house in Castlegregory. The above description is derived from J. Cuppage, ‘Corca Dhuibhne. Dingle Peninsula archaeological survey. Ballyferriter. Oidhreacht Chorca Dhuibhne’ (1986), no. 1003. In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Date of upload: 9 August 2013

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