Bawn in Brittas (thurles Par.)

Situated on flat terrain in Brittas Demesne. The original castle (TN041-012001) was burnt c.1820 (Bence-Jones 1988, 48, 293) and the landowner intended replacing it with a full-scale replica of Warwick Castle. This venture was started but never finished due to the tragic death of the landowner. A sketch of the original castle in the possession of the present landowner shows three towers, two square, one circular, with intervening buildings, possibly built onto the bawn wall. The towers are approximately four storeys high with crenellated battlements and hood-mouldings over flat-headed windows and may have been part of the bawn defences. The bawn was mentioned in the Civil Survey (1654-6) (Simington 1931, vol. 1, 55). There is now a nineteenth-century house built on the site. The above description is derived from 'The Archaeological Inventory of County Tipperary. Vol. 1 - North Tipperary' compiled by Jean Farrelly and Caimin O'Brien (Dublin: Stationery Office, 2002). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Date of upload/revision: 22 September 2008

The Bawn in Brittas was associated with the Butler family, who were prominent landowners in the area during the 18th and 19th centuries. It is remembered for the planned, though ultimately unrealized, replacement of the original castle with a full-scale replica of Warwick Castle, reflecting the grand ambitions of the local gentry during the early 19th century.