Castle

A castle at Baqllinlugge is marked on the Strafford map of c. 1636 (Simington 1949, Athlone (489)) and the quarter amounting to 208 acres was owned by Sir Charles Coote in 1641 and after the Cromwellian settlement (idem. 127). Situated on a shelf on a N-facing slope overlooking a turlough c. 120m to the N. The castle is a rectangular grass-covered area (dims 16.3m E-W; c. 8m N-S) defined by scarps at E (H 0.8m) and S (H 0.7-0.9m) and an earthen bank (Wth 6m; H 0.3-0.5m) at W. The N edge cannot be identified but a lime-kiln (RO041-007004-), visible as a grass-covered mound (dims 7m N-S; 5.7m E-W; H 0.2-0.4m), has been built into its NE angle and a quarry (diam. 6m; D 0.6-0.9m) has been dug in the interior. It is surrounded by an open area (dims c. 80m N-S; c. 50m E-W), but two rectangular fields (RO041-007001-) (dims 56m E-W; 35m N-S: 80m E-W; 35m N-S), defined by earthen banks (Wth c. 3m; H 0.5-0.9m), are associated to the W, and a subrectangular field (dims 41m N-S; 26-30m E-W) is to the E. The SW corner of the open space is occupied by a sub-rectangular grass-covered quarry (RO041-007005-) (dims 31m E-W; 23m N-S; max. D 1m), while a roadway (RO041-007003-) defined by earthen banks approaches from the S (Wth c. 6m; L c. 60m) and departs to the ENE (L 32m) and then N (Wth 5-10m; L 125m). Compiled by: Michael Moore Date of upload: 24 August 2010

Sir Charles Coote held the castle at Ballinlig in 1641, and it remained in his possession after the Cromwellian settlement. It is remembered as part of the broader historical context of land ownership and conflict in 17th-century Ireland.