What is recorded here

Castle, unclassified in Banada: a 1.5m limestone plinth beneath the north chancel wall of Banada Abbey, possibly the lost base of a mid-13th-century castle built by Maurice Fitzgerald. It has no tower, chamber or doorway left to prove the claim, only height and position on sloping ground. That much is enough to imagine a fortress swallowed by a church, its rooms forgotten while its foundation still holds the wall above.

Lynn (1985-6, 95-8) suggested than the battered plinth (H 1.5m) of coursed limestone under the N chancel wall of Banada Abbey (SL037-068001-) is the remains of a mid-13th-century castle erected by Maurice Fitzgerald. Apart from being slightly battered, the plinth shows no other 'castle' features. Lynn's suggestion that it is unusual to find the E end of such a church built on steeply sloping ground can be countered by sites such as Buttevant (Power et al. 2000, Inv. no. 14871) and Timoleague (Power et al. 1992, Inv. no. 3065) in county Cork. The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Sligo' compiled by Ursula Egan, Elizabeth Byrne, Mary Sleeman with Sheila Ronan and Connie Murphy (Dublin Stationery Office, 2005). Date of upload: 18 January 2008

Maurice Fitzgerald is believed to have built a mid-13th-century castle at Banada, the remains of which are identified as a battered plinth under the north chancel wall of Banada Abbey. The site is historically significant as it connects to the Fitzgerald family, an influential Norman lineage in Ireland.

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