What is recorded here

Castle is a vanished castle in Castledurrow Demesne, erased before the first survey teams arrived. It may have stood as an episcopal manor, giving orders, keeping heat and holding the shape of local power until the eighteenth century removed it. Its absence is not empty; it is a hole cut through the landscape, waiting for someone to stop asking whether it existed and begin imagining what it felt like to lose.

Not marked on the 1841 or 1906 editions of the OS 6-inch maps. Also known as the Old Episcopal Manor-house or castle, it was demolished in the eighteenth century (Carrigan 1905, vol. 2, 220-1). The precise location of this castle has not been identified. The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Laois' (Dublin Stationery Office, 1995) compiled by P. David Sweetman, Olive Alcock and Bernie Moran. In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Date of upload: 17 December 2007

The monument record does not grant public access. Check the route and ask the landowner before entering private land.