What is recorded here

Ashgrove is a bawn in County Cavan where an 18th-century house sits atop massive vaulted foundations from an earlier 17th-century castle. A surviving wall section south of the house still shows arched recesses flanked by engaged masonry columns, hinting at a grander defensive perimeter now buried beneath gardens and time. The castle itself has vanished, but its bones remain visible in the depth of the floor and the rhythm of the remaining arches.

The current house at Ashgrove is an 18th-century structure. However, Davies (1948a, 113) recorded that this house stands on massive foundations and vaults, which he believed, belonged to an earlier 17th-century castle. In addition, he identified portion of what may have been the former bawn wall at S (T c. 0.6m), 'built with a row of arched recesses flanked by engaged masonry-columns', W of the house. The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Cavan' (Dublin: Stationery Office, 1995). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Date of upload: 13 April, 2016

The castle at Ashgrove was likely built in the 17th century, with its current 18th-century house erected on its foundations. It is remembered for providing insight into early modern domestic architecture and the evolution of country houses in the region.

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