Martello Tower

Portaine Martello Tower No. 7 (Kerrigan 1995, 174). According to Kerrigan (1995, 168) construction of the Dublin area Martello Towers and their batteries commenced in 1804 under the supervision of Colonel Benjamin Fisher of the Royal Engineers and by December 1805 all towers were armed and complete. Kerrigan (ibid.) recorded that; 'Twelve towers were constructed north of Dublin: each tower mounted one 24-pounder, apart from the tower on Ireland's Eye with two 24-pounders. No batteries were constructed with these towers'. Situated on the cliff edge E of Portraine above the slipway. After the end of the Napoleonic Wars , the tower was occupied by an invalid Gunner and in 1826 the tower was owned by the Coast Guard (Bolton et al. 2012, 167). It was retained by the War Department into the 20th century. It has been converted into a residence with a conservatory attached to the ground floor. Machicolation is in place above the entrance in the W. A chimney has been inserted (Kerrigan 1995, 175). See attached plan of Portraine Martello Tower No. 7 courtesy of the Irish Military Archives - Archival Reference Code: IE/MA/MPD/ad134121-006 Photo ©Maj Adev https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Irl_Portrane_Martello_tower.jpg DU012-010----_03 Patrick Healy Collection, https://hdl.handle.net/10599/1381, © South Dublin Libraries, Local Studies Collection, County Library, Town Centre, Tallaght, Dublin 24 See attached Taylor's 1816 Map showing the location of the Martello Tower. Taylor, J. 1816 Taylor's map of the environs of Dublin: extending 10 to 14 miles from the castle, by actual survey, on a scale of 2 inches to one mile. Compiled by: Geraldine Stout Revised by: Caimin O'Brien Date of revised upload: 24 January 2023