Pucks Castle — Rathmichael

The building known locally as Puck's Castle (Caisleán an Phúca) is located on the N side of a mountain in a field of pasture that falls away steeply to the N. The castle appears to have been located beside a mountain pass/roadway known locally as 'Barnaderg' which is annotated in the adjoining field to the S of the castle on the 1837 ed. OSi 6-inch map. Rathmichael round tower (DU026-050004-), church (DU026-050002-) and graveyard (DU026-050003-) lies 600m to NNE. Hillfort (DU026-048001-) overlooking Barnaderg stands 220m to SSE. Shankill Castle (DU026-052001-) stands 1km to SSE, Ballycorus Castle (DU026-044001-) 1.2km to the SW and Laughanstown Castle (DU026-093----) lies 1.4km to the N. Castle situated in the parish of Rathmichael (Ráth Michíl), in the barony of Rathdown (Ráth an Dúin). No castle is depicted at this location annotated 'Mountain' on the 17th-century Down Survey parish map of Rathmichael. Annotated 'Puck Castle in Ruines' on Rocque's 1762 Map of County Dublin where it is depicted as consisting of two buildings with a rectangular bawn or enclosure attached to the N side of a large L-shaped building (https://doi.org/10.48495/mg74qp03f). Castle and bawn (DU026-049002-) described by E. R. Dix in 1897 as follows; 'In a field, not far westward from old Rathmichael Churchyard, stands this Castle of simple oblong form. It has been inhabited in comparatively modern times, as the appearance of brickwork inside testifies plainly, as well as the external plaster which so much disfigures the north side. Through the thoughtful care and generosity of Mr. Orpen (on whose land the Castle stands), a flat roof (or floor) was made, and carefully cemented outside, by means of which the interior is well protected from rain or storm, and the preservation of the building is greatly assisted. Unfortunately, the side here first presented to the visitor (facing roughly the north) is very unattractive owing to its being entirely covered with modern plaster, and the windows and doorway are of the plainest description externally, having no doubt been improved by much later hands than those of the original founders. The Castle is a small one, an oblong with one slight projection of about 1 ft. 10 in. [0.55m] on the north side at the N.E. corner. The subjoined diagram will roughly indicate the ground plan. The external measurements are as follows: The east side is 24ft. 11 in. [7.6m]; the west 22ft. 10 in. [7m]. The total length measured on the north side, and including the projection, is 33ft. 8 in. [10.25m]. The walls are thick; that forming the south wall is about 3ft. 10 in. [1.16m] near the base. The doorway in the west side is 4½ft. [1.4m] wide; that in the north side is 4 ft. [1.2m] The first stairway leads only to the first floor, and has eleven stone steps. The floors have disappeared, but the second floor when existent was gained by a similar flight of steps directly over the first, and from the foot of these steps by a short circular stairway, in a small turret, the roof was reached. The slight projection on the north side (6ft. 5 in. [1.95m] by 1 ft. 10 in. [0.55m]) held "garderobes" on the first and second floor. It is not a stair turret. That of the south wall is only 23ft. 8 in. [7.2m], as the ground rises on this side. The north wall measured 30ft. 9 in. [9.4m]. The highest part is only 31ft. 10 in. [9.7m], and this is at the north west corner, where portion of a small stair-turret still remains. In the west wall of the castle, at the right hand side, on the ground floor, is a door-way, 4ft. 6 in. [1.4m] wide. To the left of the doorway, and occurring one above the other, are two ordinary flat-headed windows that might be modern, or ancient windows altered in later times. At the left hand side of the wall is a small loop window. It is within this wall that the staircases lie, one above the other, running parallel with the wall. One peculiar feature observable on this side is, that the wall inclines in a little above the drip-stone ledge as it approaches the top, for about two-thirds of its length. The portion that does not so incline goes straight up to the little turret which forms the highest part of the castle. The drip-stone ledge divides the turret from the wall of the castle. Passing round to the south side, we find the wall pierced with a doorway to the left hand side, and a window placed about the centre, with a smaller one above it. The lower window is too broken at the top to tell of what exact form its lintel originally was, bat the upper window is square. The battlement or parapet at the top of this wall is broken down a good deal. On the right side there is a peculiarity observable, viz., a kind of shoot, somewhat resembling a chimney flue, which runs down from inside the battlement and opens out some distance above the ground. It does not appear to have been used as a protection to any doorway beneath it. It might have been originally carried lower down than now appears. The east wall has an opening in it, but it is irregular in shape, and may have been simply a breach made in the wall at some time. There is also some trace of a window or opening of some kind high up, but now built up. What it can have been I cannot tell, as the chimney flues are very close to it inside. Coming round to the north side (already referred to as being covered with modern plaster), we find at the left hand side, in the slightly projecting portion, two small loop windows. There appears also in this projecting portion to be some kind of shoot, as there is a small opening at the bottom level with the ground. In the rest of this wall there are four windows and a doorway. The doorway is 4ft. [1.2m] wide, and square-headed. The windows are all plain, and most probably some, if not all, were pierced or modified in later days. The battlement on this side is broken. Above the drip-stone ledge which runs at the foot of the battlement, are four large gutter openings about the centre. Coming inside, we find the chimney flues are on the east side. There is one long flue from a fireplace on the ground floor, and another joining into it from the first floor. It is evident from the brickwork appearing here and there inside, that this castle must have been inhabited in quite modern times. Besides the two garde-robes one above the other, off the first and second floors referred to in my last article, there is a small chamber on the ground floor at the north west corner with a small square recess running far into the centre of the west wall. The castle itself is apparently built on the rock, which crops out from the walls and floor, and renders the latter in parts uneven. There is a small splayed window on the south side is the ground-floor chamber. The inner wall, forming one side of the stairway, is 2ft. 3 in. [0.7m] thick ; the south wall is over 4ft. [1.2m] thick. The internal measurements of the castle are 22ft. 2 in. [6.75m] in length and 14ft. 7 in. [4.4m] wide. On the south side are five or six large gutter openings, but there are none visible on either the west or east sides. In few of the castles such as I have been writing of are there any traces of the out-works, but here there are evident traces that this castle was surrounded by a large bawn or yard, probably divided into parts, as we find, though all more or less grass-covered, distinct traces of the lines running from the castle northward some distance, and then turning at right angles for about 31 paces eastward, then running southward for a considerable distance, then turning again at right angles westward, and finally turning up northward again and joining the side of the castle. Besides, to the east side of the castle there are distinct traces of some kind of building (DU026-049002-), which if not attached to the castle, closely adjoined it on that side. In the outer yard of the castle, or bawn, there is also what appears somewhat like a well (DU026-049003-), partly circular in f