Castle (in Ruins) — Rathcoffey Demesne

National Monument No. 404. Prominently sited on the SE shoulder of a hill in arable land, slightly upslope, c. 50m to the NW, of a 14th century, de Wogan castle (KD010-018001-) which was later incorporated into a 17th century fortified house (KD010-018004-) and 18th century mansion (KD010-018005-). Low earthworks (KD010-018003-) to N and E may mark late 18th/19th century landscaped gardens associated with an extant walled-garden to the S, and are visible on an aerial photograph (CUCAP, BDU036) Two sections of the Pale Boundary Ditch survive nearby; c. 2 miles to NNW (KD010-001----) and c. 1300m to SSW (KD010-021----). A three-storied rectangular structure with caphouse (ext. dims. L 10.5m N-S; max. Wth 7.1m E-W; av. wall T 1.1m) built of unbattered, coursed masonry with roughly dressed quoins, comprises the E wall of a tall and otherwise robbed-out, central round-arched passageway (Wth 3.2m) orientated on an E-W axis with a loop above at second-floor level, and flanked at S by a small, poorly preserved, roofless rectangular guardroom (int. dims. L 3.06m E-W; Wth 1m N-S) and at N by a larger, fairly well-preserved rectangular tower (int. dims. L 4.7m E-W; Wth 2.5m N-S). The guardroom is entered from the central passageway through a narrow, round-headed doorway at the E end of its N wall. The E wall survives to three stories in height and contains a narrow round-headed doorway at first-floor level. The S and W walls are almost levelled, but traces of a window-jamb in the S wall and an embrasure in the W wall survive at ground-floor level. A late-19th century drawing (Murphy 1890-91, 119) shows a chimney stack atop the S wall, a garderobe-ope in the W wall and short portions of a bawn wall running off to N and S, while in a 1940 sketch-plan (SMR File) Leask indicates a projecting chimney-flue and an ogee-headed window in the S wall at first-floor level, and that the W-arch of the central passageway was intact: none of these features survive. The larger tower is entered from the central passageway through a tall, narrow, round-headed doorway mid-way along its S wall, which also contains two cupboards at its E end. A shallow embrasure in the SW corner contains a plain, lintelled-doorway giving access to a spiral stairs (int. diam. 1.37m) which is accommodated by the slight external projection of the SW angle. There is a broad, flat-arched alcove containing a concrete feeding-trough in the W wall and the N wall contains a blocked-up loop at its E end and a centrally placed blocked-up fireplace whose flue projects externally from second-floor level. The ground-floor has been converted into a carriage-house/stables and a wide (Wth 2.2m) flat, red-bricked archway is inserted into the E wall. A vaulted-arch (orientated E-W) covered the ground-floor but only its scar line is visible in the N wall, and later joist-holes (H 2.7m above ground) in the S wall mark first-floor level. The spiral stairs is lit by four loops (one looking W between ground/first-floor level; one looking S between first/second-floor-level; one looking W at second-floor level, and one looking W between second-floor level and cap-house). The stairs gives access to the first floor via a plain doorway with a missing lintel, in the SW angle. First-floor level is lit by a broad, round-headed window in the E wall and there is a blocked (double-splayed?) loop in the N wall. The S wall is re-faced with red brick, and a broad alcove in the W wall has concrete repair work. At second-floor level two plain doorways lead off the stairs: one to a small garderobe chamber (int. dims. L 1.68m N-S; Wth 0.81m) with a partially robbed, lintelled roof, in the W wall, lit by a double-splayed loop in its N wall, (with the chute-ope on the outer wall face near ground-level); and the other to second-floor level which would have extended S over the central passageway but whose S wall is gone. This level is lit by a fine twin-light, ogee-headed window in the E wall and a broad, round-headed window in the N wall, which also contains a blocked fire place. Corbels projecting inwards from the tops of the E and W walls would have carried a wall walk. The small rectangular cap-house is inaccessible as the top steps of the stairs are robbed-out. It was lit by a loop in its W wall, and two doorways, at N and S, gave access to the now destroyed battlements. May date to late 15th/early 16th century. (Harbison 1975,126; Bence-Jones 1978,239; Quirke 2011, 104-124) Compiled by: Gearóid Conroy Date of upload: 13 December 2011