Clanmalira Castle (in Ruins) — Ballybrittas

It is not clear if Glenmalyre Castle is the same fortification as Ballybrittas Castle that was depicted in the 18th century by a Reverend Seymour (Harbison 1991, 74). This was the castle of the O'Dempsies which according to the History of the Queen's County was located at Old Ballybrittas (O'Hanlon and O'Leary 1907, vol. 1, 288). The 1563 map of Leix and Offaly shows the Castle of Ballybrittas in the territory of Glenmaliry (O'Flanagan 1933, vol. 1, p. 81). The castle is also shown on the Down Survey (1655-6) map as the castle of Balibrittas [Ballybrittas]. This castle was illustrated by Reverend Seymour in a drawing with the title, 'The Castle of Ballybritis [Ballybrittas] in the Queen's County' (Harbison 1991, 74). Harbison was uncertain about its locateion and he states that, ' 'Ballybritis’, as Bernager spells it, is probably identical with the Ballybrittas between the towns of Monasterevan and Portlaoise on the road from Dublin to Cork and Limerick. Emo Court is the only building of distinction within miles of the village, and the first edition of the Ordnance Survey map for the area, prepared in 1839, does not mark the site of any castle in the townland of Ballybrittas. As there would appear to be no other place named Ballybrittas or Ballybrittis in what was formerly Queen’s County, now County Laois, one is forced to the conclusion that the castle originally drawn by the Revd Seymour must have totally disappeared. Nevertheless, we should be grateful that the drawing was made, as this is the only surviving illustration of the castle, and because it adds one more to their number in a county which never seems to have had very many of them. From the drawing we can at least conclude that the east wall contained a fireplace in each of three storeys, and that the smoke from them issued forth through two chimney-stacks of lozenge-shaped cross-section, which would help to date the structure to some period not too far removed from the year 1600’ (Harbison 1991, 74). The drawing shows that at this time the castle or fortified house consisted of a single upstanding gable with a partial remains of one sidewall return standing three storeys high. There was a fireplace at each floor level in the gable, the flues of which fed into a double diamond-shaped chimney stack rising from the apex of the gable. In 1794 the castle was described as being located on the right hand side of the road coming from Monasterevan and opposite Bellgrove House [now Rathdaire House) then the residence of Mr. Fitzgerald, 'are the ruins of Ballybrittas castle' (Tyner & Taylor 1794, 52) The castle of Ballybrittas appears to be the same castle as that indicated on the six-inch map as 'Clanmalira Castle'. There appears to be some confusion as to the exact location of the castle. The site of Glenmalire Castle is not marked on the 1838 or 1888 editions of the OS 6-inch maps, only Glenmalire House is shown. The 1906 edition of the OS 6-inch map marks the location of 'Clanmalier Castle (site of)' to the W of Glenmalyre House. According to the OS Name Books of 1959 the 1906 edition of the OS 6-inch map shows Glenmalire Castle (in Ruins) in the wrong location. The site of this castle was located in the field to the E of Glenmalire House and not tot he west as shown on the 1906 edition. According to the OS Name Books of 1959 the castle is incorrectly shown on the OS map as "in Ruins" and the site should have been located a 'few chains east of Glenmalyre House' (OS Name Books 1959). Architectural fragments of late medieval date from Glenmalire Castle were found in the soil which filled the external area around the basment of Glenamalyre House. The fragments were uncovered when the current owners were clearing out the soil on the external face of the basement of Glenmalire House. One of the fragments consists of a limestone mullion of an unglazed twin light window of late sixteenth or early seventeenth century date. The second fragment is a late sixteenth century mullion of an unglazed window with chequerboard pattern on external face of chamfered limestone mullion. The third fragment consists of a limestone chamfered jambstone of a window from Ballybrittas castle it has three chamfered and punch dressed faces along with a strap hole for a metal tie to secure a second jambstone. All of the dressed stones are of late sixteenth or early seventeenth century in date and appear to be the parts of the fabric of Ballybrittas Castle. A fourth fragment has been used as part of a bell tower on a nineteenth century outhouse to the E of Glenmalyre House, this sandstone fragment appears to be part of the cornicing around the top of a seventeenth century fortified house, it has a concave chamfer and may have been part of a decorative cornice around the top of the walls of a seventeenth century fortified house. It is different from the limestone chamfered fragments, this may indicate two different buildings or two phases of construction, one of which may have been a tower house which later had a fortified house attached to it. 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. Compiled by Caimin O'Brien Date of upload/revision: 28 December 2011