Castle (in ruins) — Brittas

Brittas Castle described in 1840 as following; 'In the E. part of the td. of Brittas and on the bank of the River Mulkeir. The ruins of this castle are 140 [42.6m] by 30 feet [9.1m], the walls being in parts 10 feet [3m] high and having the appearance of a tower at each corner. It was built and inhabited, it is said, by Frederick Bourke, who was the first Lord Brittas and son—in—law to Mornane of Carrigarreely, whom he killed. It is also said that, during the Elizabethan Wars, a northern chieftain, advancing southwards, was opposed by Brittas, but forced his way successfully to "Boreen a Charrig", where he slew Lord Brittas and 21 others of the Bourkes' (OSNB Caherconlish Parish, 304). According to the Ordnance Survey Letters; 'The ruins of the Castle of Brittas are situated in the east part of the townland of Brittas on the west bank of the River Mulkeir, which defended one side of this military structure. On the southwest and northwest corners were two round towers, one on each, of which forty feet [12.1m] in height yet remain their diameter inside being sixteen feet [4.87m]. The thickness of the walls is the same with that of the walls of the Castle which is five feet [1.5m]. The wall of the Castle running between them from north to south is twenty eight paces (eighty four feet [25.6m]) long, which is distance they stand from each other, and twenty five feet high. The locality is clevel ground' (OSL Caherconlish Parish, 118). Westropp (1906-7, 96-7) recorded the following details about Brittas Castle; 'It was a chief seat of the Bourkes, Barons of Brittas. In about 1410 Walter Duff Burk assigned to his third son, Tiboit, the seisreachs of Britas, Rath Siurtain, Carraig Ciotal and Baile Loisgche. Tibbot had two sons, Riocaird and Daibhi, who gave their names to families (Rental). Ric. Bourke, brother of Lord Castleconnell, left by his wife (a daughter of O'Mulryan, of Owny) a son, Sir John, who, in 1600, at the approach of Carew, offered to surrender. He, however, "considered it sinful and damnable personally to submit "to the Queen; so Carew forced him into an ignominious surrender. In 1603 he was imprisoned for refusing the oath of supremacy, and on his release, held the C[astle]. against the Government. After a brave defence of fifteen days he fled to Waterford, and was taken, tried, and hanged. His kinsman, Theo. Burke, was given Bryttas and Knockeneagh (Inq. Exch. 23, and paper by J. Grene Barry, R.S.A.I., vol. xix., p. 192). 1609 Theo. "Lord Castleconnell" was granted the C[astle]. (Pat. R.). In the following year he gave much trouble by "his perverse carriage" in trying to seize the lands and title of Lord Castleconnell. It was only by seven months' imprisonment that the Government persuaded him to renounce his claims (C.S.P.L, 430). He was created Baron of Brittas, and in 1633 was confirmed in it and other lands, Knocketencaslean, Grenanbeg, &c. (Ibid.). 1653 Brittas was a garrison: Henry Hayward was paid £5 4s. for its repair (Acc. R., 13n). 1657 Two towers shown (D.S.A., 14-18). Theo., the third Baron, was transplanted and his estates granted to Sir Charles Coote. Charles II. reversed the attainder before 1662. 1673 Elton and Brittas were vested in R. Reading, for use of Countess of Mountrath, under her husband's will, 1658: reversion to R. Coote (Act Sett.). 1691 Lord Brittas fled to France, his estates being forfeited. He succeeded to the titular honours as Lord Castleconnell, and served in Irish Brigade; his son John succeeded, and was a captain in the French army, the younger son Thomas being a general in Sardinia, a " noble-hearted and generous friend to all Irish exiles," and died 1788. His son was a Knight of St. Louis and a captain, and died unmarried about 1796. Fabric - The C[astle]. stands on the west bank of the Mulkear. There are round turrets to the south-west and north-west angles. Each is about 40 feet [12.2m] high, 16 feet [4.9m] inside, and the walls 5 feet [1.5m] thick. The curtain wall between them is 84 feet [25.6m] long and 25 feet [7.6m] high (O.S.L., 8, p. 409. Paper by Mr. J. Grene Barry, R.S.A.I., vol. xix., p. 192)'. Tower-house like castle and a second castle ruins are depicted on the 17th century Down Survey map of Clanwilliam Barony (Hib. Reg.) and on the parish map of Caherconlish (NLI., MS. 718). The 1654-56 Civil Survey of Limerick recorded that Theobald Lord Bourke Baron of Brittas an Irish Papist was the owner of 'two castles and a bawen' (Simington 1938, 63). The precise location of a second castle (LI014-175----) and bawn (LI014-175001-) in the townland of Brittas has not been identified. It is not clear if the reference to the bawn in the 1654-56 Civil Survey refers to Brittas Castle or to a bawn enclosing the unlocated castle. Brittas Castle described by Salter (2004, 68) as follows; 'Beside the Mulkear River are fragments of a 13th century castle of the Burkes. There is a circular corner tower 8m in diameter with a dome vault and a later latrine turret, the two being united higher up by a pair of squinch arches. In the tower are arrow-loops with blank or dummy oillets at top and bottom and on either side. A curtain wall extends to the river and footings of a wall lie along the river bank with signs of a domestic range against it. A second circular NW corner tower survived until at least the 1840s'. In 2012 archaeological excavations under licence No. 12E0251 were undertaken by Niall Brady, the results of which were summarised as follows; 'A rescue excavation was carried out within the interior of Brittas Castle, Co. Limerick, where work had begun to install a slatted pit as an emergency measure to prevent a pollution event in the adjacent Mulkear River. Before an archaeological presence arrived on site, a pit had been machine-excavated within a cutting measuring 12.5m long, 5.7m wide, and 1.95m deep, and the pit had been partially back-filled. The slatted pit is located within the bawn of the castle site, against the north side, which overlooks the Mulkear River. The present-day farmyard surface is covered in concrete slab. Once the back-filled spoil was removed, record was made of the stratigraphy observed in the sides of the pit. A defined sequence of strata extends to the excavated depth of 1.95m from the surface. Two cultural layers were observed within the stratigraphy. A thick deposit of 17th-18th-century material fills the upper level below the concrete slab. This overlies an infill horizon, which in turn overlies a dark grey/black-coloured rich organic clay, measuring c. 0.4m in thickness, with charcoal, animal bone and wood/withy inclusions. No distinctive artefacts were observed in this lower level. A natural gley lies beneath, starting at c. 1.8m below the present-day surface. It may be concluded that excavation of the pit has removed substantive archaeological deposits within the bawn area of the castle site. Archaeological levels survive to some depth and represent at least two distinct chronological periods' (www.excavations.ie No. 389). Compiled by: Caimin O'Brien Date of upload: 30 November 2020