Castle in ruins — Kinlough

In pasture, on the W bank of a modern canalised section of the Black River. The castle is prominently sited on a rocky rise, commanding excellent views over a broad sweep of lowlying terrain which stretches c. 400m S to the Galway border. There is a medieval church (MA123-048----) 80m to E. Kinlough Castle is a National Monument in state ownership (no. 95). Rectangular four-storey building (ext. 11.10m N−S; 12.7m E−W; int. 5.8m N−S; 7.8m E−W) of mortared limestone rubble, with a deep base batter (H 3.2m) of large rough rubble; it stands to full height, the roof is missing and the interior gutted. Gables that would have carried the steep-pitched roof rise directly from the top of the E and W walls, confining the wall-walk to the N and S sides; three tall chimneys rise from parapet level, one close to the NE angle, and two diagonally-set chimneys on the W side, one set in from the NW angle and one from the SE angle, on either side of the gable. There are no crenellations. The N and S walls each have a row of four gutter stones/water spouts projecting from wall-walk level. A machicolation projects at second floor level from the N end of the W wall. The doorway is at the E end of the S wall, opening through the base batter. It retains a flat voussoir head but it is broken out at the sides, the jambs robbed. A broken hanging eye remains on the inner E side of the doorway, and there are two drawbar sockets, one c. 0.55-0.6m above the other, on the W side. Windows are stacked in a vertical row in the centre of the N and E walls, one at each storey. In the N wall two gun loops pierce the base batter, one on either side of the central window at ground floor level. The W wall has a central window at ground floor, first floor and second floor; small windows at third floor level are blocked up. There is a small lintelled window toward the E end of the S wall at second floor level and a larger blocked up opening towards the W end of the wall at the same level, and two small windows remain relatively intact at the uppermost floor. In general, the windows inserted into the base batter appear to have been loops and those at upper floor levels were larger rectangular windows, but almost all are now broken out, robbed of their dressed stone surrounds or lintels. In the interior stone corbels, which carried timber floor/ceiling beams, still project from the N and S wall at each floor level, and the shadow of a staircase can be seen in the S wall face. There are two large fireplaces, one built across the SW angle at first floor level, the other spanning the NW angle at second floor level. A third fireplace can be seen high on the N wall at its E end at third floor or attic level. There is no evidence of a garderobe. Remnants of render still adhere to the walls. Two later drystone field walls abut the NE and NW corners of the castle and the E and S sides are railed off by OPW. Kinlough Castle is interesting for its long history of occupation, with successive phases of modifications and remodelling carried out over the several centuries imprinted in the fabric of the building. It appears to have begun life, probably in the late 13th century, as a hall house, most likely two-storey in height with entrance at first floor level; the base batter with its rather rough appearance survives from this phase. In the later medieval period it was remodelled into a tower house, when the ground floor doorway was inserted and two more storeys with timber floors, a machicolation and a gable roof were added. Windows too underwent modification, with some early small opes blocked up at a later stage or replaced with larger windows. Gun loops were inserted in 16th century. A final phase of refurbishment, probably in the late 16th century/early 17th century, saw the insertion of the fireplaces and the three tall chimney stacks, the two diagonally-set examples at the W end of the roof being typical of a style fashionable in the first half of the 17th century. The second floor fireplace at the NW angle blocked access to the machicolation, obviously considered obsolete by that stage. It was a castle of the Bourkes, descendants of the Anglo-Norman de Burghs. It is annotated ‘MacWilliam’s House’ on a map drawn in 1584 by John Browne, Sheriff of Co. Mayo. This refers to the MacWilliam Íochtar, the title assumed by the elected chief of the Bourke clan in Mayo; at that date Richard fitzOliver Bourke held the title, following the death in 1583 of the previous chief, Sir Richard fitzDavid Bourke . It remained a Bourke possession until 1629 when it was mortgaged to Valentine Blake of Menlough (Blake 1909, 95-96). MA123-047----_01.JPG S wall; doorway at E end of wall MA123-047----_02.JPG W wall with ruined machicolation at N end (at L) MA123-047----_03.JPG N wall MA123-047----_04.JPG E wall MA123-047----_05.JPG Gutter-stones projecting from top of S wall MA123-047----_06.JPG Doorway with drawbar sockets on W side MA123-047----_07.JPG Diagonal chimneys at W gable MA123-047----_08.JPG Interior: fireplaces at SW angle (lower left) and NE angle (upper right) MA123-047----_09.JPG Fireplace at SW angle –first floor MA123-047----_10.JPG Interior: E wall Compiled by: Jane O’Shaughnessy Date of upload: 6 January 2022