Markree Castle — Markree Demesne

In undulating pasture, in a mature demesne landscape. The remains of a 17th-century house survive where they were incorporated into the SW end of the present 18th/19th-century Markree Castle. The 17th-century remains consist of three walls (T 1.35m), three storeys high, built of random rubble limestone with roughly dressed quoins. The SW wall (L 19.1m) retains its full length, the NW wall (L 20.9m) is incomplete, whilst there is only a short return (L 5.85m) of the SE wall. Numerous window and door opes have been inserted into the walls. The NW wall has a slight external base-batter. A very slight ledge, on the exterior wall-face, marks the division between the basement and ground floor. According to O'Rorke ([1889], vol. 2, 349) the earlier house was built by Cornet Cooper in the middle of the 17th century. Markree Castle was rebuilt in the 18th century as a three-storey structure and in 1802 it was enlarged and castellated; in 1866 it was further enlarged and remodelled (Bence-Jones 1988, 201-2). The demesne retains many estate features including ornate gothic gateways built in the 1830s (Howley 1993, 98 and fig. 162) and a large icehouse. Two raths (SL026-039----; SL026-075----), a circular enclosure (SL026-072----) and a possible earthwork (SL026-166----) are within the demesne. The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Sligo' compiled by Ursula Egan, Elizabeth Byrne, Mary Sleeman with Sheila Ronan and Connie Murphy (Dublin Stationery Office, 2005). Date of upload: 18 January 2008