Lackeen castle (in ruins) — Abbeville

National Monument No. 378. A well-preserved four-storey tower (ext. dims. 10.3m E-W; 11.45m N-S; wall T 2.1m) and a large irregular-shaped bawn (TN004-022002-) situated on natural rock outcrop in low undulating countryside. There is a watermill (TN004-022006-) immediately S of the bawn, a deserted settlement (TN004-022004-) S of this and a later seventeenth and eighteenth-century house (TN004-022005-) built onto the E wall of the bawn. An O'Kennedy stronghold (Smyth 1985, 118) of sixteenth-century date which belonged to Brian Ua Cinneide Fionn, Chieftain of Ormond who died in 1588 (Harbison 1970, 230). Described in the Civil Survey (1654-6) as an 'old ruined castle & bawne of Leackeene the walls onely standing an orchard and garden' (Simington 1934, vol. 2, 315). Donogh Kenedy is listed as proprietor in 1640 (ibid.). The bawn is entered through a large round-arched gateway with punch-dressed limestone jambs at the centre of the S wall. The wall returns inside the gateway indicate evidence of a possible destroyed gatehouse. There is a second entrance to the bawn consisting of a two-centred doorway at the S end of the W wall. The presence of two punch-dressed hanging-eyes indicates a swing type door of two parts. A paved walkway leads from the doorway in a westerly direction for a distance of approx. 3m. There is evidence of a destroyed machicolation which was carried on five double corbels off-centre to the S along the W wall. Wall-footings of a small circular tower protrude from the face of the S wall of the bawn to the W of the main gateway. A large wall niche at the N end of the W wall and a gun loop and slop-stone at the W end of the N wall provide evidence for an internal lean-to structure in the NW angle of the bawn. Rather than facilitating the removal of waste the slop-stone carried water into the structure. The main tower is entered from a two-centred doorway on the S wall with a murder-hole in the form of a horizontal slit over-hanging the external face of the door and a destroyed machicolation directly above at wall-walk level. The lobby is protected by a murder-hole and gives access to a mural chamber along the W end of the S wall, mural stairs in SE angle and the main chamber to the N. The ground floor has a large wall niche with a blocked-up window at the N end of the W wall with a similar large niche on the E wall. The first floor, which has a wooden floor carried on corbels, is accessed from a two-centred door in the NE angle. A large well-preserved fireplace with joggled voussoirs lies off-centre to the S along the W wall. There is a vaulted loft or entresol above the first floor which is accessed from a mural passage in the N wall. A two-centred door in the SW angle gives access to a mural chamber in the S wall which leads to an L-shaped chamber in the SE angle. Spiral stairs in the NE angle give access to the second-floor main hall. The lobby near the stairs at this second-floor level is protected by a murder-hole accessed from the third floor. The N wall of the second floor hall has a fine traceried window and two-centred arcading with a poorly preserved carved head in relief. Access to the garderobes at first and second-floor level is in the NW angle. The stairs which give access to the third floor, the crenellated battlement levels and the wall-walk with fine crow-stepped gables, are accessed from the window embrasure of the second-floor hall. The gables are typical of the architectural style of the sixteenth century (Greysmith 1994, 40). A tall rectangular chimney stack protrudes at battlement level at the S end of the W wall. The windows consist of single-light ogee heads and simple round and rectangular slit opes with angle loops visible. The third floor was probably lit by two dormer windows, the timber supports of which are still visible beside the wall-plate corbels. Diagonally opposite bartizans occupy the NW and SE angles at wall-walk level. The above description is derived from 'The Archaeological Inventory of County Tipperary. Vol. 1 - North Tipperary' compiled by Jean Farrelly and Caimin O'Brien (Dublin: Stationery Office, 2002). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Date of upload/revision: 22 September 2008