Castle (in ruins) — Castletown (loughkeen Par.),kylenamuck

Situated on a low rise of natural rock outcrop on flat pasture in undulating countryside. The poorly preserved remains of a long rectangular building (approx. dims. 12.2m E-W; 21m N-S; wall T 1.8m) surviving two storeys high but originally three with a corner garderobe tower at the SE angle and a destroyed SW angle tower. The walls are built with roughly coursed limestone rubble with base-batter visible. Only a portion of the N wall survives to first-floor level with wall-footings indicating the location of the N end of the E and W walls. The S end of the building is destroyed with rubble infill covering the furthest S chamber up to first-floor level. Originally at ground-floor level there was a large N chamber with a wooden ceiling, two adjoining N-S barrel-vaulted chambers (dims. 2.6m x 5.8m) S of this with a large segmental-arched opening in the dividing wall and at the S end of the building a chamber (now blocked up) which gave access to the garderobe tower at the SE angle and possibly to the destroyed SW tower. There is evidence of wicker centring on the underside of the barrel-vaulted chambers. At first-floor level there is a small chamber at the S end of the building with a doorway in the E wall which gives access to the partially destroyed garderobe tower. A doorway at the E end of the N wall of this chamber gives access to a large room or hall situated over the barrel-vaulted ground floor and furthest N chamber. From this doorway mural stairs in the N wall of the S chamber give access to the second floor of which only the SE garderobe tower survives. Enclosing the castle are the remains of a circular bawn wall (TN008-013002-) constructed with roughly coursed limestone rubble which is best preserved at S. At N the bawn wall is incorporated as part of the field boundary. Only the wall-footings survive at NW and NE. An offset which is evident halfway up the height of the internal face of the bawn wall may have been used to carry a wooden platform. There is slight evidence of an infilled fosse enclosing the base of the bawn with a possible causewayed gap (Wth 3m) at SW indicating a possible original entrance. The unusual plan, though obscured by poor survival, appears to be transitional, straddling both tower house and fortified house traditions. 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