Castle (in ruins) — Clonakenny

Situated on a slight rise in undulating pastureland, however, the land rises immediately W of the site to form a low ridge which is surmounted by a rectangular enclosure (TN023-030004-) and medieval church (TN023-030003-). The fortified house is in a very poor state of repair as is the enclosing bawn (TN023-030002-). It appears to be an L-plan house, four storeys high, built of roughly coursed sandstone rubble with well-cut horizontal quoins and a slight base-batter, the S and W walls are completely gone. The building is aligned N-S (ext. Wth 9.35m), with an E projection (ext. dims. c. 6m x 4.25m) from the S end of the N wall. The S wall of this projection has a basal plinth (H 0.67m). At parapet level there were battlements carried on double and triple corbels, some of which survive. Many of the window openings have collapsed, however, in the N wall there is a splayed embrasure at ground-floor level, centrally placed, with a wall cupboard in the W splay and a blocked-up, round-headed, single-light window at third-floor level, also centrally positioned. There is a blocked entrance in the N face of the E projection, the jambs are punch-dressed with horizontal line tooling in the margins. A gun loop immediately E of the doorway provided covering fire. In the E wall there is a large blocked-up recess with a narrow, blocked ope above this at first-floor level. According to the OS Letters this tower was lit by three small flat-headed windows (O'Flanagan 1930, vol. 2, 81). The house was surrounded by a large bawn wall, surviving only at S (L 55m; T 1m), W (L 22.5m) and partly at N. The W end of the latter runs up to the N end of the W wall of the house. The NW angle is protected by four gun loops. The original bawn (Wth 1.3m; H 1.3m) however, appears to have extended NW-SE from the N face of the NW corner of the upstanding bawn. It runs for a length of 14.5m and then turns slightly to run N-S. This wall follows the edge of the rise (H 0.6m) on which the house is located. There is a lot of rubble up against the interior of the bawn wall. A disused farmhouse and outbuilding built up against the fortified house and bawn are in a state of collapse. The Civil Survey (1654-6) describes 'a castle out of repayre' in 'Clonenakeany' but surprisingly makes no mention of the bawn (Simington 1931, vol. 1, 7). John O'Magher is listed as proprietor in 1640 (ibid.). 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