Piercefield Castle — Piercefield or Templeoran

Piercefield Castle was possibly named after Captain Pierce of Tristernagh a Protestant landowner who is the owner of 460 acres of land in Templeoran as recorded in the terrier of the 1654-9 Down Survey map of Templeoran parish (NLI, MS 723-4). The castle may have passed into the hands of Andrew Wilson in the second half of the 17th century. A mansion house in 'Piersfield' belonging to Andrew Wilson of Shinglis born c. 1640 and founder of Wilson Hospital is mentioned in his will of 1724 (Anon. 1813,119, 127). He died in 1725 and Wilson's Hospital was completed in 1761 (ibid.). Situated on a low natural rise in well drained grassland with wide views from W-N. Depicted on the revised 1911 ed. OS 25 inch map as a rectangular building aligned E-W with rectangular shaped field immediately to N that is depicted on the 1837 ed. OS 6-inch map. On this map a field boundary or wall runs runs W from centre of W gable of castle. The rectangular field immediately N of the castle is not indicated on the revised 1911 ed. OS 25-inch map. In 1966 the site of the castle was described as all that remains IS a sunken rectangular shaped area (approx.dims. 24m E-W x 8m N-S; D 1.5m) defined by low grass-covered wall footings with no upstanding remains visible. This sunken area marked the site of the castle which may have been a 17th century rectangular-shaped fortified house rather than a square-shaped medieval tower house. the sunken area or castle site stood on the NW corner of a larger levelled rectangular enclosure (approx. dims. 120m x 120m) which may represent the remains of a bawn (WM011-097001-) or walled garden associated with Piercefield Castle. An ASI report from 1978 recorded the presence of the rectangular depression (approx. dims. 23m E-W x 10m N-S) which marked the site of Piercefield Castle. The sunken area was defined by a low grass-covered wall footings along N, S and E sides. A linear ditch running W from the W wall of the castle site was also visible. A quarry hole at S appears to have removed the S wall. (This sunken area stood within a rectangular enclosure (approx. dims. 55m N-S; 35m E-W), part of a wider area of other earthworks (approx. dims. 100m N-S; 130m E-W). The access road for a sports field now runs through the centre of Piercefield Castle site that is clearly visible on Digital Globe aerial photograph taken November 2011. See attached plan of monument surveyed and drawn by the ASI. Compiled by: Frank Coyne and Caimin O'Brien Date of upload: 24 August 2017