Site of Kilbixy Town, Burgess Land — Rath (moygoish By., Kilbixy Ed),baronstown,cumminstown,kilbixy

Kilbixy is situated to the south-west of Lough Iron, about eight miles north-west of Mullingar. As its name Cill Bigsighe [Cill Bhiscí], Bigseach’s church, indicates it was the site of an early church founded by St. Bigseach. Little is known of it however until the coming of the Normans. Kilbixy was granted to Geoffrey de Costentin by Hugh de Lacy (Orpen 1911-20 ii, 88) and it was probably de Costentin who was responsible for the construction of the motte (WM011-039----) here in 1192 (ALC). A borough seems to have been established at an early date. Burgages beside the Carton’s ditch are mentioned in one of the "foundation charters" of Tristernagh priory, granted by Geoffrey de Costentin between 1200 and 1224 (Clarke 1941, 5). The Tristernagh charters provide much topographical information on Kilbixy including references to the church (WM011-040002-), the castle, the mill, the cross of St Columba, the bridge and the house of the old Irish chaplain. Practically nothing, however, is known of the later history of Kilbixy. It presumably remained in De Costentin hands until the death of Richard de Costentin about the middle of the fourteenth century (Clarke 1941, xi). Like the other medieval boroughs of Westmeath, Kilbixy became increasingly isolated with the decline of Anglo-Norman power in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. Clarke (1941, xiii) suggests that the castle of Kilbixy was destroyed in 1285 and the borough was attacked and burned during the fifteenth century. In 1430 it was burned by an Irish alliance under Domhnall 0 Neill (AU, AFM) and in 1458 it was burned again by the son of MacEochagain (AFM). In 1476-7 Kilbixy was held by Thomas Nangle, baron of Navan, who complained that the issues of his lands there and the fish from his weirs called the "great weir" and the "castle weir" on the river Inny were being illegally taken by members of the Dalton family (Morrissey 1939, 565-7). Thereafter the settlement vanishes from documentary records. The date of its abandonment cannot be established but it was clearly deserted before 1682 when it was described by Piers (1981, 76) as ‘of old a town of great note, having, as tradition telleth us, twelve burgesses in their scarlet gown, a mayor or sovereign, with other officers suitable to so great a port. Of this so great state, so small now are the remains, that you may justly say of it, what the historians say of the Veii in Italy. History even doubts whether the Veii ever existed. The only remaining footsteps that I have met with hereof, is first a large piece of an old square castle called the Burgage-castle, and forty acres of ground adjoining to it, called also the Burgage-land, corruptly for the Burgesses castle and Burgesses-land, these being believed to have been the town-house and the land belonging to the corporation; there is also on the bank of our Iron-lake, not far from hence, a place which in the Irish dialect sounds the Haven of the market, this likely having been the landing place of such as from the eastern banks had occasion to this market ..... Other remainders of ancient state I find none, unless you will take for such the ruins, or rubbish rather, of many ancient houses and castles, besides which and some late built cabbins, nothing is to be seen, but excellent corn of all Kinds, so as it was never more truly said of Troy, than it may be of this town’ (Bradley et. al. 1985, 106-07). The Urban Survey of Westmeath recorded that the ‘borough is now completely deserted but its former site is indicated by an extensive series of earthworks. It was located in Baronstown townland and not in Burgess Land (a subdivision of Baronstown Demense townland), as indicated by the Ordnance Survey. It was situated in the field west of St. Bigseach’s church (WM011-040002-) and its earthworks extend northwards as far as the motte (WM011-039----) and southwards to the road but the western limit is difficult to establish. The earthworks concentrate around a triangular platform (possibly the village green) formed by the intersection of three streets, running west, south and east from it. There is also a hint of a street running northwards. Aerial photographs show three rectangular platforms, which may be house foundations, two to the north of the triangle and one to the south but these cannot be distinguished on the ground. The field immediately to the north has been subjected to ploughing but aerial photographs again suggest that the earthworks continued here. In Burgess Land, on the alleged site of the town, there are two water filled hollows, a stone bridge (possibly recent) over a small stream and the stone foundations of a small rectangular building in the coppice beside the road’ (Bradley et. Al. 1985, 107-08). Aerial photographs taken by Cambridge University between 1966-70 clearly show the extensive remains of earthworks in the field to the W and N of the 19th century Church of Ireland church (CUCAP CUCAP APH005/006/007/008/009/010/011; ATF079/080/081/082; BDV066). The earthworks were described in 1972 as 'In the large field where St. Brigid's well (WM011-038----) is situated there is an extensive complex of banks, scarp and depressions, including two parallel banks, which may represent part at least of the old town of Kilbixy' (SMR file 1972). These earthworks probably represent the remains of the deserted settlement of Kilbixy. On the 1837 ed. OS 6-inch map the site of 'Kilbixy Town' is indicated in a different location to the earthworks visible on the aerial photographs. The OS 6-inch map depicts the site of 'Kilbixy Town' in the fields 250m to the SE of the medieval church (WM011-040002-) and graveyard (WM011-040005-). The field indicated as the 'Site of Kilbixy town' on the 1837 map has also been annotated by the OS as 'Burgess Land'. It is not clear if the deserted settlement extended into the fields to the SE of the church and graveyard or whether the village was confined to the earthworks in the field to the W of Kilbixy Church. No settlement earthworks are visible on aerial photogrpahs showing the field depicted as 'Kilbixy Town' on the OS 6-inch maps. The earthworks visible on Bing Maps aerial photographs taken in November 2011 indicate that this deserted settlement appears to have been quite large and was centred on the field to the W of Kilbixy Church and appears to have have extended into the field to the N of the motte and bailey (WM011-039----). Compiled by: Caimin O'Brien Date of upload: 27 May 2014