Castle — motte and bailey in Portlick

National Monument No. 624. Situated on a low rise of ground 60m NE of Rinardoo Bay on the E shoreline of Lough Ree with a stream marking the townland boundary with Killinure immediately to S. Depicted on the 1838 ed. OS 6-inch map as a roughly D-shaped 'Grave Yard' standing in the S quadrant of a field called the 'Church Park' with motte castle (WM022-015----) immediately to S. On the 1838 ed. OS 6-inch map a tomb is shown located in the S quadrant of the graveyard. This graveyard appears to have been built in the bailey of the motte castle (WM022--015---) which in turn may have been built on the site of an early Christian ecclesiastical enclosure (WM022-014002-). A church building (WM022-014003-) now levelled may have stood inside the graveyard. On the revised 1914 ed. OS 6-inch map a smaller rectangular shaped burial ground belonging to the Smyth family of Portlick Castle (WM022-045----) is depicted standing in the centre of the D-shaped graveyard. This drystone walled burial ground belonging to the Smyth family incorporates architectural fragments of a late medieval building possibly from a church which stood inside the earlier graveyard. An early Christian cross-slab (WM022-014004-) now housed in the National Museum of Ireland was recently discovered in the fabric of this burial ground wall (Reilly 2016, 113). A possible bullaun stone (WM022-016---) and cross (WM022-017----) are located 120m and 165m respectively to the S. Described in 1978 as following; ‘The steep-sided earthen mound is surrounded by a wide rather deep fosse. There are traces of earthen banks on the outer lip of this fosse on the N-E-S. The mound is somewhat low for a motte particularly as one approaches it from the E. There is a large depression probably the result of quarrying on top. There is no visible trace of a bailey though the old graveyard (WM022-014---) which adjoins the motte on the NE may have destroyed such a feature. The graveyard was a private burial ground attached to Portlick Castle (WM022-045----). No trace of an entrance or access to the top of the motte. Located on a low natural rise near lakeshore in good pasture land’ (SMR File 05/07/1978). A second report in 1971 described the monument as a ‘high steep circular earthen mound (top diam. 13.7m N-S; 14.4m E-W; H 2-3m) surrounded by a wide deep U-shaped fosse (ext. D.1-1.5m) with slight remains of an earthen bank on its upper edge. There is a large depression in the centre of the top of the motte. The counterscarp bank is visible from NE-E-S-WSW and in a very vague form elsewhere. A relatively modern bank contacts it on the WSW. There is no visible trace of a bailey’ (SMR File 11/10/1971). A third report in 1978 recorded that ‘to the North of the motte adjoining the bank which encircles the motte is a large irregular enclosure roughly triangular in shape and bounded by a wide bank of earth and stones. There are slight stony outcrops in the northern and NW parts of this enclosure. In the centre of this enclosure is a small subrectangular walled burial ground (WM022-014---), apparently a private burial place for the residents of nearby Portlick Castle (WM022-045----). Seven gravestones of 19th c. – 20th c. date are visible. Some low banks extend outwards from the enclosure and run into the nearby field banks. Nearby on the lakeshore is a rectangular socket stone of a cross (WM022-017----) and large boulder with a double bullaun (WM022-016----) in it’ (SMR File 09/06/1978). Compiled by: Caimin O'Brien Date of upload: 26 January 2016