What is recorded here

Donaghmore in County Laois originated beside an early medieval parish church before a Norman fortification rose above the river in the late twelfth century. The Down Survey recorded two castles, church ruins, a mill and scattered houses decades before the settlement vanished entirely. What remains is a ghost town inside a living village, where stone foundations and river memory preserve more than any building could hold.

Unlocated settlement within the village of Donaghmore, indicated on the Down Survey (1655-6) map as 'two castles, the ruines of a church and a mill , several houses and cabbins'. Feehan states that 'The village of Donaghmore probably originated as early as a settlement node in the vicinity of the early medieval parish church, and was reinforced by the establishment here in the late twelfth century of an early Norman fortification above the river north of the village' (Feehan 1983, 384). Compiled by: Caimin O'Brien Date of upload: 17 December 2007

The monument record does not grant public access. Check the route and ask the landowner before entering private land.