Castle - motte and bailey

The National Monuments Service's description

Strategically situated on Turbet Island, an important fording point on the River Erne, close to the boundary between the medieval kingdoms of East Breifne and Fermanagh. Constructed in 1210/11 by John Grey, King John's Justiciar. It was one of seven fortifications erected to isolate Ulster (in native Irish control) from Connacht. The campaign was short-lived as the Irish under Aedh O'Neill threw back the invaders. Davies (1947a, 82) believed that the Turbet Island motte and bailey had probably been abandoned by 1213. Motte comprises a high, steep-sided earthen mound, oval in plan (dims of base 47.5m WNW-ESE; 34m ENE-WSW) and basically conoid in profile (H 5.5m). At its highest point, at ESE, there are foundations of a small, subcircular, mortared stone structure (int. dims 2.05m x 2.9m). Davies (ibid., 81) interpreted this as the remains of a tower and speculated that it may be 16th-century in date. At the centre of the summit of the mound there is a deep, precipitous depression (Wth 9m; D 3.6m) aligned NNE-SSW which separates the highest ESE part of the motte from a crescent-shaped area (max. dims 8.4m NW-SE; 6.2m NE-SW) set at a lower level at WNW. A narrow fosse separates motte from bailey at SSW. Bailey is a raised subrectangular area (dims 38.8m NNE-SSW; 38m WNW-ESE) covering some 1278 square meters and enclosed by an earthen bank, traces of which are identifiable at SSW. Three low earthen mounds (dims 1.2m, 2m and 3.2m respectively) of unknown significance also occur at SSW, close to the perimeter of the bailey. A wide, deep fosse running from NNW-W-ENE effectively isolates motte and bailey from the island. Shoreline of island has been scarped at ESE and WNW.
There are no visible remains of the castle. A modern church and accompanying carpark encroach on the site as indicated on the OS 6-inch map. (O'Donovan 1991-2)

Date of upload/revision: 22 December 2008

References

Davies, O. 1947a The castles of county Cavan. Part 1. Ulster Journal of Archaeology 11, 74-100.

O'Donovan, P. 1991-2 Turbet Island motte and bailey, Belturbet, Co. Cavan. Ulster Journal of Archaeology 54-5, 129-33.