Castle - unclassified

The National Monuments Service's description

The residential tower attached to the N side of St Mary's church (DU017-019002-) at Lucan (DU017-019----), was mistakenly identified as the medieval castle of Lucan. The precise location of the medieval castle of Lucan has not been identified. It has been suggested that the site of the medieval castle stood beside the present 18th-century Lucan House (Bradley and King 1988, 254; Salter 2004, 37). Salter also suggested that there was a second castle situated in the main Street of Lucan village (ibid.). Salter (ibid.) recorded the following details about the medieval castle (DU017-019001-) of Lucan; 'Agmondisham Vesey's mansion of 1772 lies beside the site of a castle probably built by Sir William Sarsfield, Mayor of Dublin after he acquired the estate upon the attainder of the 10th Earl of Kildare in 1534. During the 1650s and 60s it was held by the Cromwellian Sir Theophilus Jones but was restored to Patrick Sarsfield, who was created Viscount Tully and Earl of Lucan. A second castle site lies in Main Street at 032352'.
Recent research by local archaeologist, Helen Farrell confirmed Mike Salter's identification of a medieval castle in the historic village of Lucan (DU017-019----). The De Vesci Papers in the National Library of Ireland contains a map of Lucan village dating from 1699 which shows the location of a medieval castle in the village of Lucan (NLI MS 39,251/3). On this map a tower hosue type building annotated 'The Castle' castle is shown standing immediately N of a medieval road following the line of the present road that leads up to Cannonbrook and to the E of Lucan Church (DU017-019002-) and Lucan House (DU017-019008-). The house known locally as 'Ard Garon' on Dispensary Lane stands on the site of or incorporates fabric of the medieval castle. It is not clear if there was one or two medieval castles in the manor of Lucan and it is possible that this may be the original medieval manorial castle of Lucan. Alternatively there may have been two castles in the medieval manor of Lucan, one of which was located on the site of the present Lucan House and the second castle located here to the E of St. Mary's medieval church (DU017-019002-).
The present house 'Ard Garon' on Dispensary Lane was described by the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage (NIAH) as a; 'Semi-detached three-bay two-storey building, c.1830, originally two separate buildings and now containing two dwellings. Roughcast rendered walls with smooth rendered base course. An unusual, intriguing building, comprising two related and interconnected structures on a corner site' (NIAH Reg. No.
11201038)'. The 'unusual' facade of this building suggests that this house consists of a two storey high medieval tower that was extended or modified in the 19th-century creating the unusual appearance of the building known as 'Ard Garon'

NLI MS 39,251/3 Original and copy title deeds to the lands of Pettycannon, outside Lucan, so called because originally they belonged to the Petty Canons and Choristers of St Patrick’s Cathedral, Dublin.

Compiled by: Caimin O'Brien based on details provided by local archaeologist, Helen Farrell

Date of upload: 23 May 2023

References

Bradley, J. and King, H.A. 1988 Urban archaeological survey - county Dublin (4 vols.). Unpublished report commissioned by the Office of Public Works, Dublin.

Salter, M. 2004 The castles of Leinster. Worcestershire. Folly Publications.