Bawn

The National Monuments Service's description

On a terrace of a hill slope, looking across valleys with good views to the N, E and W. A small stream runs roughly E-W, outside the S side of Balleen Little castle (KK009-037001-). The medieval church (KK009-038001-) of Balleen is located c. 100m to the S. The 1st (1839) ed. OS 6-inch map indicates a circular bawn with two buildings in the SE quadrant which relate to a gatehouse, a building projecting from the bawn in the SSW and a building abutting the bawn internally in the NW quadrant. The 1st ed. OS map also shows a fork in the public road to facilitate entrance to the castle via the gatehouse (see castle for description). In a sketch plan of the castle complex in 1987 the bawn is drawn as being almost completely intact, the N section being truncated to the E by the N-S running public road and portions of the S section surviving to within 6m of the public road. The bawn (L 15m) is indicated running between the building in the NW quadrant and the tower in the SW quadrant and the foundations of the bawn (L 13m) are shown running between the SW tower and the gatehouse in the SE quadrant. The portion between the NW building and SW tower is completely obscured by collapsed masonry. The foundations in the S-SE quadrant, along with the buildings in the SE are no longer visible at ground level. The NW section of the bawn is largely standing, though the N section (L c. 30m) running up to the public road is no longer visible at ground level. The surviving NW section runs from the W end of the N wall of the NW building, but clearly post-dates this building as it is not keyed into the masonry. The upstanding bawn is constructed is quite small roughly coursed rubble sandstone with external harling (T0.06m). The bawn is well defended with a number of limestone gun-loops of various design, including two circular shot-holes, a stirrup loop and three crosslet loops with stirrup base. While circular in overall design the wall is not a true circle, rather it follows a circular plan made up of lengths of straight wall with subtle turns at intervals. The gun-loops suggest that the upstanding bawn dates from a later phase of building at the castle complex in the late 16th or early to mid-17th century. A circular tower, of which only the S wall survives incorporated into the N wall of the SW tower, may have been a mural tower on an earlier bawn associated with the NW tower.

This monument is subject to a preservation order made under the National Monuments Acts 1930 to 2014 (PO no. 3/1992).

Compiled by: Jean Farrelly

Date of upload: 10 July 2018