Castle - unclassified

The National Monuments Service's description

Midway down an E-facing slope in marshland. This castle is indicated on the Down Survey (1655-6) barony map of Gowran, in what was then the townland of 'Grangecoolepople' and on the Down Survey parish map of Teiscoffin (Hibernia Regnum, courtesy of Trinity College Dublin). The terrier which accompanied the parish map does not survive so there is no information on who the proprietor was in 1640.
A very ruinous rectangular castle (ext. dims. 15.7m NE-SW x 8.5m NW-SE) largely visible as grass-covered wall-footings, with the NW and NE wall-footings of an adjoining annex at the W angle (L 2.6m and 3m respectively). The walls of the main structure have collapsed and slumped outwards (Wth 2m; max. H 1.1m). Where visible, remnants of extant masonry indicate randomly coursed limestone rubble construction. There is an associated well (KK020-022002-), known as 'Castle Well', c. 110m to the SW of castle on the E bank of a stream. The earthworks of a deserted settlement (KK020-022004-) are visible immediately E and S of the castle.

See attached:
KK020-022001-_01 extract from Down Survey (1655-6) barony map of Gowran (Hib. Reg., courtesy of Trinity College Dublin)
KK020-022001-_02 extract from Down Survey (1655-6) parish map Teiscoffin in the barony of Gowran (Hib. Reg., courtesy of Trinity College Dublin)

Compiled by: Jean Farrelly

Date of upload: 24 November 2020