Bawn

The National Monuments Service's description

On top of a glacial deposit on a flat island with Kings River c. 80m to N-NE and a steam which flows from Kings River to the W and runs 20m S of the motte and bailey (KK027-029001-) before rejoining Kings River to the SE. The bailey is raised above the island, which is probably liable to flood. The ground around the base of the bailey was formerly marshy but has been reclaimed (Ó Drisceoil 2006, 262). There are good views E and W along valley floor, but otherwise the view is impeded by rising ground to N and S of the rivers.
The bawn follows the perimeter of an earlier bailey which adjoins a motte. The motte and bailey was probably built by Geoffrey FitzRoberts in 1192-3 when he founded the town of Kells (Empey 1984, 36). Early 13th-century references to the ‘castelli’ at Kells are likely to relate to the castle on the motte which was probably timber (ibid, 36-7). An inquisition of 1621 mentions the ‘fortilagium’ of Kells which may relate to the bawn (ibid., 37). The FitzRobert lordship ended c. 1308-1312, passing to a succession of absentee lords in the 14th century, including le Poers, Berminghams and Prestons and then in the 15th century to Thomas Butler, prior of Kilmainham and his heirs and in the 16th and 17th centuries to the Viscounts Mountgarret (ibid.).
The bailey extends westward from the motte, running from the SW quadrant of the motte and presumably from the N-NW quadrant, though this area has been levelled. The bailey is formed by a raised platform defined by scarp (H 1.85m; Wth 3-5.2m) from W-N. The SE and SW perimeters of the bailey are defined by a later bawn wall. The bawn wall (H 4-5m; Wth 0.85-0.9m), built of roughly coursed limestone rubble, survives in two lengths. The section in the SE quadrant runs WNW-ESE (L 8.4m) before turning ENE-WSW (L 11.5m), the remaining length of wall between this wall and the motte is a more modern wall. There is a gap of 21m between the SE and SW section of wall. The SW wall changes direction several times to follow the perimeter of the bailey. The most southerly section (L 11.7m) incorporates the gable of a later building. This gable projects externally (L 1.63m) from the bawn wall and is not keyed into the bawn wall which appears to have been broken out to accommodate the building. An opening has been broken through the gable at ground-floor level. At first-floor level there are three narrow loops (H c. 1m; Wth 0.8-0.9m) within slightly splayed embrasures. The first-floor was vaulted over, though only the lower portion of the vault survives spring from the side walls (L 0.9m surviving internally). This building may be that referred to on the 1st ed. 6-inch OS map as 'Site of Gaol'. At a distance of 1.7m E of this building the bawn wall turns NW-SE (L14.5m) before turning N-S (L 5.2m). The wall is broken off at after this point. In the short section of N-S wall at this angle a crude broken out doorway had been broken through. There are put-log holes all along the wall, visible both internally and externally. The ground level within the bailey/bawn slopes to the NW and is undulating. There is no visible trace at ground within the bawn of a masonry castle (KK027-029002-), which may have been built contemporaneously with the bawn. The edge in the NE quadrant has been destroyed, probably when the T-plan church was built. The wall which currently runs along the NE quadrant is relatively modern

Compiled by: Jean Farrelly

Date of upload: 16 November 2017

References

Empey, C. A. 1984 A case study of the primary phase of Anglo-Norman settlement: the lordship of Kells. Old Kilkenny Review 3 (1), 32–40.

Ó Drisceoil, C. 2006 Garrynamann Lower, Kells: No archaeological significance. In I. Bennett (ed.), Excavations 2003: summary accounts of archaeological excavations in Ireland, 262-3, No. 1005. Bray, Wordwell