Castle - tower house

The National Monuments Service's description

The castle of Caladh an Treoigh [Castletroy] stands on the S bank of the River Shannon and was described by Westropp (1906-7, 86) as following; '1197 H. Troy was first provost of Limerick; the family is often named. T. Troy, bailiff of Limerick, witnessed Edm. Wyndebald's will, 1361 (Arthur MSS., Len. 62). 1583 W. Bourke held Vill of Castlellane Trylane, C[astle]. of Callatroo (Des. R., 37, Peyton 257). 1610 Held by Mac Keough of Clonkeen, and 1655 the ruined C[astle], eel weir, &c, of Callahintroy, by Lord Brittas (C.S. xxix., p. 8). 1666 Granted to Duke of York. 1688 Shown as standing in the Shannon (Trustees' Map, 22). 1703 Sold to Hollow Blades Company'. The 1654-56 Civil Survey of Limerick recorded that in 1640 Theobald Lord Baron of Brittas was the proprietor in 'CallaghItroy' of a 'ruined castle an orchard & an Eele weare upon it' (Simington 1938, 465). The castle standing on the S bank of the Rver Shannon is depicted on the late 17th century map Hibernia Delineatio.
Castle described in 1840 as following; 'In the townland of Castle-Troy on the southern bank of the Shannon there is a castle which gave name to the townland. Its east and north sides are in tolerable preservation, but the other two are nearly destroyed, only ten feet [3m] of the west and six feet [1.8m] of the south wall remaining. It measures on the inside thirty one feet six inches [9.6m] by twenty one feet two inches [6.45m], and the walls are seven feet six inches thick [2.3m] and the sides, which are perfect, about seventy feet [21.3m] in height, and contain windows for five floors (stories)' (OSL Kilmurry parish).
Castle remains described by Salter (2004, 78) as following; 'The 18m high east end of this 10.4m wide tower of the MacKeoughs of Glenkeen [Clonkeen] is built out as a prow containing the spiral staircase with a tier of sizeable vaulted rooms behind it, whilst other passages and small rooms lay over the SE facing entrance doorway. The result is a very rare five-sided building with a greatest length of 16.5m. The SE corner has an angle-loop at second storey level and corbels for a bartizan containing a chamber at fourth storey level. The main part of the tower further west contained rooms about 6m square, the lowest level being vaulted and the second level having a fireplace on the north, but this part is much ruined by the loss of the SW corner and most of the south wall. On the NW corner this part also had a room in a bartizan at fourth storey level'.

See attached image of Castletroy taken from Hibernia Delineatio, courtesy of TCD.

Compiled by: Caimin O'Brien

Date of upload: 10 January 2020

References

OSL - Ordnance Survey Letters. Letters written by members of the Ordnance Survey's 'Topographical Department' (T. O'Conor, A. O'Curry, E. Curry, J. O'Donovan and P. O'Keeffe) sent to headquarters from the field (1834-41). MSS in Royal Irish Academy.

Westropp, T.J. 1906-7 The ancient castles of the county of Limerick. Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy 26, 54-264.

Salter, M. 2004 The castles of North Munster. Worcestershire. Folly Publications.

Petty, Sir W. 1685 (Facsimile reprint 1969) Hiberniae delineatio. Shannon. Irish University Press.

Simington, R.C. (ed.) 1938 The civil survey, AD 1654-1656. Vol. IV: county of Limerick, with a section of Clanmaurice barony Co. Kerry. Dublin. Irish Manuscripts Commission.