Castle - unclassified

The National Monuments Service's description

Drombanny Castle in the parish of Donaghmore stands in centre of a rectangular-shaped enclosure or bawn (LI013-054-----) on top of a hill with good views in all directions. A second castle also called Drombanny Castle (LI013-056----) stands 825m to S, Donaghmore church (LI013-052001-) 1km to the N.
Described in the Ordnance Survey Letters as 'Of the old Castle of Drumbanny which was situated on the top of the hill which gives name to the Townland and about three quarters of a mile southwest of the old Church there are scarcely any traces remaining with the exception of about ten feet [3m] in height of the south wall. The length or breadth could not be determined' (O'Flanagan 1929, 56).
Westropp (1906-7, 89) recorded the following details about Drombanny; 'Two C[astle].s marked, one in Donaghmore and one in Caheravally [LI013-056---] to south. 1584 Donnell Mac Canna, the lands (Fi., 4615), and in 1587 the C[astle], which he entailed on his sons (Inq. Cha. Car. I., 90). 1621 H..Holcroft granted the ruined C[astle], late estate of Edm. McCany (Pat. R.). Yet in 1629 livery on Drombanny was granted to Edm. McCanny on death of Donough, his father. (lb.). 1655 Piers Creagh, f. Andrew, held the broken C[astle]. (C.S., xxix., p. 21, D.S.A., 7, 9). 1669 Granted to Duke of York (Act Sett.)'.
This castle is depicted on the Down Survey map of South Liberties Barony as a tower house type castle standing in the parish of Donaghmore (Hib. Reg.). On this map the second castle of Drombanny (LI013-056----) is depicted as a house standing in the townland of Brownestone in the parish of Cahernarry. The terrier of the Down Survey map of Donaghmore parish stated that 'There is a ruined castle and an orchard on the Landes Drumbanny' (NLI, MS 718). On this map the castle stood on lands belonging to the alderman, Pierce Creagh who is listed as an 'Irish papist' (ibid.).

See attached Down Survey map of South Liberties Barony map and the parish map of Donaghmore

Compiled by: Caimin O'Brien

Date of upload: 3 July 2020

References

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

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.

OSNB - Ordnance Survey Name Books. Pro-forma books arranged by Civil Parish for recording townland and other name-forms and compiled in the course of the OS 6-inch survey 1824-1841. The name books also include minor names and incidental references to antiquities. National Archives of Ireland.

NLI, MS 718 - National Library of Ireland, Parish maps with terriers, showing forfeited lands in County Limerick, commonly known as the "Down Survey", executed under the direction of Sir William Petty, 1657, and copied by Daniel O'Brien, 1786.

Hibernia Regnum: A set of 214 barony maps of Ireland dating to the period AD 1655-59. The original parish maps have been lost but the Hibernia Regnum maps are preserved in the Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris (Goblet 1932, v-x). Photographic facsimiles of these maps were published by the Ordnance Survey, Southampton in 1908.