Castle - unclassified

The National Monuments Service's description

The precise location of Dewlish or Ballinacurra (Béal Átha na Cora) Castle within the townland has not been identified. Ballinacurra House may have been built on the site of the medieval castle. Westropp (1906-07, 151) recorded the following details about Ballinacurra Castle; '1590 T. Arthur died, seised of the Castles of Reibogg, Delishe, and Ballywiline (Inq. Chan., 17). 1634-1633 Nic[holas]. Arthur held Dwylish, Rathmichell, and Crewe Iwally (Ibid., 12, 112). 1624 Sir W. Parsons held Dewlishe or Beallancor C[astle]. (Pat. R.). 1657 Beallnacorrie, a broken C[astle]. and mill-seat on the brook Corkanrye, late estate of T. Arthur (C.S., xxix., p. 22; and D.S.A., 1-10)'.
The 1654-56 Civil Survey of Limerick recorded that Thomas Arthur late of Limerick, alderman and Irish papist who was lately deceased was the owner in Ballinacurra of a 'broken castle & a Mill seate' (Simington 1938, 474). The castle of Ballinacurra is depicted standing close to a bridge (LI013-012----) over Ballynaclogh River on the 17th century Down Survey map of South Liberties Barony (Hib. Reg.). A tower house like castle is depicted standing close to the bridge and a watermill on the 17th century Down Survey map of the parishes of St. Michael's and St. Nicholas (NLI, MS. 718). The location of Ballinacurra House as shown on the 1840 ed. OSi 6-inch map closely corresponds to the location of the castle as shown on the 17th century Down Survey maps.

Compiled by: Caimin O'Brien

Date of upload: 26 November 2020

References

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.

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.

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

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.