Bawn

The National Monuments Service's description

Westropp (1906-7, 220) recorded the following details about Garraunboy (Garrán Buí) Castle (LI021-070----) and bawn; 'The O.S.L. only note it as "a ruin on a plain." It is an oblong peel tower 30 feet [9.1m] by 46 feet [14m], outside. The main wing had four wooden floors covered by a stone vault; there is a skew-loop on the second floor opening at the north-west angle, and another on the third floor at the north-east. There are numerous ambries and ogee headed window-slits. The end wing has the usual spiral stair with doors to each story to the south-west, and five stories with small rooms to the south-east. The lower rooms and top story are under vaults. All the southern face and most of the side walls of this part are gone. The peel stands in a bawn 63 feet [19.2m] east and west, 82 feet [25m] north and south. The walls 3 feet [0.9m] at top, and battered out to 6 feet [1.8m] below. The south wall and south-west turret are levelled. Turrets with vaulted roofs and 12 feet [3.65m] diameter, inside, remain at the three other angles. The peel tower dates from about the middle of the fifteenth century'.
The 1654-56 Civil Survey of Limerick recorded that Richard Stephenson of Dunmoylan, an Irish Papist, was the owner of Garraunboy which contained 'a ruined castle & bawne' (Simington 1938, 293).
Castle and bawn described by Salter (2004, 83) as follows; 'The outer wall of the thick end wall of a five storey tower 14m long by 9m wide has fallen although the rest still stands high, with a vault over the fourth storey. Closely surrounding the tower are remains of a small rectangular bawn with four D-shaped flankers between 4m and 5m in external diameter. One still retains a vault and three gunloops'.

Compiled by: Caimin O'Brien

Date of upload: 3 December 2020

References

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.

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

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