Bawn

The National Monuments Service's description

Site of Garryellen Castle (LI022-087----) and bawn described by Westropp (1906-7, 177) as following; 'Site marked near Cashelmongan. Probably last-named C[astle]. 1655 The land held by J. Lysaght (C.S., p. 19). 1667 Granted to Lord Kingston'. Castle and bawn site described in 1942-3 as following; 'A heap of fairly small boulders is all that now remains of this castle. O'Donovan says that its ruins were 60' [18m] square and that it was surrounded by a court wall 130' [40m] by 160' [49m]' (O'Kelly 1942-3, 222). In 1840 the castle site and bawn was described as; 'The ruins of this old castle are insignificant. The castle was about 60 feet [18m] square, and was surrounded by a Court wall about 130 feet [40m] by 160 feet [49m]; but the walls are completely defaced' (OSNB Fedamore Parish).
No castle is depicted in the townland of Garryellen on the 1654-7 Down Survey maps (NLI, Ms 718) and is not mentioned in the 1654-56 Civil Survey of Limerick (Simington 1938, 107). No surface remains visible today of castle site on Digital Globe aerial photographs.

Compiled by: Caimin O'Brien

Date of upload: 2 March 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.

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.

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

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.

O'Kelly, M.J. 1942-3 A survey of the antiquities in the barony of Small County, Co. Limerick. North Munster Antiquarian Journal 3, 75-97, 169-84, 222-46.