Castle - tower house

The National Monuments Service's description

The 1654-56 Civil Survey of Limerick recorded that in 1640 Sir Edmund Fitz Gerrald of Cloinegleisse an Irish Papist was the owner of 'Gortnatrabuid by common estimation 60 acres with a Castle and Bawne [LI054-005001-] and open quarie' (Simington 1938, 271). In 1840 the Ordnance Survey recorded the following about Gort na Tiobraide Castle; ‘In the Town land of Springfield (Gort na Tiobraid) and adjoining the dwelling house of Lord Muskerry, there is an Old square Castle, the walls of which are still perfect. It is four stories high and has one floor (the 2nd) arched. It measures thirty four feet [10.3m] by twenty one feet four inches [6.5m], the walls being about forty five feet [13.7m] high, five feet [1.5m] in thickness and built of large and small stones. The windows are all square and formed of cut lime stone. This Castle belonged, it is said, to the Desmond family‘ (O’Flanagan 1929, 20; OSL Killagholehane Parish).

Westropp (1906-7, 236) recorded the following details about Gortnetubbrid (Gort na Tiobraide/Springfield) Castle in the townland of Springfield; '1569 Cortenaytowbryte C[astle]. surrendered (C.S.P.L). 1579 A fierce battle fought near it, in which Jas. f. Maur., who had recently returned from Spain, defeated the English under Drury and Malbie (A.F.M.). 1581 T. Caune f. J. de Geraldinis held it with Killeedy and Clenlish; his son Maur. succeeded (Des. R, 73b; Fi. 5998; Peyton, 244b; Inq. Exch, 11, 12, 20, 53, 54). 1607 Suit of Maur. f. Tho, of Gortentubert, and G. Oughtred Courtney (Equity Exch. Order, June). 1624 Pardon to T. Fitzgerald, of Cleanlishe, for alienation of Gortintubbrid C.[astle] by trust deed, 1614, to Theo. Lord Castleconnell and Tirlogh oge O'Brien for use of Slany Fitzgerald, alias O'Brien, his wife (Pat. R.). O'Sullivan Beare calls it "Ager fontis." 1653 M. Bromley, for horse soldiers quartered there, £35 7s. 0d. (Acct. R., 7b). 1655 The C[astle]. held by Sir E. Fitzgerald (C.S, p. 25). 1670 Sir E. Fitzgerald, Baronet, of Clanlish, confirmed in the C[astle]. (Act Sett.). 1703 Hon. W. Fitzgerald purchased Gortnetubbred C[astle]. and lands, the late estate of Sir J. Fitzgerald, attainted (Pat. R.). 1708 The latter fell at Oudenarde; his widow had a jointure on Gortnetubbrid'.

Springfield Castle was described by the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage (NIAH) as follows; 'Attached Gothic Revival style country house with courtyard complex, commenced c. 1740, comprising attached eight-bay two-storey country house, rebuilt c. 1925, having single-bay three-stage entrance tower. Earlier two-bay three-storey wing to side (east) having single-bay three-stage gate tower with integral camber-headed carriage arch. Tooled limestone octagonal corner turrets with pinnacles to front (south) elevation of wing gate tower, rendered octagonal turrets and pinnacles to side (west) elevation of main block. Two-bay two-storey double-pile over basement block to rear (north) incorporating possibly earlier three-stage tower to north-west. Additional lean-to stairwell block to side (west) elevation of extension block. Now in use as a holiday home/commercial accommodation. Two-bay four-stage eighteenth-century tower house to northern end of eastern range. Attached to three-stage rectangular profile sixteenth-century tower house having rubble stone walls with battered plinth, dressed stone quoins and pointed arch vaulting above ground floor. Decorative window openings with carved limestone hoodmouldings and decorative tooled limestone mullions. Ruins of circular turret associated with original bawn wall [LI054-005001-] to north-west of tower house [LI054-005---]. Rubble stone enclosing walls forming folly to rear elevation and attached to side (south) elevation of sixteenth century tower house, having tooled limestone octagonal corner turret surmounted by rendered pinnacle. The house and courtyard complex are the ancestral home of Lord and Lady Muskerry and occupies the site of an old bawn associated with the sixteenth-century tower house. A visible mark to the tower house represents part of the roof line of an earlier eighteenth-century mansion that was built by John Fitzmaurice, a grandson of the 20th Lord of Kerry' (https://www.buildingsofireland.ie/buildings-search/building/21905404/springfield-castle-springfield-dromcolliher-limerick; NIAH Reg. No. 21905404).
Tower house and bawn (LI054-005001-) described by Salter (2004, 96) as a 'roofless but well preserved late 16th century tower has four gables rising direct off the outer walls, and two circular bartizans at diagonally opposite corners. The second of the four storeys is vaulted. A circular bawn [LI054-005001-] flanker lies closely. Here in 1579 the Earl of Desmond's brother John inflicted a severe defeat on an English force. After Sir John Fitzgerald fled to France following the Treaty of Limerick in 1691 Springfield went to the FitzMaurices and later passed to the Deanes, Lords Muskerry. They laid out a new house in the bawn, but it was replaced after being burnt in the Civil War of 1923'.

See attached photograph courtesy of Mike Searle (https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/3037448)

Compiled by: Caimin O'Brien

Date of upload: 7 October 2021

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.

O'Flanagan, Rev. M. (Compiler) 1929 Letters containing information relative to the antiquities of the county of Limerick collected during the progress of the Ordnance Survey in 1841. Bray

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.

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.