Castle - unclassified

The National Monuments Service's description

Fort Governor was constructed by order of Lord Deputy Bellingham on the site of the newly built O'Conor stronghold of Daingean which had been appropriated to the Crown by Lord Leonard Grey in 1537. It was then described as being 'builded in a great marsh… and great ditches and marshes about the same….defended by forty persons, the most of them gunners' (Curtis 1929, 317-8). Present remains consist of the fort comprise a large raised almost square area or bawn (dims. c. 82m N-S x 83m E-W) defined by a ditch faced with large sections of walling particularly well preserved at the SW angle. A stone built causeway over the fosse at the centre of the fort's W side, which gives access to the castle, appears to be of more recent origin. There are extensive grass-covered wall-footings of buildings in the enclosed area, with an H-shaped building which is possibly the castle located in the centre of the bawn of which only the wall-footings survive. As late as 1942 (ITA Survey) vesitiges of a bastion (Wth c. 5.35m) were noted projecting out 2.45m from the W wall. There are no upstanding remains of this feature. Two late 16th century armorial plaques (OF018-006009-; OF018-008----) from the fort are presently housed in the local library and in Castlebarnagh golf club respectively. (Comerford 1885, 3030; Hayes-McCoy 1976, 70; Bradley 1986, 35-7)
According to O'Flanagan (1933, vol. 1, 42) the fortress at Daingean was called the 'Fort of Faly'. The modern town of Daingean had its origins in plantation policy commencing with the building of Fort Governor by Sir William Brabazon in 1546, around which a settlement steadily grew despite attacks from the O'More's and O'Conor's. With the shiring of the territory of Ui Failge in 1556, Fort Falkland and its settlement was renamed Philipstown in honour of Philip II of Spain. Present remains consist of a large raised almost square shaped area or bawn (OF018-006002-) (c. 82m N-S; 83m E-W) defined by a ditch and large sections of walling (up to 2.8m H) built against the enclosed material. The walling is particularly well preserved at the SW angle (H 2.8m; T 0.9m) especially the S end of the wall. There are extensive grass covered wall footings of an H-shaped building or castle that was situated in the centre of the bawn or the enclosed area. Stone built causeway over fosse in middle of W side gave access to castle but is butted against the perimeter wall and is almost certainly of recent origin. According to Davies (ITA Survey) there was a bastion on the W wall projecting out by 8 ft and was 17.5 ft wide. No surface remains of this feature. Two late 16th-century armorial plaques (OF018-006009-; OF018-008----) from this fort are now housed in the local library (Bradley 1986, 37).
Archaeological monitoring under licence no. 03E1575 was required as part of the planning schedule for a housing development adjacent to a 16th-century fort at the south of Daingean town (OF018-006----). The north-west section of the development and the access road has been soil-stripped. No archaeological features or finds were uncovered. Monitoring will be continued in 2004 (Excavations Bulletin 2003).
Test-trenching was carried out under licence no. 04E1041 as part of the planning schedule relating to an extension to a national school adjacent to an enclosure (OF018-006----). A series of trenches were excavated by mechanical digger and no features or finds of archaeological significance were revealed.

Compiled by: Caimin O'Brien.

Date of revision: 27 April 2009

References

Bradley, J., Halpin, A. and King, H.A. 1986 Urban archaeological survey - county Offaly. Unpublished report commissioned by the Office of Public Works, Dublin.

Comerford, Rev. M. 1883-6 Collections relating to the dioceses of Kildare and Leighlin, 3 vols. James Duffy and Sons. Dublin.

Hayes-McCoy, G.A. 1976 Tudor conquest and Counter Reformation 1571-1603. In T.W. Moody, F.X. Martin and F.J. Byrne (eds), A New History of Ireland III, 1534-1691. Oxford. Clarendon Press.

O'Flanagan, Rev. M. (Compiler) 1933 Letters containing information relative to the antiquities of the King's County collected during the progress of the Ordnance Survey in 1839. Bray.

Irish Tourist Association. Surveys undertaken in the 1940s for the Irish Tourist Association (now Fáilte Ireland) relating to ‘Natural features, antiquities, historic associations etc.' Extracts from these surveys were copied into the Topographical files of the Office of Public Works and these have been incorporated into the Sites and Monuments Record files (National Monuments Service).

Curtis, E. 1930 The survey of Offaly in 1550. Hermathena 20, No. 45, 312-52. Dublin. Hodges Figgis, & Co.