Castle - unclassified

The National Monuments Service's description

Located on a slight E-W ridge of rock outcrop at the bottom of a S-facing slope. Traditionally owned by a Ruby O'Conor, it was O'Conor Roe land into the seventeenth century (Gormley 1989, 89, 148). In 1641 land at Castlerew was owned by Hugh Morgagh Ó Connor Dunn, but by 1684 ownership had been transferred to Ellen and George Talbot, Countess of Fingal by Act of Settlement, c. 1662-84 (Simington 1949, 48), whose daughter Mary married Patrick Plunkett of Castleplunket (RO027-028001--) (Tiernan 2016). The castle is a rectangular area (ext. dims 15m N-S; 7.3m E-W) defined by a grass-covered stone spread (Wth 2-3m; H 0.2m), which may be a house built by the Talbots on the site of an older O'Conor castle. This is at the centre of an area of c. 1.5 ha. (c. 4 acres) containing three small rectangular fields (RO027-023003-) (dims c. 40m x c. 30m) defined by low banks or scarps.

Compiled by: Michael Moore

Date of revised upload: 11 August 2017

References

Gormley, M. (compiler) 1989 Tulsk parish in historic Maigh Aí. Aspects of its history and folklore. Author

Tiernan, M. 2016 Father Plunkett's Monument (RO027-025----). Journal of the County Roscommon Historical and Archaeological Society, vol. 13, 67.

Simington, R.C. (ed.) 1949 Books of survey and distribution. County of Roscommon. Dublin. Stationery Office.