House - 17th century

The National Monuments Service's description

Situated on the summit of a slight knoll overlooking the steep sides of a stream valley to the E. Castle (WI008-002001-), bawn (WI008-002002-) and 17th century house described in the Ordnance Survey letters of 1838/40 as following; ‘Old Court Castle (WI008-002001-) occupies a bold and handsome situation on the brink of a little river in the townland of Old Court. It is a square tower about 70 feet (21.3m) high, 54 feet [16.45m] long and 20 [6m] broad, with all its sides perfect to the top. It has several square and two gothic arched windows or loop holes. The ascent within is by wooden ladders and partly by the original spiral stone stairs. The entrance was through a door on the west side near the N.W. angle, and apparently through a house which projected from this angle westward 54 feet [16.45m] in length by 20 [6m] in breadth; the foundation only traceable at present. The remains of two small round towers mark the gate entrance to the house, lying about 20 yards [18.2m] south of the castle. That on the right as you enter is 12 feet [3.65m] in diameter and five [1.5m] in height, the wall 2 feet [0.6m] thick, and having a breach 7 feet [2.13m] wide on the west side. Ten or twelve feet [3-3.65m] of the other remains to the height of about ten feet [3m], having a pointed arched doorway 7 feet [2.13m] high and two feet 6 inches [0.76m] wide’ (O’Flanagan 1928, 28-9).
Present remains consist of a 17th-century house (Wth 7.85m) evidenced by a high-pitched gable visible in the W face of a tower house (WI008-002001-). The house appears to have used the N bawn wall (WI008-002002-) of the tower house as the foundations of its N wall, which runs E-W along the edge of a steep slope. The nature of the platform on which it stood suggests that the house could not have been more than 16m long. The Ordnance Survey letters of 1838/40 recorded that the house measured internally 16.45m long by 6m in width and had walls which measured 0.6m in thickness. It is unclear whether the house is a later addition built into the W face of the tower or if it is contemporaneous with the tower and acted as the hall of the tower in a similar fashion to Coolamber Castle (LF006-018----), Co. Longford and Coolhull Castle (WX046-028----), Co. Wexford.

The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Wicklow' (Dublin: Stationery Office, 1997). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research.

Date of upload/revision: 10 May 2016

This monument is subject to a preservation order made under the National Monuments Acts 1930 to 2014 (PO no. 143/1940).

References

O'Flanagan, Rev. M. (Compiler) 1928 Letters containing information relative to the antiquities of the county of Wicklow collected during the progress of the Ordnance Survey in 1838. Bray.