Castle - unclassified

The National Monuments Service's description

Situated on grassland with Kilmacnevan church (WM010-115----) 600m to SE and ringfort (WM010-039---) 60m to NW. On the 17th century Down Survey map of Moygoish barony the present townland of Kilmacnevan was marked as Ballintur. The settlement earthworks (WM010-040----) are depicted as a cluster of dwellings and annotated as 'Ballintur towne' on the 1654-59 Down Survey map of Moygoish barony map (NLI, MS 723-4). On the Down Survey map of Kilmacnevan parish map a castle is depicted standing beside the cluster of dwellings depicted as 'Ballintue towne' (NLI, MS 723-4). The terrier of this parish map recorded that the castle had been recently destroyed and was described as 'lately ruinous' (ibid.). The precise location of this castle known as Ballintue Castle has not been identified. Not the same castle as the Site of Castle (WM010-019----) located 1.1km NNW of the settlement earthworks which is marked in Ballintue on the 1837 ed. OS 6-inch map.
Present remains consist of a large complex of low banks, rectangular enclosures & possible hut sites covering an area of at least 3 hectares. It is bounded by a stream along its W side.

Compiled by: Caimin O'Brien

Date of upload: 12 June 2017

References

NLI, MS 723-4 - National Library of Ireland, The parish maps of the Down Survey for the County of Westmeath, attested by W. Petty, in 1659. Copied by Daniel O'Brien. A set of 67 maps with accompanying terriers in two volumes, 1786-7. Dublin.