Ballymote Castle
Ballymote Castle | |
|---|---|
Irish: Caisleán Bhaile an Mhóta | |
| County Sligo, Connacht Near Ballymote in Ireland | |
 The castle in the 1790s | |
  Ballymote Castle Location in Ireland | |
| Coordinates | 54°5′14.28″N 8°31′14.52″W / 54.0873000°N 8.5207000°W |
| Type | Norman castle |
| Site information | |
| Owner | Office of Public Works |
| Open to the public | No |
| Condition | Ruined |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1300ish |
| Built by | Richard de Burgh |
| In use | 1300-Late 17th Century |
| Fate | Fell into Ruin |
| Battles/wars | Irish Nine Year's War |
| Official name | Ballymote Castle |
| Reference no. | 638[1] |
Ballymote Castle (Irish: Caisleán Bhaile an Mhóta) is a large rectangular
Construction and design
Ballymote castle is a large enclosure castle, the most symmetrical of all the Irish "keepless" castles. It has many similarities with
The walls are about 3.0 metres (10 ft) thick and flanked with six noble towers. Passages of about 0.91 metres (3 ft) wide ran through the centre of the walls all around and the passages were built in such a way that they gave access to the towers, and to the intervening curtain walls
No traces of the interior domestic buildings survive.
Local folklore suggests that underground passages connected Emlaghfad church with the castle and with the nearby
The Red Earl is also credited with building the ancient road from Boyle, County Roscommon to Collooney, known as Bóthar an Corann and as the Red Earls Road.
History of occupation
The castle changed hands many times since construction. It was captured by the
.Although owned by
The O'Connors, O'Hartes and O'Dowds sacked the castle in 1588. The English surrendered it in 1598 to the MacDonaghs who sold it shortly afterwards to Red Hugh O'Donnell (one source says he bought it for £400 and 300 cows).[6] It was from here that Red Hugh O'Donnell marched to the disastrous Battle of Kinsale in 1601. When the O' Donnells surrendered it to the English in 1602, it was already in a bad state of repair. In 1633, the Taaffes owned it for a short time, but had to surrender it again to the English Parliamentary forces in 1652. In the Williamite wars the castle was held by Captain Terence MacDonagh for King James II, but he had to surrender it to Lord Granard in the face of an artillery attack in 1690. Soon afterwards the fortifications were made harmless, the moat was filled up and the castle fell into ruins.
In more recent years the Office of Public Works have carried out preservation work on the castle.
Access
The castle is on the
, and just past the Catholic church. Access is through the grounds of the Ballymote Community nursing unit. Open from 9am – 5pm Monday to Sunday.See also
References
- ^ "National Monuments of County Sligo in State Care" (PDF). heritageireland.ie. National Monument Service. p. 1. Retrieved 13 August 2020.
- ^ "Ballymote Castle". templehouse.ie. Retrieved 30 August 2022.
- ^ "Visit Ballymote Castle with Discover Ireland". Discover Ireland. Retrieved 30 August 2022.
- ^ "Ballymote Castle". The Parish of Ballymote. Archived from the original on 15 April 2007. Retrieved 28 May 2007.
- ^ "Ballymote Castle". Irelandseye.com. Retrieved 28 May 2007.
- ^ "Explore the sights of south Sligo". The Coleman Irish Music Centre. Coleman Heritage Centre Ltd. Archived from the original on 6 February 2012. Retrieved 13 June 2007.