Rahinnane Castle
Rahinnane Castle | |
---|---|
Native name Irish: Caisleán Ráthanáin[1] | |
Type | tower house atop ringfort |
Location | Rahinnane, Ventry, County Kerry, Ireland |
Coordinates | 52°08′35″N 10°23′00″W / 52.143050°N 10.383232°W |
Owner | State |
Official name | Rahinnane Castle, Ringfort & Souterrain |
Reference no. | 10045 |
Rahinnane Castle is a
Location
Rahinnane Castle is located 1.73 km (1.07 mi) northwest of Ventry, in the west of the Dingle Peninsula.[4]
History
The ringfort on the site was built in the 7th or 8th century AD. The Irish name was originally Rath Fhionnáin — Finan's ringfort.
Local tradition once claimed that this piece of land was the last in Ireland held by the
The stone tower house was built in the 15th or 16th century by the FitzGeralds, hereditary Knights of Kerry.[6]
In 1602, towards the end of the Nine Years' War, the castle was taken by Sir Charles Wilmot. It was ruined during the Cromwellian conquest (1649–53).[7][8]
Building
The ancient earthwork featured a 9 metres (30 ft) deep ditch, an entrance in the southwest and a souterrain in the southeast.
The castle was rectangular and three storeys tall. Most of the outer walls remain; on the inside there is some mural stairway, traces of vaulting and a blind arcade. Two corner turrets are also visible.
More than half the outer walls of the three-storey castle remain.[9]
References
- ^ "Caisleán Ráthanáin/Rahinnane Castle". Logainm.ie.
- ^ Schorr, Frank. "Rahinnane Castle". www.castles.ancientireland.org.
- ^ Alcock, Leslie (27 June 1963). "Dinas Powys: An Iron Age, Dark Age, and Medieval Settlement in Glamorgan". University of Wales Press – via Google Books.
- ^ "Irish Castles - Rahinnane Castle". www.britainirelandcastles.com.
- ^ "Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland". The Society. 27 June 2018 – via Google Books.
- ISBN 978-1-85648-080-2– via Google Books.
- ^ "Ancient to Medieval (And Slightly Later) History - Rahinnane Castle, County Kerry, Ireland Rahinnane..." Ancient to Medieval (And Slightly Later) History.
- ^ Administrator. "Ventry - Ceann Trá". www.dingle-peninsula.ie.
- ^ "Rahinnane Castle". irishantiquities.bravehost.com.