Ballymote Castle | |
|---|---|
Irish:Caisleán Bhaile an Mhóta | |
| County Sligo,Connacht NearBallymote in Ireland | |
 The castle in the 1790s | |
| Site information | |
| Type | Normancastle |
| Owner | Office of Public Works |
| Open to the public | No |
| Condition | Ruined |
| Location | |
  Ballymote Castle Location in Ireland | |
| Coordinates | 54°5′14.28″N8°31′14.52″W / 54.0873000°N 8.5207000°W /54.0873000; -8.5207000 |
| 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 rectangularkeepless castle, built around 1300.[2] It is located in the townland of Carrownanty on the outskirts ofBallymote in southernCounty Sligo,Ireland.[3] This area was known historically asÁtha Cliath an Chorainn, which roughly translates asThe Ford of the Hurdles ofCorann. It is the last of theNorman castles inConnacht. It was probably built in order to protect the newly won possessions ofRichard Óg de Burgh, 2nd Earl of Ulster (also known as theRed Earl), in County Sligo,[4] some distance from an earliermotte.
Ballymote castle is a large enclosure castle, the most symmetrical of all the Irish "keepless" castles. It has many similarities withBeaumaris Castle, inAnglesey, Wales, built by KingEdward I of England. The entrance, with a double towered gate, is in the north wall and had twin D-shaped towers. It has a gatehouse typical of the period, the outer portions of which have almost completely disappeared. The castle, however, remains an impressive structure. The interior measures about 30 square metres (320 sq ft). There are three-quarter round towers at all four corners and also in the middle of the east and west walls.[5] Apostern gate, which was planned for the centre of the south wall, was never completed, probably because of the events of 1317, when the castle was lost to theO'Connors. A small square tower had protected this gate.
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 interveningcurtain walls at different heights, thereby meeting the needs of attack or defence.
No traces of the interior domestic buildings survive.
Local folklore suggests that underground passages connected Emlaghfad church with the castle and with the nearbyFranciscanAbbey, though such stories are common throughout Ireland and are unlikely to be based on fact.
The Red Earl is also credited with building the ancient road fromBoyle, County Roscommon toCollooney, known asBóthar an Corann and as theRed Earls Road.
The castle changed hands many times since construction. It was captured by theO'Connors of Sligo in1317, but was taken by theMac Diarmada, during the course of local struggles, in1347. By1381 it had passed to theMcDonaghs.
Although owned byTadhg MacDermot, one of the last of theKings of Moylurg in 1561, it appears to have passed to the O'Connor Sligo by1571, at which time he surrendered the castle andhad it regranted to him byJames I of England. In 1577, the castle fell into English hands for a short period and then more permanently in1584, when it was taken by the Governor of ConnachtRichard Bingham. A lack of occupation levels implies that the building was virtually abandoned during the above period (from 1317 to 1584).
The O'Connors, O'Hartes andO'Dowds sacked the castle in1588. The English surrendered it in 1598 to the MacDonaghs who sold it shortly afterwards toRed 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 disastrousBattle of Kinsale in1601. When the O' Donnells surrendered it to the English in1602, it was already in a bad state of repair. In1633, theTaaffes owned it for a short time, but had to surrender it again to the English Parliamentary forces in1652. In theWilliamite wars the castle was held by Captain Terence MacDonagh for KingJames II, but he had to surrender it toLord Granard in the face of an artillery attack in1690. Soon afterwards the fortifications were made harmless, themoat was filled up and the castle fell into ruins.
In more recent years theOffice of Public Works have carried out preservation work on the castle.
The castle is on theR296,Ballymote toTubbercurry road, opposite theBallymote railway station, and just past the Catholic church. Access is through the grounds of the Ballymote Community nursing unit. Open from 9 am – 5 pm Monday to Sunday.
