Chapter C: O’Neill, “Antrim Castle.” (5)

“Lease (under commission, 15 July, XXII.) to Edmund Spenser, gent., of the site of the house of friars of Enescortie, with apputences; the manor of Enescortie, a ruinous castle, land, and a weir there, lands of Garrane, Killkenane, Loughwertie, Barrickcrowe, and Ballineparke, and the customs of boards, timber, laths, boats bearing victuals, lodgings during the fair, and things sold there, and fishings belonging to the manor, and all other appurtenances as well within the Morroes country as without. To hold for 21 years. Rent, £13-6-4. Maintaining one English horseman. Fine, 20s.”

It is stated that fear of the Kavanaghs prevented his coming into residence, for the year afterwards his lease was transferred to Sir Richard Sinnot, of Ballybrennan, and ratified by the Crown for a term of forty years.

In 1595 Queen Elizabeth granted the estate to Sir Henry Wallop, Treasurer of War, by letters patent.

He restored the castle, but his son preferred to reside in the more modern dwelling of the Franciscan monks, which was close to the fortress. He died here in 1624, and was succeeded by his son Robert.

Sir Henry’s grandson was one of the judges at the trial of Charles I., and after the Restoration he was imprisoned in the Tower of London, where he died in 1667. His great grandson was created Earl of Portsmouth in 1743.

The castle was in the hands of the Confederates in 1642.

In 1649 (whilst in the possession of Mr. Robert Wallop) the army of the Commonwealth laid siege to the stronghold. It was well manned and provisioned.

Close to its walls was the “fair house,” formerly the largest Franciscan monastery in Ireland, and then the residence of the Wallop family, who deserted it upon the approach of the army.

When the castle was summoned the garrison refused to surrender, but they shortly afterwards reconsidered their decision and left their great guns, arms, ammunition, and provisions in the hands of the victors.

Shortly afterwards the castle was, however, re-taken by a trick. Some Royalist supporters feasted the men of the garrison and sent women to them to sell whiskey. When they were helplessly drunk the Irish overpowered them and took possession of the castle.

The Governor, Captain Todd, and his wife, as well as the officers under him, were all put to death. Only four of the soldiers were spared, they having betrayed the fortress for the sum of £7.

As soon as Colonel Cooke, the Governor of Wexford, heard of the outrage he marched to Enniscorthy and took the castle by storm, killing every one of the Irish garrison.

The first Earl of Portsmouth repaired the building and leased it to Adam Colclough in 1745.

During the rebellion of 1798 it was used as a prison by the insurgents during the period that Enniscorthy remained in their hands.

They greatly defaced the place, but the Earl of Portsmouth restored it between 1806 and 1812, altering it to the requirements of a modern residence for his agent. After this period it had many tenants.

From 1852 to 1863 it was used as an estate office, and a printing press was also erected within the walls. It was from here that the _Enniscorthy News_ was first issued.

It fell into a state of dilapidation about 1863, though in 1867 it was used as a temporary barracks for the extra police required in the town during the Fenian rising.

In 1898 it was sold to Mr. P. J. Roche of New Ross.

AUTHORITIES CONSULTED.

Flood, “History of Enniscorthy.”
D. Murphy, “Cromwell in Ireland.”
Brewer, “Beauties of Ireland.”
Proceedings of Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland.
Parliamentary Gazetteer.
State Papers.
Calendar of Patent and Close Rolls, Ireland.
Fiants of Elizabeth.

_ENNISKILLEN CASTLE_

The chief part of the town of Enniskillen is situated on an island in Lough Erne, seventy-five miles west-by-south of Belfast, in the County Fermanagh.

The name is supposed to be derived from a small islet near to the eastern bridge where the heroic wife of a great chief is buried, and which was called Enis-Cethlenn or “the Island of Cethlenn.”

The castle stands at the western side of the town, where it commanded the lake.

It is now incorporated with the Castle Barrack, but the original quadrangular keep (a storey lower than in former times) is still to be seen, while the curtain wall and towers, which were erected in 1611, and figure in the arms of the town, are in a good state of preservation. The ditch which once surrounded it has now been filled up. The castle was the chief fortress of the Maguires, lords of Fermanagh. In 1439 it was surrendered to Donall Ballach Maguire, and three years later Thomas Oge Maguire gave it to Philip Maguire.

In 1593 Maguire had the houses round the castle burnt for fear of attack. Nevertheless, early the following year, during his absence, Captain Dowdall laid siege to the fortress.

On the ninth day he attacked the castle “by boats, by engines, by sap, by scaling.” He placed 100 men in a great boat covered with hurdles and hide, which, with

Connor O’Cassidy as guide, drew up close to the wall of the barbican.

Here a fierce onslaught was made, and the garrison retreated to the keep. This, Captain Dowdall threatened to blow up unless they surrendered, which they accordingly did.

The steersman of the boat gives the number as thirty-six fighting men, and nearly the same of women and children; whereas Captain Dowdall states he put a hundred and fifty to death, which is most likely an exaggeration.

He says it came into her Majesty’s hands with small loss, though it was very strong, with walls seven feet thick and “soundrie secret fights within it of great annoyance uppon the barbican.”

He remained ten days mending the breaches, gates, and doors, and laid in three months’ provisions. He elected a constable, and, garrisoning it with thirty soldiers, took his departure.

Marshall Bagnall was on his way to ward the castle, but Dowdall reported that he was too ill to await his coming.

The same year Maguire laid siege to the fortress, it is said, at the instigation of the Earl of Tyrone. The relieving party was defeated, and the Lord Deputy himself set out to the rescue of the garrison.

They had been reduced to eating horseflesh, and had only one more animal when they were relieved. The ward was then reduced from forty to thirty, and the castle victualled for six months, which supply was to be augmented by fishing for eels under the walls.

Shortly after this the bawn was seized and seven warders killed; and in 1595 the whole fortress surrendered. In the State Papers the Lord Deputy declares he cannot understand why this should have been, as the castle was well provisioned. He says that he hears the constable and fifteen warders were promised life and goods, but that when they came out they were all put to death. It does not seem that this report was confirmed.

In 1596-97 the Lord Deputy asks for three falcons with their carriages and ladles, to replace those which Maguire had taken with the castle, and which had belonged to Dublin.

Maguire’s brother held the fortress in 1598.

It was again in English possession in 1607, and Captain William Cole was constable in 1610, when he asked for some land to be allotted to his office. That immediately round the castle was in the hands of Scottish settlers, and there was no demesne land attached to the building.

In 1611 he built “a fair house” on the old site, adding numerous outhouses.

A moat surrounded the bawn, and the river was crossed by a drawbridge. He also erected a wall 26 feet high with flankers and parapet, which still remains.

The castle was granted to Sir William Cole in 1620 on a lease for twenty-one years, and he was responsible for its repair. The Earl of Enniskillen at present represents the family.

Four hundred pounds was granted for State repairs in 1646, some of which had been expended on the castle of Enniskillen.

During the famous siege of the town in 1689 the Governor, Gustavus Hamilton, took up his residence in the castle, which belonged to Sir Michael Cole, who was absent in England.

In 1749 the fortress was in ruins.

AUTHORITIES CONSULTED.

State Papers.
MS. Ordnance Survey.
Parliamentary Gazetteer.
Proceedings of Royal Society of Antiquaries, Ireland.
King, “Henry’s Upper Lough Erne.”
Witherrow, “Derry and Enniskillen.”
Earl of Belmore, “Governor Hamilton and Captain Corry,”
and Ancient Maps of Enniskillen, both in _Ulster
Journal of Archæology_.

_FERNS CASTLE_

This ancient seat of royalty is situated five miles and three-quarters north-by-east of Enniscorthy, on the River Bann, in the County of Wexford. The name comes from Fearna, meaning alders, or “a place abounding in alders.”

The erection of the first stone castle is ascribed to Strongbow, and it is supposed to have been built upon the site of the fortress or dun of his father-in-law, Dermot MacMurrough, King of Leinster.

The present ruins are the remains of four round towers, which were joined by high curtain walls enclosing a courtyard. The building is one of great strength, and occupies an imposing situation above the town.

The most perfect of the towers contains a chapel, with a beautifully groined roof springing from consoles. Richard Donovan, who inherited the property in 1773, is said to have converted the sanctuary into an Orange Lodge, where high revel was held, and a visitor in 1864 states that an equestrian statue of William III. occupied the site of the altar beneath the east window.

Mr. Baranger, however, writing in 1780, says that the chapel was without a floor, and made one with the under apartment. He describes the room above it as arched, and also remarks that the edges of the stones of the long loophole windows had been cut underneath as if for cannon to be pointed through. A brass fieldpiece found in the castle was used for the defence of Wexford, 1641.

Three kinds of masonry are visible in the construction of the tower, each occupying about a third of its height. The bottom layer consists of small stones, the middle part of larger ones, while those at the top are hewn.

At one time part of the wall connecting the towers was used as a ball-alley (the ground being flagged for this purpose), until the owner of the castle enclosed the ruins with a wall for their preservation.

In 1865 part of the fortress on the north side fell in a thunderstorm, and the tenant of that date procured leave to blast the rest of this wall for fear of accident. The ground is littered with broken masonry.

After Strongbow’s death in 1177, Henry II. bestowed the manor and castle of Ferns upon William FitzAdelm de Burgo. The same year FitzAdelm seized the Black Castle of Wicklow from the three sons of Maurice Fitzgerald, giving them Ferns by way of compensation.

The brothers at once began to rebuild and strongly fortify their new possession, but it was hardly completed before Walter Allemand, a nephew of FitzAdelm, attacked the castle and left it in a ruined condition.

William Marshall, Earl of Pembroke, who married the grand-daughter of Dermot MacMurrough, began to erect a much larger fortress on the same site in 1192. He was succeeded by his son, who had married the daughter of King John, and he completed the stronghold in 1224. He then presented it to the Bishop of Ferns as restitution for Church land which his father had seized.

It remained in the possession of the Church from 1224 to 1364, during which time it was used as an Episcopal Palace.

In 1243 Geoffrey St. John, Vicar-General of Ferns, and Escheator of Ireland, came into residence, and was succeeded by Bishop Lambert in 1282, who died in the castle.

He was followed by Richard of Northampton, who had been Canon of Kildare, while in 1304 Robert Waldrond was consecrated, and took up his abode at Ferns. During this time the neighbourhood was much disturbed, and the next Bishop was arraigned for high treason in 1317, but was pardoned the following year.

In 1331 the clan of O’Toole seized the castle, pillaged, and burned it. Next year the Crown took possession again, and three years later they thought it expedient to appoint Lord Gerald Rochford constable of Ferns Castle. He held office for ten years, and was summoned to Parliament as a Baron.

In 1347 Bishop Esmond came into possession of the stronghold, and was succeeded by Bishops Charnels and Denn. The latter prelate was the last Bishop to reside in the castle, for from 1402 to 1530 the stronghold was in possession of the MacMurroughs.

At the end of this period it was captured by Lord Deputy Grey. He was on his way from Kilkenny to Dublin, when he sent word from Leghlyn to Stephen FitzHenry at Kilkea, to meet him at Ferns Castle with his guns and men.

Lord Grey marched by night, and arrived in the morning before the fortress. He demanded its surrender, which was refused by the garrison, “using very spiteful language.” The day was spent in preparing for the attack. He posted his men round the building in the ditches and other cover, so that none of the besieged should escape, and the troops broke down the gate leading to the drawbridge. A Mr. Thomas Allen, who was with the attacking party, noticed that one of the garrison kept watch every now and then from one particular place, and he sent a gunner to hide himself where he could cover the spot with his weapon. This was successful, and the man was shot as soon as he returned. He was the governor and chief gunner of the castle.

The rest of the garrison then asked for a parley, which was granted.

Lord Grey told them that unless they surrendered before the arrival of the ordnance, which was within a mile of the stronghold, he would not accept a surrender, but kill them all. They then agreed to give the castle up, and two of the English were stationed in it during the night.

The next day the Lord Deputy appointed a garrison of the MacMurroughs to guard the stronghold, taking their chief with him to Dublin as a hostage.

A writer of this time describes the castle as the old inheritance of the Earl of Shrewsbury or the Duke of Norfolk, and “oon of the auncientis and strongest castells within this lande.”

In 1536 Cahir Maclnnycross Kavanagh, the MacMurrough, was appointed constable by the Crown, but two years later he was superseded by Sir Richard Butler.

At the time great anxiety was felt for fear of an attack from the Kavanaghs; and in 1550, we learn from the State Papers that Cahir M’Arte Kavanagh had managed to get possession of the castle by treatment.

The next year Richard Kettyng asked the Privy Council to confirm the King’s letter granting him the stronghold, but they refused.

It was considered necessary to have English captains in the castles of the districts to hold the Kavanaghs in subjection, so that a list of constables to Ferns Castle is recorded, the most remarkable being the Mastersons, father and son, the former being accused of conspiring against the Queen in 1569.

Thrilling traditions are related regarding his wife, Catherien de Clare, who was said to decoy the neighbouring chiefs and Irish gentlemen within the fortress under the guise of hospitality and murder them by pushing them down a trapdoor.

In 1588 Masterson entered a petition for land, as recompense for thirty-four years’ service.

His son spent large sums on rebuilding the castle; nevertheless it was granted to Lord Andley in 1608.

Sir Charles Coote occupied the stronghold in 1641, but finding he was unable to hold it against the insurgents, he dismantled the outworks, blew up part of the building, and left the neighbourhood.

It must, however, have been partly repaired, for eight years later, when Cromwell’s commander, Colonel Reynolds, appeared before it, the garrison fled, leaving their arms, ammunition, and provisions behind them.

In 1669 Charles II. granted the castle to Arthur Parsons; while in 1689 it seems to have been in the possession of Alderman Thomas Keiran, who gave it to his brother-in-law, Richard Donovan, in 1694, from whom it descended to its present owner, Richard Donovan, Esq., D.L., of Ballymore House, Camolin.

AUTHORITIES CONSULTED.

Calendar of State Papers.
Calendar of Carew MSS.
Parliamentary Gazetteer.
W. G. Flood, “History of Enniscorthy.”
G. Bassett, “Wexford.”
G. Stokes, “Ireland and Anglo-Norman Church.”
G. Griffiths, “Chronicles of County Wexford.”
Savage, “Picturesque Ireland.”
Proceedings of Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland.

_FERRYCARRIG AND SHANA COURT CASTLES_

The chief interest attaching to the castles of Ferrycarrig and Shana Court is the fact that one or other of them was the first Anglo-Norman fortress erected in Ireland.

The sites of the two strongholds occupy positions one on each side of the Slaney, a little more than two miles west of Wexford. The parish of Carrig lies on the right bank of the river in the Barony of West Shelmalier, and here on an isolated rock commanding the ferry is situated Ferrycarrig Castle--Carrig signifying a rock.

It is a square tower of great age and occupies the whole summit of the rocky point on which it stands, and does not seem, therefore, to have ever been of larger dimensions than at present. The masonry is rough and massive and the loopholes unusually small, while the door is so low and narrow that it is necessary to stoop when entering.

An opening in the wall is usually called the “murdering hole,” but as there is another aperture to correspond with it in the exterior at the base they are likely to have had some other use.

The close resemblance which this tower bears to Trajan’s Tower at Paboquaipass on the Danube, even to a similar entrance, has been the subject of remark.

On the south bank of the river, where the Crimean monument now stands, were traceable some years ago the fosse and outworks of Shana Court. They occupied about half an acre, but the walls of the fortress had been demolished to supply stones for the building of the old mansion of Belmont.

Tradition asserts that Ferrycarrig was erected by FitzStephen, who landed in Ireland in 1169, and that Shana Court was built by King John, it deriving its name from his having held court there as Viceroy.

We know FitzStephen de Marisco erected a castle at Carrig from the following passage in Giraldus Cambrensis:

“MacMorogh marched to besiege Dublin, but left FitzStephen behind, who was then building a hold or castle upon a certain rocky hill called the Carricke, about two miles from Wexford, which place, although it was very strong of itself, yet by industry and labour it was made much stronger.”

From the same source we also learn that it was environed on two sides by the river, but this might apply equally to either fortress.

A further description says: “It was at first made but of rods and wiffes, according to the manner in those daies, but since builded with stone, and was the strongest fort then in those parts of the land; but being a place not altogether sufficient for a prince, and yet it was thought too good and strong for a subject, it was pulled down, defaced, and razed, and so dooth still remane.”

The most likely assumption, on the whole, seems to be that King John erected on the ruined site of FitzStephen’s stronghold the castle known as Shana Court, the stones of which were used in building Belmont, and that Ferrycarrig was an outwork of the larger fortress or else was erected by the Roches of Artramont as a watch-tower to protect the ferry.

FitzStephen suffered a memorable siege in his castle in 1170. He had weakened his garrison by sending a detachment to serve with Strongbow, when the men of Wexford and Kinsellagh rose and laid siege to Carrig Castle with a force of about three thousand.

Several desperate assaults were successfully repulsed before the attackers asked for a parley. This was granted, and they informed FitzStephen that Strongbow and his followers had been utterly routed, and that King Roderic was marching with a great army to annihilate his garrison, but that out of respect to his person they wished him to escape.

FitzStephen could not be induced to believe the tale until three bishops took a false oath as to its truth, whereupon he capitulated upon honourable terms. These were at once violated, and, against the conditions, he was made prisoner and sent to Beggery Island, while many of those with him were killed.

Donald Kavanagh, with great difficulty, arrived in Dublin to inform Strongbow that FitzStephen could not hold out more than three days. It was on this occasion that Maurice FitzGerald made his famous speech, in which he said: “FitzStephen, also, whose courage and noble daring opened to us the way into this island, is now with his small force besieged by a hostile nation. What should we, therefore, wait for?”

Stirred by his eloquence, the English forces, though of small numbers, set out and carried victory before them, but in the meantime Carrig had surrendered.

Strongbow was warned that if his forces marched on Wexford all the prisoners would be at once slain, so that FitzStephen was not liberated until King Henry arrived in Ireland in 1172.

Ferrycarrig is situated on the Earl of Donoghmore’s estate.

AUTHORITIES CONSULTED.

J. Ryan, “History and Antiquities of Carlow.”
Brewer, “Beauties of Ireland.”
Giraldus Cambrensis.
Parliamentary Gazetteer.
Proceedings of Royal Society of Antiquaries.
Marquis of Kildare, “Earls of Kildare.”
Joyce, “Irish Place Names.”
“Ferrycarrig,” in _The People_.

_GEASHILL CASTLE_

“Oh, sweetly rural is the scene
Where Geashill Castle stands;
Beneath the line of green old hills
This lovely vale expands.”
E. EGAN.

The village of Geashill is situated in the barony of the same name, about eight miles south-east of Tullamore, in the King’s County. On a long ridge near are the ruins of the castle, adjoining a modern lodge usually occupied by the agent of the Digby estate. The ancient fortress is three storeys high, and a spiral stairway still leads to the summit, where there is an iron chair. An underground passage is said to run to the ruined Abbey close by.

The date of the castle’s erection by the Fitzgeralds is ascribed to the twelfth century, and in 1203 or 1204 the King commanded it to be delivered to William Marshall, Earl of Pembroke, as the guardian of Maurice, second Baron of Offaly, who was heir to Gerald FitzMaurice.

In 1305 the sept of the O’Dempseys slaughtered a great number of the O’Connors near the castle, and the following year the stronghold was destroyed by these native Irish. The Book of Howth says: “The Lord of Offalye builded the castle of Geschell” in 1307, so it was, no doubt, rebuilt this year by Thomas FitzMaurice, “the crooked heir,” who died in 1298, and who is supposed to have been prevented from inheriting as head of the family on account of some deformity. Juliana FitzGerald granted the castle to his son, who was her cousin, and afterwards 1st Earl of Kildare.

An inquisition was held at Kildare in 1282 upon the estate of the late John FitzThomas, when his heir, Thomas FitzMaurice, came of age. It was shown that the former had held lands from Maurice FitzGerald “for a moiety of the service of one knight whenever royal service should be summoned, rendering suit nevertheless at the court of the said Maurice FitzGerald at Geashill.”

Lord Leonard Gray and the chieftain O’Mulmoy seized the castle, and abbey of Killeigh in 1538. In both they found great stores of corn, part of which they burnt and part carried off.

On an ancient map of Leix, dated about 1563, both the castles of Lea and Geashill are marked as ruins, but in Sir Henry Sydney’s account of Ireland shortly afterwards he writes: “Geshell, in the King’s County, is very necessary to be had of the Earl of Kildare; it is a matter of consequence for her Majesty’s service in that county.”

James I. granted the barony of Geashill in 1619 and 1629 to Lady Lettice Digby, widow of Sir Robert Digby, of Warwickshire, as compensation for not inheriting as heir-general of the house of Kildare, she being the only child of the eldest son of the 11th Earl of Kildare. At the same time he created her Baroness of Offaly, and she lived quietly at Geashill from that date until 1642, when the great rebellion broke out and the Confederate Catholics laid siege to her stronghold.

A kinsman of hers named Henry Dempsy, brother of Lord Clanmalier, was in command, and despatched a letter “To the Honourable and thrice virtuous Lady, the Lady Digby,” demanding that she should surrender the castle to his Majesty and offering her and her household a free pass to wherever they wished, threatening at the same time if she did not comply to murder every Protestant in the town.

To this demand the Baroness sent the following answer: “I received your letter, wherein you threaten to sack this my castle, by his Majesty’s authority. I have ever been a loyal subject and good neighbour among you, and, therefore, cannot but wonder at such an assault. I thank you for your offer of a convoy, wherein I hold little safety; and, therefore, my resolution is, that being free of offending his Majesty, or doing wrong to any of you, I will live and die innocently, and will do the best to defend my own, leaving the issue to God. And though I have been, and still am desirous to avoid the shedding of Christian blood, yet, being provoked, your threats shall no wit dismay me.--LETTICE OFFALY.”

The castle was surrounded by bog and wood, and was, in consequence, somewhat difficult of access, so that upon receiving her letter the enemy retired to make more elaborate preparations for attack.

They collected a number of pots and pans, with which a man from Athboy constructed a cannon. It had to be cast three times before it was successful.

After two months the attackers returned to the castle with Lord Clanmalier in command. He despatched another letter demanding surrender to the brave lady, which received a spirited reply, reiterating her determination to endeavour to hold her own against all comers.

Upon its receipt they discharged the gun, which burst at the first shot, but a fusilade of muskets was kept up until the evening.

As the Baroness was looking out of one of the windows a ball struck the wall near her, and taking out her handkerchief, she contemptuously dusted the spot.

It is said that one of her sons, having fallen into the enemy’s hands, was brought before the castle in chains, with a threat that they would kill him unless she surrendered. She, however, replied that if they touched a hair of his head she would at once put to death a Roman Catholic priest who was within the walls.

At dark the enemy retired, again sending her a letter offering her terms, which received the same refusal as the others had done, and the messenger she sent was kept a prisoner.

Lady Offaly managed to let Sir Charles Coote, then at Naas, know that she needed assistance, and Philip Sydney, Viscount Lisle, at once set out from Dublin to her relief, accompanied by Sir Charles Coote, Sir George Wentworth, Lord Digby, the Baroness’s eldest son, and a considerable force of horse and foot.

Lady Offaly had also despatched an appeal for help to the FitzGeralds, but the letter fell into the enemy’s hands instead, who at once renewed the siege when they learnt of her straits.

As the English forces advanced the besiegers skirmished and retreated. The relieving party supplied the fortress with food and ammunition, but at Lady Offaly’s request she remained in the castle.

The following October she was again attacked by Charles Dempsie, but this time was shortly relieved by Sir Richard Grenville, and after this she retired to Cole’s Hill, in Warwickshire, where she died in 1658.

Her eldest son, Lord Digby, inherited the castle, and it is still in the family’s possession.

AUTHORITIES CONSULTED.

Marquis of Kildare, “Earls of Kildare.”
J. Wright, “King’s County Directory.”
State Documents.
Carew MSS., including Book of Howth.
Parliamentary Gazetteer.
Hore, “Rental Book of Gerald, 9th Earl
of Kildare,” and “Notes on a
Fac-Simile of an Ancient Map
of Leix,” both in _Journal
of Royal Society of Antiquaries, Ireland_.

_GLENARM CASTLE_

This castle is situated in the Barony of Lower Glenarm, a little more than twenty-five miles north of Belfast, in the County Antrim, where the Glenarm rivulet enters the bay.

The original stronghold was erected by the Byset family about the middle of the thirteenth century, and came into the MacDonnell family through the marriage of Margery Bisset.

The castle stood on the southern side of the river at the head of the street which leads from the barbican, and on the opposite bank from the present building.

In 1278 an inquisition was held after the death of two John Bysets to determine if the Earl of Ulster was right in making the fortress over to the Bishop of Connor as ecclesiastical property, and it was decided that the Bysets had not held the castle from the church.

Captain Pers and Malbie placed Randal Oge in possession of the stronghold in 1568, but the same year his ward surrendered it.

In 1597 it is reported James and Randal M’Donnell “broke” the castle, and it does not appear to have been afterwards rebuilt, although the ruins were standing for many years.

Sir Randal MacDonnell was granted the estate in 1603, and began to erect the present castle.

Sir Awla M’Awla petitioned against his possession of Glenarm in 1610, but apparently without effect.

Sir Randal greatly enlarged the dwelling in 1636, and the following inscription was placed over the entrance:--

“With the leave of God this castle was built by Sir Randal McDonnel, Knight, Erle of Antrim, having to wife Dame Aellis O’Neill, in the year of our Lord God, 1636. Deus est adjutor meus.”

Shortly after this the family made Glenarm their chief place of residence instead of Dunluce Castle.

The fortress is approached by a barbican standing on the northern side of the bridge, while an avenue of limes leads to the hall door. The building is flanked by towers crowned with cupolas and vanes, and the gables are decorated with heraldic devices.

An embattled wall guards the terrace on the river side.

The hall, which is also used as a billiard-room, is especially handsome, while the dining-room and drawing-room are also fine apartments.

Some treasure chests said to have belonged to the Spanish Armada are preserved in the castle, but a doubt has been thrown upon their being of such a date.

During the rebellion of 1798, the castle was used as the headquarters of the Yeomanry. The rebels had decided to attack it on the 8th of June, and the wives of the Yeomen, whom they had captured, were to be placed in front of the insurgents in their advance.

This diabolical plan was frustrated on the very morning of the intended attack by news of the defeat at Antrim, whereupon the camp was broken up.

Glenarm is the seat of the Earl of Antrim, the present representative being the sixth peer.

AUTHORITIES CONSULTED.

Hill, “MacDonnells of Antrim.”
State Documents.
State Papers.
Thomson, “Highways and Byeways in Donegal and Antrim.”
Parliamentary Gazetteer.
“Guide to the Giant’s Causeway,” in _Dublin Penny Journal_.
Drew, “Old Iron Treasure Chests”; Smith,
“Memories of ’98,” in _Ulster Journal of Archæology_.

_GLIN CASTLE_

The origin of the title Knight of Glin, or Knight of the Valley, seems not to be accurately known, but the designation has been recorded as in use during the reign of Henry III. The Knights of Glin, also called the Black Knights, belong to the great Geraldine family, and owed a certain allegiance to the Earls of Desmond, which is described as follows: “Divers customs of meat and drink, together with rising of men at the Earl’s calling to the number of 60 kearne.”

The housing and feeding of some of the Earl’s men were also included.

Glin is a small market town and seaport in the Barony of Shanid, in the County Limerick, at the junction of a rivulet with the Shannon, twenty-six miles west by south of Limerick City.

Of the ancient fortress situated in the town, nothing now remains but the keep. It measures 38 feet by 35 externally, and the walls are 8 feet in thickness. It is at present about 40 feet in height, but was at one time crowned by a turret in the eastern corner. The courtyard walls were 102 feet in length and 92 in breadth. The chief entrance, to the north, was defended by a semicircular outwork. The great hall was situated on the western side of the courtyard, while the keep was in the south-west corner. The two eastern angles were defended by small towers. A moat surrounded the castle filled with water from the Shannon tributary.

The Knight of Glin was a very important chieftain in Limerick, maintaining an ordinary force of ten horsemen and a hundred and forty foot soldiers. During the Desmond wars he shared the fortunes of the Earl, and in 1569 both the Knight and the son were attainted, the latter being executed.

The estates were, however, very shortly afterwards restored, and in the rebellion of the Northern Earls and the “Sugan Earl” of Desmond, the Knight of Glin was again amongst the disaffected.

In the summer of 1600 Sir George Carew started on an expedition to the west to restore peace in that quarter. He had with him a force of one thousand five hundred men, and was accompanied by the Earl of Thomond.

The army marched through Kerry to Askeaton, where there was a halt for four days awaiting provisions, which had been sent by water from Limerick. On the 4th of July they marched twelve miles to Ballintare, the enemy moving in front within view. The next morning’s march brought them before Glin Castle, the rebels still offering no opposition.

The Four Masters describe the route taken as having been from Limerick along the northern bank of the Shannon through Clare, the troops ferrying themselves across the river at Glin, but it is most likely that Sir George Carew’s biographer gives the correct line of march.

Captain Gawin Harvey’s ship, with the ordnance on board, had been anchored in the Shannon for fourteen days awaiting their arrival, and the guns were at once unshipped upon the arrival of the troops.

That night the forces entrenched themselves between the castle and the river, and the next day, under the guise of a parley, they managed to plant the cannon without opposition.

The next day the Knight of Glin, who was not within the castle, asked for a safe conduct to the English camp, which was granted. Upon arrival he demanded to see the President, but was refused unless upon an unconditional surrender. This he would not consent to, and was, therefore, ordered to depart. Seeing his son in the camp, whom he had delivered as a hostage some time previously, he seemed to hesitate, but as he still held out for terms the Earl of Thomond broke off the negotiations, and the Knight and his attendants retired to a neighbouring hill to watch the attack.

Later the Constable of the fortress sent a message to the Earl of Thomond begging an interview, which was granted. He began by stating that the love he bore the Earl, being a Thomond man himself, had induced him to warn the English to depart, as the Earl of Desmond with three thousand Connaught men were only two miles off, and would most likely attack the camp and drive them all into the river. The Earl laughed at his forebodings, and told him to deliver the castle and so save himself and the warders from death. This offer he refused, and the President, hearing he had done so, sent a message to say that he hoped to place his head on a stake in two days’ time.

One of the cannon becoming clogged, Sir George Carew ordered it to be filled with a charge in inverted order and the fire put to the mouth, so as to clear the touch-hole by the explosion. This was carried out with great success, much to the relief of the besiegers.

A fire of small shot was kept up from the castle at the ordnance, and the President, placing the Knight’s son on one of the cannon, sent a message to the garrison to say he had given them a mark to aim at. The Constable replied that the Knight of Glin might have more sons, and that the child should not deter him from firing.

Sir George Carew, however, removed the child, and commenced the battery. A breach was made into the cellar under the great hall, one gunner only being killed.

Captain Flower then led the attack and entered the hall through the breach, forcing the ward to retire. The flag of the besiegers was hoisted from the turrets of the hall, and night coming on Captain Slingsby was ordered to hold the position until the morning.

A dropping fire was kept up all night. The Constable, seeing that to successfully hold the castle was impossible, tried to escape with some of the warders, but he and others were killed in the attempt, one only getting away. His head was placed upon a stake in the camp as the President had said.

The rest of the garrison retired to the keep. In the morning the attackers burned the heavy wooden door which guarded the stairway, but they had to wait two hours for the smoke to clear away. As soon as it had done so, one of the garrison appeared to ask for the lives of his comrades if they surrendered, but it appears he gave himself up before an answer was returned.

The officers and men then ascended the stairs in single file as the width of the passage necessitated, but met with no opposition, the garrison having retired to the battlements, which were protected only by one door.

Here a terrible hand to hand encounter took place. Some of the warders were killed, while the rest jumped from the parapet into the water below, and were either drowned or killed by the guards stationed beneath the tower.

The English lost ten soldiers and one ensign, while about twenty-one men were wounded. Of the defenders of the castle about eighty men were killed, while the Four Masters state that some women and children also lost their lives. They remark that the place would not have been so easily won had not the “Earl of Desmond’s people dispersed from him.”

The rebels had burned the town of Glin upon the approach of the Royal troops.

During the rising the castle had been used as a storehouse for the “Sugan Earl’s” forces, and a Limerick merchant called Anthony Arthurs seems to have dispensed his goods from it.

Sir George Carew placed a guard of twenty-one soldiers in it under the command of Captain Nicholas Mordant.

Edmund FitzGerald, Knight of the Valley, was restored to most of his estates in 1603, and six years later he appealed to the Lords of the Council against Patrick Crosby obtaining Glin Castle by the King’s letter, on the pretext that it was kept from the Knight to prevent his rebelling. Crosby had undertaken to repair and fortify the fortress at his own cost. The Knight stated he had been pardoned by Lord Mountjoy, that his lands had been restored, and shortly afterwards the castle as well.

The next year Sir Arthur Chichester explains that the building was occupied only by Anthony Arthur, who sold wines in it, and that he had therefore given it to Crosby. He also stated that the Knight’s eldest son was abroad.

In 1681 the castle was in the possession of Major FitzGerald.

The present Glin Castle, seat of Desmond FitzJohn Lloyd FitzGerald, Knight of Glin, is situated about a mile west of the town. Over the yard gate is an engraved stone bearing the following inscription: “Edmond Gerrald, Knight of the Vally. Onnor Cartie, his wife. Fear God always and remember the Poor. I.H.S. Anno Domoni, 1615.”

AUTHORITIES CONSULTED.

Pacata Hibernia (Dublin reprint, 1810).
J. Dowd, “County of Limerick.”
Calendar of State Papers.
Parliamentary Gazetteer.
Carew MSS.
Donovan, “Annals of the Four Masters.”
Journal of Thomas Dineley (_Kilkenny Archæological Society’s Journal_).

_GREENCASTLE, COUNTY DONEGAL_

This castle is situated on the west side of the entrance to Lough Foyle, two and a half miles north-east of Moville, in the Barony of Innishowen.

It was erected upon a rock and defended by two towers which contained the chief apartments, while a third tower defended the northern end.

It is built of green fire stone, from which its present name may have been derived.

In Macator’s map, which was published in 1629, it is marked as “New Castle,” and it is still known in Irish by that name.

Hanmer’s “Chronicle” and Grace’s “Annals” state that Arx Viridis in Ultonia was thrown down in 1260, so that it is likely that the present building, which was erected by Richard de Burgo, the Red Earl of Ulster, in 1305, replaced a former fortress.

In 1332 William de Burgo, or the “Dun Earl,” owned the fortress, which he had inherited from his father, and having taken prisoner Walter, son of Sir Walter de Burgo, he starved him to death in the castle. Sir Arthur Chichester excavated one of the pillars of the dungeon in which it is supposed he was confined, and a mark was discovered that most likely had held a ring to which the prisoner was chained. The “dreary and dismal” prisons are still to be seen.

The Dun Earl was stabbed to death the next year in revenge for the murder.

The following legend is told regarding Walter de Burgo’s death. The Earl had a beautiful daughter who one day, in

crossing the sands on the shore under Benevenagh, became engulfed in quicksands, and was nearly losing her life when Sir Walter Burk’s son, who was serving in the army of O’Neill and O’Donnell, seeing her danger from the heights above rushed down and saved her from the peril.

The same year this young man was taken prisoner by the girl’s father in his war with the O’Donnells and starved to death at Greencastle. The Earl one day, during his unfortunate victim’s captivity, discovered his daughter carrying food to the prisoner, and seizing her by the hair, dragged her to the battlements and hurled her over on to the rocks below.

The fortress was for many years in possession of the O’Dohertys.

In 1555 Calvagh O’Donnell went to Scotland to raise forces with the help of Mac Calin (Gillaspick Don), and returning with them and a cannon called _gonna cam_, or “crooked gun,” he set to work and demolished the New Castle.

It was, however, reported as wardable in 1586. The last of the O’Dohertys to hold the fortress was knighted by Queen Elizabeth, but shortly afterwards he went into rebellion, and his estate was forfeited.

In 1610 it was granted with other property to Sir Arthur Chichester with an allowance to maintain the garrison. Two years later he asked to be allowed for horsemen at Greencastle instead of the ten warders, and in 1615 Lord Chichester was granted Greencastle for three lives by letters patent.

In 1752 it was on the Earl of Donegal’s estate.

AUTHORITIES CONSULTED.

O’Donovan, “Annals of the Four Masters.”
MS. Ordnance Survey.
Stokes, “Pococke’s Tour in Ireland in 1752.”
State Papers.
Carew MSS.
Parliamentary Gazetteer.
Blackley, “A Tour through Innishowen.”

_GREENCASTLE, COUNTY DOWN_

Upon the northern shore of Carlingford Lough, in the Barony of Mourne, four and a half miles south-west of Kilteel, County Down, are situated the ruins of this castle. It is a very fine specimen of Norman architecture, and was erected soon after the landing of the first English settlers so as to secure communication between the Pale and the outlying district of Lecale, as well as to command the entrance to Carlingford Lough.

At present the remains chiefly consist of the keep, which was a high rectangular building, with square towers at the angles. A winding stair in the south-west turret leads to the top. The stone floor of the great hall, measuring 70 feet by 40, is supported by arches which form vaults in the basement. The upper floors have disappeared, and were probably of wood.

The traces of extensive outworks can be seen round the building. On the west side stands a house which is at present inhabited by a farmer, but which for many years formed the chief residence of the Bagnall family during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.

The castle belonged to the Du Burgos or Burkes, Earls of Ulster, and in 1312 Sir Maurice, the son of Thomas, married Catherine, daughter of the “Red Earl” of Ulster, and the next day, being the 16th of August, Thomas, the 2nd Earl of Kildare, “a prudent and wise man,” married her sister, Lady Joan de Burgh, also in the castle. The Lady Joan had two other married sisters, one being the

wife of King Robert Bruce, and the other Countess of Desmond.

In 1335 there was an order to send six “balistas” to furnish “Viride Castrum,” or the Greencastle. The same year William de Logan was ordered to pay Henry de Maunderville 20 marks out of the rents of the late Earl of Ulster, which were in the King’s hands, on account of the minority of the heir. This reward was for De Maunderville having twice relieved the castle of Greencastle with men-at-arms when it was besieged by the “felons” of Ulster.

It was again attacked by the Irish in 1343, and this time it was carried by storm and dilapidated, but was shortly afterwards restored.

The late Constable, William de Doun, received pardon in 1356 for having seized and imprisoned Rosea, daughter of Richard Foy.

During Henry IV.’s reign there was only one constable between the castles of Carlingford and Greencastle. It is reported that Stephen Geron received £20 a year for the guardianship of Greencastle and £5 for Carlingford.

In 1403 John Moore, who was then constable, petitioned for a rise of salary, and he was granted £40 a year on condition he spent 10 marks of it on repairs. The amount was to be paid out of the rents of Carlingford, Cooley, and “le Mourne.”

None but Englishmen were permitted to hold the appointment in 1495.

Notwithstanding this, when M’Donell made his submission in 1542 he requested to be granted Greencastle, and the lands lying waste around it, for which favour he promised military service.

The Government did not evidently see their way to accede to his request, and seven years later it is reported that the fortress was in a “wretched condition.”

In 1552 it was granted to Sir Nicholas Bagnall, in whose family’s possession it remained for many years.

Sir Arthur Chichester was granted means to provide ten warders for Greencastle in 1612, but this does not seem to have interfered with the Bagnall possession, as in 1620 Arthur Bagnall held the manors and lordships of Greencastle and Mourne.

Three years later it is recommended that the ward be moved from Culmore to Greencastle, and the stronghold was garrisoned during the rebellion of 1641.

AUTHORITIES CONSULTED.

J. O’Laverty, “Diocese of Down and Connor.”
W. Harris, “County of Down.”
R. Praeger, “Official Guide to County Down.”
State Papers.
Marquis of Kildare, “Earls of Kildare.”
Carew MSS.
Parliamentary Gazetteer.

_HOWTH CASTLE_

About seven miles east-north-east of Dublin, in the Barony of Coolock, is situated the village of Howth, on the promontory of the same name.

A short way from the town, nestling under the lee of the hill is the castle, the seat of the Earls of Howth.

It is a long battlemented building, with square towers at each end.

A large flight of steps gives admission to the hall, which extends along the whole length of the building. Here is preserved the two-handed sword of Sir Amoricus Tristram (the founder of the St. Laurence family in Ireland) with which he is said to have fought his first Irish battle. Also three inscribed bells, which were removed from the Abbey, are preserved in the castle.

The fortress seems to have undergone much alteration since its first erection, and the great gateway tower, which now flanks the main building on one side, appears to be of sixteenth-century architecture and is no doubt part of the original building.

The stronghold was erected in 1564 by Christopher, the twentieth baron, but whether it was built on the site of an older castle or whether Corr Castle, also situated on the peninsular, was the ancient fortress of the St. Laurence family, does not seem to be known.

The mortar of the early building, like the Tower of London, is reported to have been mixed with blood. Until far into the nineteenth century the castle was surrounded by a fosse.

There are several inscribed and figured stones over the entrance to the stable-yard, and also one built into the wall near the garden gate.

Sir John de Courcy and his sister’s husband, Sir Amoricus Tristram, arrived at Howth in 1177. Their companionship in arms is said to have been the outcome of a compact to share each other’s fortunes made in the Church of St. Mary at Rouen.

Upon the arrival of the ship at Howth, De Courcy, being ill, remained on board, while Sir Amoricus took command of their forces in the first engagement with the Danes, who fiercely opposed their landing.

After a great battle, in which Sir Amoricus lost seven blood relations, the enemy were completely defeated at the bridge of the Evora, and the lands of Howth were granted to the victor as a reward of prowess.

He then accompanied Sir John de Courcy to Down, where he also gained possessions and did great deeds of valour. A story is told that after the first battle in the north Sir Amoricus was found leaning on his shield under a hedge, bleeding from three large wounds, and having sustained himself by eating the wild roses and honeysuckle which grew within his reach. His life was despaired of for nine days, but he eventually recovered, and lived to die heroically among a group of outnumbered infantry, having slain his horse so that he could not save himself by flight.

The St. Laurence coat of arms is a shield with cross swords and roses in a bloody field, which may have originated from the wild flowers Sir Amoricus gathered.

An early chronicler says of him that he might “be chosen from amongst a thousand knights for beauty and heroic courage, as well as for humility and courtesy to his inferiors, yielding to none but in the way of gentleness.”

After his death his sons gradually lost his northern possessions, and King John confirmed the grant of the lands of Howth to the third baron by charter. It may have been at this time that the family name was changed from Tristram to St. Laurence. There seems to be no historical evidence for the tradition that the name was altered to commemorate a victory gained upon St. Laurence’s Day.

In 1575, as Grace O’Mailley was returning from her famous visit to Queen Elizabeth she landed at Howth, but found the castle gates closed, the reason assigned being that it was the dinner hour. Shocked at such want of Irish hospitality she seized the young heir, who was playing on the strand, and carried him off to her castle in Mayo. She refused to restore him until she received a promise that the gates of Howth Castle should never again be closed at dinner hour. This child was Nicholas, afterwards twenty-first baron. A picture at the castle is supposed to represent the incident.

Lord Mountjoy, as Lord Deputy, and Sir George Carew, as Lord President of Munster, landed at Howth in 1599, and spent a night at the castle before proceeding to Dublin.

In 1607 the State Papers report that the old Countess of Kildare and Lady Dowager of Delvin and her children were at Howth in Sir Christopher St. Laurence’s house, and the following year it is mentioned that Sir John Talbot’s house is near the castle of Howth.

King William slept a night in the castle in 1690, and his room was kept unaltered from the time he had used it.

Dean Swift was a constant visitor at Howth, and an original portrait of him, painted by Bindon in 1735, hangs in the castle.

Near the garden stands the old elm known as “The Tristram Tree,” which has been carefully propped and preserved in every way on account of the tradition attaching to it. It is said that as long as this tree lives there will be an heir to the noble house which was founded by Sir Amoricus Tristram.

To “follow as closely as Lord Howth’s Rat” was at one time a common simile for any faithful or attached animal, and the legend which gave rise to the saying is the following:--