123 



teen or twenty English acres within their circuit ; and one of them, 

 called the Giant's Ring, in the County of Down, measures round 2326 

 feet."* Near Castletown, in the County of Louth, and not far from 

 Dundalk, a great rath is raised to about fifty feet, "surrounded with a 

 magnificent ditch, and on the outside of this ditch, (nearly in the same 

 manner as at the Herefordshire Beacon,) on the east and west sides 

 are two plains or lower camps for cattle and for fugitives, like a sort 

 of redoubts, which are again themselves surrounded with a ditch, and, 

 together with the mount, cover the w hole summit of the hill, making 

 a very formidable and grand appearance for several miles to the north 

 and south ;"-|- and this also, Mr. King (the words of whose description 

 are here adopted) expressly declares to be of higher antiquity than 

 the Danish establishment in Ireland. Another of the more remarka- 

 ble of these numerous fortresses is Rath Ascul, near Athy, a plate of 

 which is given in Gough's Camden, (v. 3. opposite page 48.3,) with 

 the remains of the habitations of the chiefs still traced upon its sur- 

 face ; another near Kilcullen, called Knock Caellagh, on which Crom- 

 well is said J to have encamped in his way to the south of Ireland. 

 Near Granard is a singular rath, and another in the neighbourhood of 

 Newry, on the top of a hill of easy ascent and surrounded by mea- 

 dows, through which a river gently glides in two channels, forming 

 an island in which the hill of the rath is situated. 



Here are evidences stamped upon the broad face of nature, which 

 we think we are warranted in introducing where only such could be 

 expected, evidences of architectural civilization, at least equal to 

 those of the Roman conquerors in Britain ; and yet how few of these 

 field fortifications would remain at this day to announce their former 



* Ware's Antiquities, fo. 137-8. f Munimenta Antiqua, vol. 1. p. 80. 



t Camden, vol. 3. p. 543. 



