. "Westropp — Fortified Headlands § Castles, S. Coast of Minister. 109 



Baltimore was a formidable enemy to Waterford ; and it took two severe 

 lessons before the O'Driscolls were permanently crippled. 



The Poers seem to have been the irritant in every case ; between these 

 proud nobles and the merchants of Waterford there was no love : and the 

 nearest Irish tribe with a sea front was that of hEdersceoil. So far back 

 as September 4th, 1368, they threatened an attack by sea ; the citizens sailed 

 out to meet them under John Malpas, the Mayor, but were defeated, and 

 their leader died from his wounds on their way home. In 1413, when 

 Maccon Driscoll was chief, another mayor, Simon Wickin, organized an 

 expedition, and bringing a cargo of wine on Chi-istmas Day, was admitted to 

 the port, and surprised the Castle of Balentemore. So bitter was the feud that 

 in 1450 a statute denounces Finghin Driscoll as having slain many English, 

 and forbids the citizens of Waterford and Wexford to deal with his tribe or 

 fish at Korkly-Balthamore, under penalty of £41. Finghin, in 1452 and 

 1461, landed at Tramore.but fell into ambuscades, where he lost 26 and 160 men. 

 O'hEidersceoil og, his sons, and three galleys were taken ; this discouraged 

 further attacks on the English settlements for over seventy years. At last 

 a chief (another Finghin) arose who knew not Waterford, and he or his 

 followers took and plundered four Portuguese wine-ships, sheltering in 

 his port, put the crews in fetters, and took seventy-two tuns of wine, 

 February 20th, 1537-8. 1 The Waterford folk, under Pierce Dobbin, with only 

 twenty men, released the Portuguese on March 3rd, and burned the castle. 

 They returned with three galleys and 400 men twenty-four days later : fired 

 on and took Dunalong, demolishing it, burning the Franciscan Friary, and 

 destroying Baltimore and O'Driscoll's Island-Castles; the tribe never 

 recovered. On that occasion Sherkin " fortress, being double-warded with 

 two strong piles (peels) or castles and goodly walls, was cast down and 

 razed to the earth and fallen into the sea." If this be literally true, then 

 the buildings are of Tudor times alone. The citizens of Waterford entered 

 the castle by " the bridge gate," probably by a drawbridge over the deep 

 fosse, now so nearly filled up. This ditch is still visible to either side of 

 the neck, though absolutely filled up along the front of the curtain wall : it 

 is 8 to 10 feet deep at one end, and runs to the north into a natural cleft 

 (which probably encouraged the older fort-makers to dig and quarry it), 

 down which a narrow path leads to a spring of good water and to the beach. 



1 1539, xxis Hen. VIII, in Carew Cal., p. 474. 



" See the Clogher MS. cited in " Corca Laidhe " (Miscellany Celtic Soc, J. O'Donovan, 

 pp. 93-99, 136); and Dr. C. Smith, "History of Waterford," Bk. in, ch. ii ; Statute 

 Roll, 38 Henry VI, No. 10; and Carew ass., No. 632; Carew ares. Cal., last vol., p. 470. 



