204 



Proceedings of the Royal Irish Acadetni/. 



1 642 The C. was besieged and surrendered to the Confederates under 

 P. Purcell. 1652 It was dismantled.^ 1719 The Earl of Orrery 

 endeavoured to get a grant so as to repair it for a garrison. (See 

 paper R.S.A.I., xxxiii., pp. 25-153, 239 ; xxxiv., pp. 117-125.) The 

 Desmond Roll (9) describes the C. in 1583 as "an excellent C, formerly 

 a chief house of the late Earl of Desmond, in good repair, on a little 

 island, on a rock, and surrounded on all sides by a rivulet. It contains 

 two separate ' coorts' and one ' balne,' with divers strong buildings, 

 ... a large hall, a great vaulted room, with three cellars, . . . 

 ^.triangular garden in which is a fish-pond," &c. (See also Peyton, 80b ; 

 C.S., p. 65; Deps. T.C.D., 387; Hist, of the Confederates, ii., 

 pp. 51, 52. Paper T.J. Westropp, R.S.A.I., xxxiv., p. 118, for text 

 of Desmond Roll, illustrations, and description. )2 



Fabric. — The C. stands on a low island in the Deel, with a rocky 

 plateau rising in the centre. At the north end of the latter is a lofty 

 keep, 90 feet high, with two vaulted stories and an upper room. Its 

 east side is down : a higher turret projects from its west face, with 

 small vaulted rooms. A large wing of three stories with under vault 

 adjoins to the south. A tower with an under vault and much broken 

 stands at the south edge of the plateau ; near it is the inner gateway. 

 The gate of the outer ward is gone, it opened on the middle of the 

 bridge ; a battlemented wall runs round the north-west and west faces. 

 At the latter is a handsome hall with several vaults underneath and 

 a chapel to the south. Most of the outer walls are gone, but the 

 " triangular garden" is traceable. (See O.S.L., 9, p. 454 ; R.S.A.I., 

 vol. xxxiv., p. 111.) 



292. The Short Castle. Unknown. It is named in 1580 as such.^ 

 Perhaps the " castello curtate," held, with lands at Askeaton, by the 

 White Knight, 1596 (Inq. Exch., 32). 1588 " There is a little island 

 near Asketton, now held by Jas. Nash. It is a parcell of the land of 

 Asketton in which is a certain C. on the part lying to the west near 

 the manor of A." mortgaged by the Earl to I^^ash. (Inq. Exch., 11 ; 

 Cal., p. 245). 



293. CouRTBRowNE (11). Marked. 1581-3 Moriertagh mac 



1 The line of Castles retained for garrisons were — Galbally, Kilmallock, Lough 

 Gur, Greenane, Ballyvoreneen, Brittas, and Tough along the east of the county, 

 Castletown- Kenry, Ballingarry, Gortnatobrett, and Doonmoylen in the west 

 (AccouTitR., 6 E. 1-5). 



2 See Plates XVI., XVII., and XVIII. 



3 See unpubUshed Geraldine Documents, R.S.A.I., vol. i., ser. iii. (1868), by 

 Rev. Jas. Hayman, p. 355 ; and Rev. Jas. Graves, p. 459, et seqq. 



