Ardamullivan Castle

Ardamullivan Castle
Native name Caisleán Ard Mhaolabháin (Irish)
Type	tower house
Location	Ardamullivan, Shanaglish, County Galway, Ireland
Coordinates	53.004182°N 8.829328°W / 53.004182; -8.829328
Built	16th century
Owner	State
Location of Ardamullivan Castle in Ireland
National monument of Ireland
Official name	Ardamullivan Castle
Reference no.	252[1]

Ardamullivan Castle is a tower house and National Monument located in County Galway, Ireland.^[2][3]

Location

Ardamullivan Castle is located 8.2 km (5.1 mi) south of Gort and 2 km (1.2 mi) southwest of Lough Cutra.^[4]

History

Ardamullivan Castle was built in the 16th century by the Uí Sheachnasaigh (O'Shaughnessy) clan, rulers of the region known as Cenél Áeda na hEchtge until being disposed by Cromwell's invasion (1650s).^[5] It is first mentioned after the 1567 death of Ruaidhrí Gilla Dubh Ó Seachnasaigh. In 1579, Diarmaid Riabach Ó Seachnasaigh and his nephew John, fought each other in a dispute over the castle, which resulted in death for both.^[6] Diarmaid Riabach had previously acquired notoriety after betraying Richard Creagh, the fugitive Catholic Archbishop of Armagh, to the authorities.^[7]

The castle was restored in the 1990s, including reroofing and plastering with lime mortar.^[8] Late medieval wall paintings were discovered on the first and fourth levels;^[9] they have been compared to those at Abbeyknockmoy and Clare Island Abbey. Depicted is a bishop, a stag hunt, Saint Christopher, a Passion cycle,^[10][11] and St Michael weighing souls on Judgement Day.^[12][13][14]

Description

The tower house six storeys. Part of the original attacking wall remains.^[15]

There are traces of bartizans on the NE and SW corners and along the south wall. Other features include a machicolation, murder hole, many slit windows, fireplaces and a slopstone. Traces of walls around the castle may be part of the original bawn.^{[citation needed]}

References

1. "National Monuments of County Galway in State Care" (PDF). heritageireland.ie. National Monument Service. p. 1. Retrieved 27 July 2020.
2. Architects, Royal Institute of British (14 January 2018). "RIBA Journal" – via Google Books.
3. O'Dowd, Peadar (5 October 2004). A History of County Galway: A comprehensive study of Galway's history, culture and people. Gill & Macmillan Ltd. ISBN 9780717165438 – via Google Books.
4. Riordan, Michelle O. (14 January 2018). Irish Bardic Poetry and Rhetorical Reality. Cork University Press. ISBN 9781859184141 – via Google Books.
5. Day, Catharina (14 January 2018). Ireland. New Holland Publishers. ISBN 9781860113277. Archived from the original on 14 January 2018. Retrieved 14 January 2018 – via Google Books.
6. "Ardamullivan Castle, County Galway". www.irelandseye.com.
7. "Ardamullivan Castle Gort County Galway Ireland Castles Gort Ireland". gort.galway-ireland.ie.
8. Dhir, Ravindra K.; Jones, M. Roderick; Cheng, Li (14 January 2018). Repair And Renovation of Concrete Structures. Thomas Telford Limited. ISBN 9780727734051 – via Google Books.
9. Sweetman, David (14 January 1999). Medieval Castles of Ireland. Collins Press. ISBN 9781898256755 – via Google Books.
10. Martin, Therese (14 January 2018). Reassessing the Roles of Women as 'Makers' of Medieval Art and Architecture (2 Vol. Set). BRILL. ISBN 978-9004185555 – via Google Books.
11. Manning, Conleth; Cárthaigh, Críostóir Mac; Whelan, Kevin; Gosling, Paul; Waddell, John (14 January 2018). New Survey of Clare Island: The Abbey. Royal Irish Academy. ISBN 9781904890058 – via Google Books.
12. Duffy, Seán (15 January 2005). Medieval Ireland: An Encyclopedia. Routledge. ISBN 9781135948245 – via Google Books.
13. Bradley, Dara (5 February 2017). "OPW urged to reopen castle as local tourism attraction - Connacht Tribune".
14. Moss, Rachel (14 January 2018). Art and devotion in late medieval Ireland. Four Courts Press. ISBN 9781851829873 – via Google Books.
15. "Irish Castles - Ardamullivan Castle". www.britainirelandcastles.com.

External links

• Ardamullivan Castle on YouTube