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Home , Shell keep, Waterford

CSG Annual Conference - - April 2018 - .

Aerial views of Dungarvan Castle (Co. ), showing the po- lygonal , built by King John in 1209. Images © Patrick Kenealy. (http://twitter.com/patrickkenealy)

For further details see: - garvan Castle: an outline history, by Niall C. E. O’Brien (http://celtic2realmsmedievalnews. blogspot.co.uk/2016/10/dungarvan -castle-outline-history_1.html

THE CASTLE STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL THENO 29: CASTLE 2015-1624 STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL NO 32: 2018-19 CSG Annual Conference - Cork - April 2018 - Dungarvan Castle.

The Castle c. 1300 Dave Pollock

King John initiated the ‘shell-keep’ by 1209, orig- inally sea-water moated.

THE CASTLE STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL THENO 29: CASTLE 2015-1625 STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL NO 32: 2018-19 CSG Annual Conference - Cork - April 2018 - Dungarvan Castle.

Dungarvan. The remains of the with twin D-shaped towers in the SE angle of the castle. Some members considered that the gatehouse may well have been built in the early 1300s, and probably part of King John’s work. But with so few original features it is hard to date.

Dungarvan castle 1649. The town defences formed a square ex- Location: of Dungarvan, lr. Dun Gar- tending south from the castle along the seafront bhan (Garbhan’s fort/fortress), Co. Waterford. to Jacknell St., west to St Augustine, St., north to Dungarvan Castle is situated on a low promontory the seafront and east to the castle. The walls were on the west bank of the Colligan estuary, where the augmented with a fosse and appear to be late river narrows before entering Dungarvan Harbour. 16th or 17th century in date, and do not survive Dungarvan existed by 1175 when it became a above ground. royal town, although it is possibly of Viking origin The Castle: The town came under King since there are references to Ostmen there as late John’s control in 1204 and work on the mason- as 1250. The Fitzgerald earls of Desmond were ry castle began before 1209. The royal castle granted custody from 1260 but title to the town was in existence by 1215 and further building was disputed in the 14th century when the town work was carried out in the 1260s and 1270s. went into decline. ln 1463 a new grant of the town It was granted to the FitzGeralds in 1285 and was made to the . ln 1535 James they retained possession until 1535 when the Butler, with the Lord Deputy, besieged and cap- castle was taken over by the Earl of Ossory. It tured Dungarvan and it was ruled directly by the changed hands four times during the Confed- Crown from 1543 onwards. It received a Charter erate Wars before Cromwell captured it in from James I in 1611 and in 1618 it was bought by 1649. The castle continued in use as a garrison Sir Richard Boyle, Earl of Cork. The town was throughout the 17th century and barracks were captured by the Confederates in 1642, was recap- built within it by 1746. It was used as a Garda tured and captured again by the Confederates in (police) station until 1987. The remains are in 1645, until besieged and captured by Cromwell in good condition and include a shell-keep at the

THE CASTLE STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL THENO 29: CASTLE 2015-1626 STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL NO 32: 2018-19 CSG Annual Conference - Cork - April 2018 - Dungarvan Castle.

The gatehouse with its ‘cut-down’ towers in the SE angle. The lower half of the more northerly tower - centre - (marked 12 on the plan) (left) appears less disturbed than the south tower.

NW angle of a sub-rectangular ward with a rounded by a . lt also revealed a building at curtain wall surviving complete on the south the S side of the keep and a cistern in the hall. and west sides. The curtain wall is about 5.5m Late 13th century work: A gatehouse at the SE high and has gun loops and blocked arrow angle has two D-shaped towers linked by a loops at wall-walk level. The parapet has been vaulted passage with a groove and a raised in post-medieval times, with the medie- murder-hole. At the SW angle of the court is a val visibly presented in its fabric. large circular tower of three floors with an in- Excavation by Dave Pollock inside the NE serted vault over the ground floor. It has an angle of the court revealed the base of a rectan- external diameter of 10.7m and a height of about gular which was superseded in the 11m. The entrance was at ground level leading 15th or 16th century by another tower which no to a chamber with three , and a spiral longer survives. stair gave access to the upper floors. The wick- Shell-keep: The polygonal shell-keep at the NW er-centred vault partly obscures three arrow- angle partly survives to the first floor. The en- loop embrasures at first-floor level. Access to trance was at the first floor on the east side and the wall-walk on the west curtain wall is from the ground level inside the keep was naturally the stair at first-floor level, and the west wall- high, except at the north side where a large walk is accessible from the second floor of the building with a plank-centred vaulted, 7.4m by tower through secondary use of one of its three 5.2m chamber was built at ground-floor level. embrasures. There is a garderobe on the second The loops in this chamber were later adapted for floor. Both structures date from the second half artillery The keep has an original garderobe pas- of the thirteenth century. sage in the NW wall and a window in Reference: D. Pollock, 2013, ‘Medieval Dun- the SW. An inserted mural passage through the garvan, above and below ground’, Stradbally: wall in the SW leads to the wall-walk of the west Archaeografix. Available from Waterford Mu- curtain wall. Excavation by Dave Pollock re- seums - www.waterfordmuseum.ie vealed that the shell-keep was originally sur-

THE CASTLE STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL THENO 29: CASTLE 2015-1627 STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL NO 32: 2018-19 CSG Annual Conference - Cork - April 2018 - Dungarvan Castle.

Two views of the large squat SW tower with the unusual ½ round bulge on the east side that contains the spiral staircase. The subordinate semi-circular bulge on the side of the tower is reminiscent of castle towers like Longtown, Skenfrith and others on the Welsh borders - arguably derived from royal Constable Tower, Dover, thus suggesting a date in the +/- 1220s. Above: from the east, outside the curtain wall. Below: From the north, from within the shell-keep, with the staircase bulge on the left. Both the tower and staircase appear truncated.

THE CASTLE STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL THENO 29: CASTLE 2015-1628 STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL NO 32: 2018-19 CSG Annual Conference - Cork - April 2018 - Dungarvan Castle.

The SW tower has/had three floors with an inserted vault over the ground floor. It has an external diameter of 10.7 m and a height of about 11m. The entrance appears to be at ground level leading to a chamber with three embrasures, with a spiral stair leading to the upper floor(s). The inserted wicker-centred vault partly obscures three arrow loop embrasures at first floor level.

THE CASTLE STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL THENO 29: CASTLE 2015-1629 STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL NO 32: 2018-19 CSG Annual Conference - Cork - April 2018 - Dungarvan Castle.

The staircase turret with modern stairs. It was not possible to determine whether the original stairs were vaulted or cut-slab. If vaulted it would surely suggest the tower was King John’s work.The cut-slab design was introduced in the 1220s, with the Constable Gate at Dover having one of the earliest. There are still some residual step corbels embedded in the cylinder casing which suggests cut-slab design at one stage; but there may have been a vaulted earlier stage.

THE CASTLE STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL THENO 29: CASTLE 2015-1630 STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL NO 32: 2018-19 CSG Annual Conference - Cork - April 2018 - Dungarvan Castle.

Dungarvan. The SW Tower. Entrance to the first-floor chamber from the stair turret, considerably altered over the years.

THE CASTLE STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL THENO 29: CASTLE 2015-1631 STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL NO 32: 2018-19 CSG Annual Conference - Cork - April 2018 - Dungarvan Castle.

SE Tower. The wicker-work centring of the vault supporting what is now the first floor.

THE CASTLE STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL THENO 29: CASTLE 2015-1632 STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL NO 32: 2018-19 CSG Annual Conference - Cork - April 2018 - Dungarvan Castle.

The SW tower with round upper floor. The inserted fireplace with brick infill utilises an original arrow-loop embrasure. Below: The modern roof timbers.

THE CASTLE STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL THENO 29: CASTLE 2015-1633 STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL NO 32: 2018-19 CSG Annual Conference - Cork - April 2018 - Dungarvan Castle.

Dungarvan. The gatehouse interior and courtyard. Vaulted gate-passage with end-on ground-floor entrances to the twin D-shaped towers. The assumption is that the gatehouse was of three storeys.

THE CASTLE STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL THENO 29: CASTLE 2015-1634 STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL NO 32: 2018-19 CSG Annual Conference - Cork - April 2018 - Dungarvan Castle.

Dungarvan. Simple gate-passage - no side doors now, but one appears blocked (on the left). Pointed barrel vault. Low gate-arch, necessitating a wooden tympanum to allow lower door clearance. Looks early C13 and John’s work, although the original doors could have been further back behind the portcullis chase rather than in front, which is more usual..

THE CASTLE STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL THENO 29: CASTLE 2015-1635 STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL NO 32: 2018-19 CSG Annual Conference - Cork - April 2018 - Dungarvan Castle.

Dungarvan gatehouse. Gate-passage. The portcullis chase that pierces the vault close to the entrance. The chase is narrow and the dropping of the portcullis would have interfered with the doors, at least open. There is also a large, centrally placed square to the right.

THE CASTLE STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL THENO 29: CASTLE 2015-1636 STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL NO 32: 2018-19 CSG Annual Conference - Cork - April 2018 - Dungarvan Castle.

Dungarvan. Various views of a rather bleak, stony central courtyard of the shell-keep. Above: Looking south. The quarried passage and door onto the wall-walk outside, leading to a door inserted into the top floor of the round tower (visible over the shell keep curtain) and, to the right of it, a fine window embrasure, subsequently blocked with a late musket loop. Below: Looking west, from on top of the vaulted roof of the hall undercroft (5 on plan); the broken vault (8 on plan) beside the steps up from the modern entrance is on the far left; the original entrance, leading to over the seawater moat, is preserved in the gap in the thicker wall at the base of the thinner post-medieval wall in the middle distance (with musket loops at its right end), restored barrack block (10 on plan) visible over the keep's curtain wall.

THE CASTLE STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL THENO 29: CASTLE 2015-1637 STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL NO 32: 2018-19 CSG Annual Conference - Cork - April 2018 - Dungarvan Castle.

A few of the explanatory drawings in the exhibi- tion at Dungarvan castle. They concentrate on some of the detail - , garderobes etc, deduced from what fabric remains. Some are taken from the guidebook ‘Medieval Dungarvan - above and below ground’, (2013) by Dave Pollock (ISBN 978-1-78280-043-9) See also https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKk_qYLgZ5A

THE CASTLE STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL THENO 29: CASTLE 2015-1638 STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL NO 32: 2018-19