An Irish View of Scottish Mottes

An Irish view of Scottish mottes An Irish view of Scottish mottes on castle produced before 1990 mottes are Tom McNeill treated as a type of castle in the first chapter before the author moves on to discuss the Abstract: development of the “real” stone castles. In both countries castles, many of which Significantly, only one book has ever been feature mottes, are introduced in the 12th produced on them in English (Higham & century, later than the 11th century in France Barker, 1992). Many mottes have survived and England. They were part of a major down to modern times, partly because they re-organisation of the societies, linked to the are difficult to remove, while the amount of introduction of Anglo-Norman lords and lord- land cleared by their removal is small, so that ship, principally to emphasise the importance it is often not worth the effort. Mottes have of manorial centres. As such they cast light on been studied in two ways. The first is the pattern of settlements of the time, after individually, through excavation of the top the reforms. Detailed study of their distribu- which has disappointed, because they tions, however, shows that, instead of a sys- produced such varied results, although the tematic introduction of castles with nucleated model of Abinger, excavated in 1950, was villages and towns, the situation was much ideal: a simple timber tower on top of a more varied. They might represent smaller, motte. Unfortunately for those who saw dispersed settlements in the 13th century, in mottes as a type, later results varied wildly line with the earlier, Gaelic pattern continued from this, from completely blank sites to the under the new administration. The chronology complexities of Hen Domen. The second of the mottes in Scotland and Ireland has approach is to see them as additions to lordly implications for mottes in other areas. sites, and focus on the sites which they mark Mottes are towers. The basic purpose of both out for. This means looking at them en was to provide an imposing structure for masse, mapping the patterns which they anyone who wished to raise their house up display: geographical, topographical and to dominate the landscape and to add an social, the line followed in this article. element that would make it resemble a castle In both Scotland and Ireland, because from the outside. Although they should be they are viewed as early and intended to be regarded simply as components of castles, replaced by proper castles, they have been they have been classified as a monument in associated with the first stages of an influx their own right, defining a type of castle. As of English lords in the 12th century. This such, they have been assumed to have a influx was very important and led to a great single purpose and have been written into change in the economy and settlement of one or more general roles. Wood and earth both countries – feudal order – and mottes constructions are often described negatively; therefore have been studied very much in as temporary, even makeshift, structures to this light. In Ireland, this change is portrayed be replaced as soon as possible by more as a solely military conquest, partly because respectable, because more permanent, stone Giraldus Cambrensis (a man with an agenda buildings. Mottes were assigned to a short- if ever there was one) tells us that it was one, lived role, pre-eminently as being erected in but he is backed up by many other the course of a military campaign. They were documentary sources, although countered seen as primitive and in most general books by many others. Mottes have been built into THE CASTLE STUDIES GROUP 131 JOURNAL NO. 34 An Irish view of Scottish mottes Fig.1. Ireland: map of mottes (left) compared with a map of moated sites (McNeill 2011) this story ever since Orpen’s magisterial, The first observation is that the distribution four-volume account of the Normans in of mottes in Ireland is very varied. The overall Ireland, published in 1911-1920. Because distribution of mottes as a whole does not they were the remains of castles, which were compare, even slightly, with the boundaries military structures, they provided support for of the English lordships established in the the idea of a purely military conquest. 12th century. Their distribution becomes Conversely, because they were linked to a sparser south and west of Dublin; in particular military conquest, this showed that they were there is only a handful identified from the military structures. A perfect feedback loop counties of Waterford, Cork and Limerick. If was established, largely without examining they were an essential part of a war for the the pattern of mottes themselves. Over the conquest of military lordship in Ireland, it is last fifty years, with the development of the very hard to explain why the lords of the study of the archaeology of later medieval south could do without them. Either mottes Ireland, mottes have been listed and were not essential as military structures or described to allow us to have a picture of the “conquest” was much more peaceful than their occurrence and siting, not seen before; it is portrayed; or both. This argument is this evidence and some conclusions from it reinforced by the way that the “less military” were gathered together in an article moated sites appear to replace mottes in the published in the Archaeological Journal nine south as demarcators of lordly capita. Some years ago (McNeill, 2011) and may be briefly mottes can be identified as being put up summarised here. either as part of a military campaign or THE CASTLE STUDIES GROUP 132 JOURNAL NO. 34 An Irish view of Scottish mottes Fig.2. The motte at Kilwaughter, Co. Antrim. The church site lies to the right of the buildings of the recent castle. intended for a primarily military role. Two of the Lordship (later the Earldom) of Ulster, the King John’s Justiciars erected mottes at part closest to Scotland. In the administration important sites: John de Gray, Bishop of of the land, it has long been recognised that Norwich at Clones and Belturbet in 1212 and the secular holdings, the manor were closely Henry of London, Archbishop of Dublin, at related to the parishes. Both were established Roscrea in 1213. Analysis of the concentration at about the same time and it would have of mottes along the western boundary of the been an obvious plan to make the two new lordships of Meath and Louth shows that they units coterminous: lords of the manor could were put up as a group and that their purpose have the prestige (and advowson) of a parish, was to provide strong-points to counteract while the parish priest had a clear patron and raids on these lordships from the west after the two could support each other. From this, the 1220s. Being able to identify a (small) it has been an easy step to assume that this minority of mottes as being built primarily for unit would translate from administration of war, emphasises that the majority were not, the land and its revenues into actual simply additions to demarcate the caput of a settlement. From the 1960s, when the study lordly holding of deserted villages in England seemed to Among these “civilian” mottes, proliferating make the idea of a village the norm of along the eastern side of the island, the medieval settlement, writers have expected distribution is varied between lordships. In that a nucleated pattern of manor, parish and Leinster lordship, mottes seem closely village would have been what the new lords associated with knights’ fees, but in Meath, would have established in Ireland. However, Louth and Ulster they spread further down the since then we have come to realise that the tenurial hierarchy. This applies particularly to nucleated village is not necessarily the only THE CASTLE STUDIES GROUP 133 JOURNAL NO. 34 An Irish view of Scottish mottes pattern of English medieval settlement and and he divided north Antrim into three major that a more dispersed pattern of free blocks: his own lands in the north-west, from tenancies was common, especially in lands Coleraine to Ballycastle and Ballymoney; the which needed to be cleared for arable, or in small Irish client kingdom of Ui Tuirtre areas where pasture was stronger. This around Ballymena; and the coast from brings us to two questions. The first is how Rathlin island and Ballycastle to just south of far did the establishing (by whatever means) Ballygalley, which he granted to the Scottish of these new lordships actually initiate the family of the Bissets (see McNeill, 2019-20 economic and social revolution that they are for details). Not only is Antrim close credited with; i.e. how real was this “feudal geographically to Ayrshire and Galloway, but agenda”? The second is what does the it shared lordships as well. distribution of mottes tell us of the We may analyse the pattern of motte organisation of the land in practice as distribution and land holdings in Ulster for opposed to its administration; in particular, evidence on the view that they are of a can we see it as a totally new construct or did package of changes brought in by the new it contain significant elements of continuity lords, in a break with the earlier organisation. from the old landscape ? In favour of the idea of change, we have the In Meath and Louth we see both the presence same relationship of manor and parish as of many mottes at manorial capita, as we elsewhere and we can see evidence of a new would expect, but also others away from emphasis in agriculture.

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