CSG Annual Conference - Cork - April 2018 - Blarney Castle Blarney castle. From the late James N. Healy’s ‘The Castles of Co. Cork’, p. 21. View from the north-east. The first tower (1) (in the right-hand - NW- corner - with the later oriel window) was built in c. 1480. The much larger Tower (2) (early 16th century) was attached to it. Blarney Castle rary with tower 2 or slightly later. During the Blarney Castle was the principal residence of English civil war, the castle was captured in the Mac Carthys, Lords of Muskerry. Accord- 1646 by parliamentary forces under Lord ing to tradition it was built in 1446 by Cormac Broghill, but the estate was later restored to the Laidir Mac Carthy, though it has been suggest- MacCarthys who held it until 1691. Then, Do- ed that the MacCarthys did not get possession nough Mac Carthy, the last of the first earls of of Blarney until the 1480s. In any case a late Clancarty, forfeited the estate on the defeat of 15th-century date would seem appropriate for James II by William of Orange. The estate was tower 1. The addition of tower 2 probably dates bought by the Jefferyes family in 1703, who to the 16th century. Tower 2 appears to have built the eighteenth·century house just east of been remodelled in the early 17th century, the castle. The estate passed by marriage to the when windows were changed and fireplaces Colthurst family in 1846, in whose hands it inserted. This may also be the date of the gate- remains to this day. house and the fortified tower to the NE. The Reference: J. Lyttleton, 2011, Blarney Castle. bawn wall to the west is probably contempo- An Irish Tower House. Dublin: Four Courts Press. THE CASTLE STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL THENO 29: CASTLE 2015-166 STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL NO 32: 2018-19 CSG Annual Conference - Cork - April 2018 - Blarney Castle Blarney Castle from the NE. Oldest tower (1) at the NW front. Tower (2) seamlessly joined behind and to the left. Present entrance into the tower on the east, bawn/courtyard side past the lean-to gift shop. Image courtesy of the Blarney Castle estate. THE CASTLE STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL THENO 29: CASTLE 2015-167 STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL NO 32: 2018-19 CSG Annual Conference - Cork - April 2018 - Blarney Castle Above: Blarney Castle. Simplified plan (cropped - detail, north at the top) from James’ Lyttleton’s ‘Blarney Castle’, p. 38 (now in paperback, which can be purchased for about £15.00). The medie- val tower house and gatehouse in blue and the ruins of the Georgian-Gothic mansion in white. The monograph is profusely illustrated with col- our images, all floor-level plans, colour-coded dating, and multiple sections. In addition to the detailed analysis of the building, there are gener- al comments - ‘Irish tower houses in context’, etc. This is a thoroughly professional presentation. As Conleth Manning states in his Foreword, ‘this book brings the different phases of the history of Blarney Castle to life….all aspects of the story are of interest, but here, the castle itself, possibly the least understood to date, is the main focus. THE CASTLE STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL THENO 29: CASTLE 2015-168 STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL NO 32: 2018-19 CSG Annual Conference - Cork - April 2018 - Blarney Castle THE CASTLE STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL THENO 29: CASTLE 2015-169 STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL NO 32: 2018-19 CSG Annual Conference - Cork - April 2018 - Blarney Castle Tower 1 Tower 2 The first floor plan of Blarney Castle illustrates the chronological development of the tower house, with its initial extent in the 1480s (Tower 1), followed by a major expansion in the early sixteenth century (Tower 2). In the late sixteenth or early seventeenth century square-headed windows were inserted. At some stage in the early seventeenth century a classical fireplace was placed into the ‘Great Hall’ and an oriel window into the north wall of the ‘Earl’s Bedroom. Finally in the eighteenth century, large windows were inserted into the south and west walls of Tower 2. THE CASTLE STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL THENO 29: CASTLE 2015-1610 STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL NO 32: 2018-19 CSG Annual Conference - Cork - April 2018 - Blarney Castle Blarney Castle. View from the north-east on the approach from the car park. An imposing monolith built of grey limestone rubble, built on a rocky outcrop. The right side of the north facade with the corbelled oriel window, is the oldest part, c. 1480s (Tower 1). THE CASTLE STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL THENO 29: CASTLE 2015-1611 STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL NO 32: 2018-19 CSG Annual Conference - Cork - April 2018 - Blarney Castle Blarney Castle from the north. The tower is perched on the edge of a rocky outcrop, and is ap- proached today through carefully laid out gardens. Below; The remains of the Georgian - Gothic mansion on the east side of the tower house. THE CASTLE STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL THENO 29: CASTLE 2015-1612 STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL NO 32: 2018-19 CSG Annual Conference - Cork - April 2018 - Blarney Castle Blarney castle. The south facade of Tower 2, with its inserted 17th century lights and larger 18th century window below. Bawn entrance to the right. The machicolation that projects around most of the parapet is supported on elegant pyramidal corbels with slightly hollowed ogee-headed forms. THE CASTLE STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL THENO 29: CASTLE 2015-1613 STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL NO 32: 2018-19 CSG Annual Conference - Cork - April 2018 - Blarney Castle Fireplace in the Great Hall. (Tower 2). The 17th century lintel / mantel-piece is in finely carved sandstone, with a two-tier entablature supported by console brackets. A fireplace of similar appearance, bearing the date 1636 can be found in a manor house at Monkstown, Co. Cork. THE CASTLE STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL THENO 29: CASTLE 2015-1614 STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL NO 32: 2018-19 CSG Annual Conference - Cork - April 2018 - Blarney Castle Blarney Castle. The main, wide and generous clockwise spiral stair in the north-east corner of the tower house (Tower 2, early 16th century), giving access to all floors. The risers and backs of the steps are all finely carved. There is no recognised newel as such, but very finely and accurately laid treads. The smooth sinuous underside is a rare and unusual feature. A similar example in Ireland is found at Clonshire hall house, but the date there is uncertain. Two castles in England have similar stairs, the gatehouses at Bampton, Oxfordshire (c. 1320), and Maxstoke, Warwick- shire, c. 1340. Image courtesy of Owen Thomas. THE CASTLE STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL THENO 29: CASTLE 2015-1615 STUDIES GROUP JOURNAL NO 32: 2018-19.