Fort, Sraloaghan, Co. Leitrim

Co. Leitrim |

Ringforts

Fort, Sraloaghan, Co. Leitrim

In the townland of Sraloaghan in County Leitrim, a circular patch of grass sits quietly on a gentle north-facing slope, its edges barely distinguishable from the surrounding ground unless you know exactly what you are looking at.

What appears to be a slight rise and fall in the land is in fact the surviving outline of an early Irish ringfort, a type of enclosed settlement that was once among the most common features of the Irish countryside, typically serving as a defended farmstead for a single family or small community during the early medieval period.

The fort measures roughly 27 metres in diameter, defined by an earthen bank that was once considerably more imposing than it is today. On the south-western side the bank survives to a reasonable degree, reaching about 5.5 metres in width with an external height of 0.6 metres, but around much of the rest of the circuit it has been reduced to little more than a scarp, a low eroded edge where the bank has slumped and worn away over centuries. Outside the main bank lies a fosse, the term for a defensive ditch, between two and four metres wide at the base and up to 0.9 metres deep in places, and beyond that a second, outer bank. There are also traces of a shallow outer fosse on the western side, suggesting the site once had a more elaborate defensive arrangement than its current battered state conveys. The entrance, identifiable by a gap in both the inner and outer banks, faces the south-east, which is consistent with the orientation favoured at many Irish ringforts. The inner gap measures 2.2 metres across; the outer is wider at 6.8 metres. The detail was recorded by Michael J. Moore in the Archaeological Inventory of County Leitrim, published by the Stationery Office in Dublin in 2003.

The site is low-profile in every sense. Nothing about it announces itself. The measurements, though modest on paper, tell of something carefully constructed, with a layered system of bank, fosse, and counter-scarp that would have presented a meaningful obstacle to anyone approaching without permission. That logic is now almost entirely buried under grass and time.

Rated 0 out of 5

Visitor Notes

Review type for post source and places source type not found
Added by
Picture of Pete F
Pete F
IrishHistory.com is passionate about helping people discover and connect with the rich stories of their local communities.
Please use the form below to submit any photos you may have of Fort, Sraloaghan, Co. Leitrim. We're happy to take any suggested edits you may have too. Please be advised it will take us some time to get to these submissions. Thank you.
Name
Email
Message
Upload images/documents
Maximum file size: 100 MB
If you'd like to add an image or a PDF please do it here.

Advertisement