Bawn, Killiane, Co. Wexford

Co. Wexford |

Castle Features

Bawn, Killiane, Co. Wexford

The tower house at Killiane stands at the western corner of a rectangular bawn, a fortified courtyard that once measured 34 metres from northeast to southwest and 25 metres from northwest to southeast.

Though much of the defensive wall has crumbled over the centuries, impressive sections remain along the southwest and southeast sides, reaching heights of 6 and 6.8 metres respectively. The southwest wall features a round-arched entrance gateway, 2.17 metres wide, defended by machicolation overhead; a stone stairs on the inner face of this wall would have given defenders access to the wall-walk above.

The bawn's southern angle boasts a corner tower that rises from the battlements, whilst a circular tower, roughly 3.5 metres in diameter and standing 8.3 metres tall, guards the eastern corner. Intriguingly, the top of the southeast wall appears to have been rebuilt at some point, lacking the crenellations typical of defensive architecture but featuring three gun-loops in its parapet. Two inscribed stones built into the bawn walls offer tantalising glimpses of its later history: one bears 'IHE ANNO DOMINI 1693', possibly marking a reconstruction, whilst another reads 'IHM 1730'.

Archaeological excavation in 2004 uncovered evidence of what may be a defensive ditch or fosse running parallel to the northeast wall, at least 3 metres wide and 0.8 metres deep, suggesting the fortification's defences were more elaborate than the surviving stonework alone indicates. The site's religious significance is evident from a chapel that once stood about 80 metres to the east and a holy well that can still be found roughly 40 metres to the south, reminding visitors that these military structures often existed alongside places of worship and pilgrimage in medieval Ireland.

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Pete F
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