Structure, Longford, Co. Tipperary

Co. Tipperary |

Utility Structures

Structure, Longford, Co. Tipperary

On a steep north-north-easterly slope of Knocknanuss mountain in the Galty range, there is a small stone structure that would be easy to dismiss as a shepherd's shelter or a quirk of the landscape.

It is neither large nor showy: its interior measures roughly 77 centimetres by 90 centimetres, with a standing height of just 86 centimetres, meaning anyone inside would have to crouch. What makes it quietly arresting is the combination of its construction and its position. Built from drystone walling with a corbelled roof, a technique in which stones are laid in overlapping courses that gradually close to form a ceiling without mortar or keystone, the structure sits on a slight natural platform with its entrance facing north-east, directly overlooking the valley below. A mountain stream runs some 30 to 40 metres to the south-east. A small sloping stone at the back of the interior may once have served as a seat, though it may equally be the result of partial collapse.

Local tradition associates the structure with Dan Breen, the Tipperary republican and IRA guerrilla who became one of the most prominent figures of the War of Independence after the Soloheadbeg ambush of January 1919. The Galty mountains, rising between Tipperary and Limerick, offered difficult terrain that was useful to flying columns and men on the run throughout that period, and a position like this one, barely large enough for a single person but commanding a long view down into the valley, would have served well as an observation post. Whether the structure was built specifically for that purpose or adapted from something older is not recorded, and the corbelled technique itself is ancient, used in Irish construction from the prehistoric period onwards. The attribution to Breen rests on oral tradition rather than documented record, which makes it neither more nor less plausible, only harder to verify.

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Pete F
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