Blackwater Castle

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Blackwater Castle
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Alternative name (s): Castle Widenham
Creation time : 12th Century
Castle type : Hilltop castle
Conservation status: restored
Standing position : Irish nobility
Construction: Quarry stone
Place: Castletownroche
Geographical location 52 ° 10 '14.1 "  N , 8 ° 27' 37.7"  W Coordinates: 52 ° 10 '14.1 "  N , 8 ° 27' 37.7"  W.
Height: 62  m ASLTemplate: height / unknown reference
Blackwater Castle (Ireland)
Blackwater Castle

Blackwater Castle (also Castle Widenham , Irish Caisleán Widenham ) is a hilltop castle in Castletownroche between the cities of Mallow and Fermoy in Ireland's County Cork . The castle has been available for rent for weddings, private parties and as a holiday home since 2005. Blackwater Castle is one of the oldest castles in Ireland; Parts of the living area date back to the early 15th century and the structure of the castle dates back to the 12th century. A round tower on the east side of the castle from the end of the 12th century still stands today, but may no longer be entered. The castle was built on the ruins of the ancient Dun Cruadha fortress , a fort on a ledge from the Late Bronze or Early Iron Age ; the site has been inhabited since the Mesolithic (c. 7000 BC), as evidenced by flint fragments found in Kilcummer , as well as caves on the south bank of the River Awbeg , making this site one of the earliest populated in Ireland.

history

The Cambodian- Norman grandsons of Maurice FitzGerald , Alexander and Raymond FitzHugh , established their fortress on the grounds of Dun Cruadha at the end of the 12th century after the Anglo- Norman invasion of Ireland and, when Alexander's daughter, Synolda , married David de la Roche , the area later known as Baronate Fermoy became Roche Country . The castle remained in the hands of the De la Roche family until 1666 when it fell to Colonel John Widenham . Roche Castle was then called "Castle Widenham" and remained in the family until the 1960s. A number of other owners followed who had the castle renovated and renamed it "Blackwater Valley Castle". In 1991 the castle came into the hands of the Nordstrom Family Trust . The Trust is working to protect the unique heritage and to make the castle, now called Blackwater Castle, economically self-sufficient. It is regularly rented out for weddings, private functions, and family gatherings. There is also an adventure center, Blackwater Outdoor Activities, in the castle courtyard .

today

Given that the castle was in the hands of the powerful and politically influential De la Roche family for nearly 500 years and then in the hands of the wealthy, albeit politically insignificant, Widenham family for another 300 years, much of the legacy remained intact what gives this place international importance. With elements from almost every period of Irish history found in the castle's history, Blackwater Castle is a popular location for history and heritage tours. There you can find finds of Mesolithic settlement, settlement from the end of the Bronze Age and the beginning of the Iron Age with ring cairns and ring forts in the vicinity, a fountain of St. Patrick , a Sheela-na-Gig , medieval defensive walls, a tower from the 12th century, a 13th century watchtower with access, a Norman keep from the 15th century, the medieval script of the Book of Fermoy (now in the Royal Irish Academy ) a courtyard from the 17th and 18th centuries with outbuildings and a fortified mansion from after the conquest of Ireland by Oliver Cromwell (later modified and expanded).

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Archaeological Survey of Ireland . Volume IV: North Cork. Part 2. Duchás. P. 650.
  2. ^ The Archaeological Inventory of North Cork . Duchás, 2000. p. 2.
  3. ^ History of Blackwater Castle . blackwatercastle.com. June 30, 1922. Retrieved June 22, 2018.
  4. ↑ About us . blackwatercastle.com. December 28, 2013. Accessed June 22, 2018.
  5. ↑ Heritage . blackwatercastle.com. December 28, 2013. Accessed June 22, 2018.
  6. ^ School History Tours . blackwatercastle.com. December 28, 2013. Accessed June 22, 2018.
  7. ^ Royal Irish Academy | Library | Special Collections | Book of Fermoy . Ria.ie. Archived from the original on April 14, 2015. Retrieved June 22, 2018.
  8. ↑ Blackwater Castle, Castletownroche, County Cork . Buildings of Ireland: National Inventory of Architectural Heritage. Retrieved June 22, 2018.

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