Burnchurch Castle

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Burnchurch Castle
Burnchurch Castle with Tourelle

Burnchurch Castle with Tourelle

Creation time : 15th century
Castle type : Niederungsburg (Tower House)
Conservation status: ruin
Standing position : Irish nobility
Construction: Quarry stone
Place: Burnchurch (at Callan's )
Geographical location 52 ° 34 '33.4 "  N , 7 ° 17' 50.8"  W Coordinates: 52 ° 34 '33.4 "  N , 7 ° 17' 50.8"  W.
Height: 83  m ASLTemplate: height / unknown reference
Burnchurch Castle (Ireland)
Burnchurch Castle
Burnchurch Castle

Burnchurch Castle ( Irish Caisleán an Teampaill Loiscthe ) is a tower house outside the town of Callan next to Clonmel Road , 6.5 km southwest of Kilkenny in County Kilkenny, Ireland . The well-preserved Norman building from the 15th century has a round gate tower and has been a national monument together with the Anglican Church (the eponymous Burnchurch , An Teampall Loiscthe ) and the linden trees since 1993 .

The castle is believed to have been built for the FitzGeralds von Desmond in the 15th century, who lived there until 1817.

description

The 12.5 meter high Tourelle is still there. Originally, a courtyard enclosed by a wall was attached to the castle. The tower is six stories high and has an unusually high number of corridors and chambers inside the walls. A knight's hall was once built onto the outer wall of the tower, but it has now disappeared, as has most of the enclosure with a 12.3 meter high tower on one corner. Old drawings of unknown date show the remains of the buildings.

Many tower houses have chambers within the walls and hidden passageways in their walls, but few have as many and as tortuous as Burnchurch Castle. Below is a vault with the main bedroom above, directly under the gabled roof. There are numerous narrow rooms in the walls, including a "secret room" on the 3rd floor.

A winding outside staircase still gives access to the three upper floors of this small tower, so that it is accessible. It has coupled windows and is particularly known for its finely hewn open fireplace with a grooved wedge arch and a high round fireplace. The rounded chimney could be a later addition.

On the whole, the structure of Burnchurch Castle is the same as that of Clara Castle , but differs in that the gable walls are raised one story higher than the other two walls and form elongated channels with their overhangs at the highest point of the building. Burnchurch Castle and Clara Castle are good examples of the distinctive Irish style of crenellated steps .

Burnchurch Castle is known as one of several Irish tower houses where the slightly narrower sides of the castle are drawn up to another story, essentially forming a pair of tourelles that are just as wide as the tower.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ County Kilkenny National Monuments in State Ownership / Guardian . In: Dáil Éireann - Volume 488 - March 24, 1998. Written Answers. - National Monument . Archived from the original on August 19, 2012. Retrieved on February 4, 2019.
  2. ↑ Appendix Development Plan. National monuments protected by the State under the Monuments Acts, 1930, 1954 (Amended 1987) . Kilkenny County Council. Retrieved February 4, 2019.
  3. ↑ James L. Forde-Johnston: Great Medieval Castles of Britain . P. 200. 1979. Retrieved February 4, 2019.

literature

Web links

Commons : Burnchurch Castle  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files