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Ballyteigue Castle
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Ballyteigue Castle is situated in the town
land of the same name on the shore of Ballyteigue Lough
in the County of Wexford. The Gaelic name "Baile
Thaidhg" signifies "Teiges town". The old
fortress forms part of a modern dwelling house and the
keep has always been kept roofed and in good repair.
It was erected by Sir Walter de Whitty,
one of the Norman settlers, the name being spelt variously-
Whythay, Whythey, Wytteyer, Whittey, Wythay, in old documents.
Sir Richard Whitty was summoned to the English
Parliament as a baron by King Edward III. His son Richard
held three plots of land in Ballyteigue in 1335.
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Richard Whitty of Ballyteigue died in 1539. Because
his son Robert was only fourteen at his father's death, the
custody of Ballyteigue was granted to one John Devereux during
his minority. The estate 3 manors and 523 acres.
The manor and castle of Ballyteigue were in the
possession of Richard Whittle in 1624 and 1634.
The estate was forfeited in the time of the Commonwealth and
was granted to a Colonel Brett. It afterwards passed into the
hands of the Sweenys and subsequently to the Colcloughs, a branch
of the family of Tintern Abbey.
In 1798, the castle was the residence of John
Colclough, one of the leaders of the Wexford insurgents. He
was only twenty-nine when the rising broke out. As soon as Bagnal
Harvey heard that Lord Kingsborough's terms for the surrender
of Wexford would not be ratified, he hastened to Ballyteigue,
but Colclough and his wife and child had already fled to one
of the Saltee Islands. He followed them, but the island was
searched and the fugitives taken in a cave. They were conveyed
to Wexford, and Harvey and Colclough were immediately tried
and hanged. Colclough's head is buried in St. Patrick's Cemetery,
Wexford.
His little daughter and only child inherited Ballyteigue.
She afterwards married a Captain Young, and both lived in the
castle until their death. Their only daughter sold the house
to Mr. Edward Meadows, from whom it passed to Mr. Thomas Grant,
whose family are still the occupants.
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Ballyhealy Castle
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This townland name appears in various forms in the early
manuscripts, such as Ballydufathely - Balydofantly - Balydofcanly
- Balyduhaly -Balydonhay - Ballehalie, etc.
The present Irish form of the name is Baile Ui h - Eili
- Healy's town or townland.
Cheevers family are believed to have originated in 'Chievres'
the 'Duchy of Lorraine' in Normandy, and went into England
with 'William the Conqueror' in the Norman invasion of
that country in 1066 A.D.
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A William Chiever held seven townships in Devonshire
according to the 'Domesday and a Sir Hammond Chevere held 'Chever's
Manor', Norfolk in 1230 A.D. The Wexford Cheevers may be descended
from this Sir Hammond.
According to "Brooks Knights Fees"
the earliest of the name to be recorded in Ireland was William
Chevre of Ballyhealy who was a witness to the Charter of William
Marshall, Earl of Pembroke, to the Abbey of Tintern, Co. Wexford
in 1207-11 A.D.
Ballyhealy Castle was the principal residence
of Cheevers. For a period from the early 13th century to the
middle of the 17th century, they were one of the most powerful
and most important families in County Wexford, the castles and
estates remaining in their possession for over 400 years. One
branch of the family were traditionally known as ... "the
great Cheevers" or "Lords of Mount Leinster"
because of the large tracts of land they held in that district.
One tradition maintains there were four towers
originally attached to Ballyhealy Castle but only one tower
now remains. Cromwell's army laid siege to the castle in 1649,
it was practically destroyed, but the towers are believed to
have survived the onslaught. Again tradition suggest that three
of the four towers were dismantled and used in the construction
of farm buildings. The remaining tower is in a good state of
preservation and is currently occupied and used as a guest house.
A report in 1960 on the condition of the castle
states: The one remaining tower of this castle now stands isolated
in a field near Kilturk Church. It is in excellent state of
preservation. A very good stone staircase to the top, with a
murdering hole above the inside entrance of the doorway. On
the first floor there is a small chamber with three steps into
it, and also two slit windows.
There is also below the stairs, a dungeon which
has been opened up. Just before the entrance to the garderobe
(medieval lavatory) there is a sloping stone opening in the
wall of the castle for the disposal of slops, etc. There is
the usual vaulted roof over the ground floor, with corbels (a
projection from a wall to support a weight) beneath. There are
the remains of two fireplaces with the lintels removed. There
are good windows with stone seats.
Ballyhealy Beach |
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Bargy Castle
| The famous Norman castle was
built on the site of an older Fort in the twelfth Century,
and various additions followed. It successfully resisted
many sieges, eventually falling to Cromwell in 1649, whose
troops held it for 48 hours, only to be driven out by unfriendly
bees, who claimed four inebriated dead! |
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The Rebel Commander in Chief of the 1798 Insurrection,
Bagenal Harvey, was the owner of Bargy Castle, and the Rebellion
was plotted in the Banqueting Hall and started from here. Recently
a dungeon, crypt, sepulchres, a secret passage and walled-up
entrances, yielding weapons and gunpowder, were discovered.
One of the bedroom partitions has unique hand-carved panelling
dated 1591, and there is much fine old furniture in the Castle.
One night in Bagenal Harvey's Castle at Bargy,
a gathering of the wealthiest and most estimable county families,
Protestant and Catholic, met there in what must have been one
of the happiest dinner-parties ever known in Wexford.
When, three months later, one of the guests returned
to Wexford town with memories of those beloved, smiling faces,
he saw the heads of three of them gaping from spikes over the
courthouse door. Ail the others, excepting two, had met similarly
horrible execution. It was '98.
The guest who returned was Sir Jonah Barrington, Judge of the
High Court of Admiralty, and this is what he recalled of that
Bargy entertainment.
"Bagenal Harvey, who had been my school-fellow
and constant circuit-companion for many years, insisted on my
going to Bargy Castle, his residence, to meet some old (legal)
friends of ours. My relative, Captain Keogh, was to be of the
party. I accordingly went there for dinner . . . The company
I met included Captain Keogh, the two unfortunate Counsellors
Shears, who were both hung shortly afterwards; Mr. Colclough,
who was hung on the (Wexford) bridge; Mr. Hay, who was also
executed; Mr. William Hatton, one of the rebel directory of
Wexford who escaped.
The entertainment was good, and the party cheerful.
With the Messrs. Shears (particularly Henry) I had always been
on terms of the greatest intimacy; and I had no idea that matters
wherein they were concerned had proceeded to the lengths developed
on that night . . Every member of the jovial dinner party (with
the exception of myself, another barrister, and Mr. Hatton),
was executed within three months, and on my next visit to Wexford
I saw the heads of, Captain Keogh, Mr. Harvey and Mr. Colclough
on spikes over the courthouse door ..."
"Secretary Cooke handed me a dispatch
from General Lake, who stated that he had thought it necessary,
on recapturing Wexford, to lose no time in 'making examples'
of the rebel chiefs; and that, accordingly, Mr. Grogan, of Johnstown;
Mr- Bagenal Harvey, of Bargy Castle; Captain Keogh, Mr. Colclough,
and some other gentlemen, had been hanged on the bridge and
beheaded the previous morning."
The manner in which Protestant and Catholic united
against the common enemy in '98 is thus enshrined in the story
of Bargy and some other Wexford castles. Protestant Mr. Harvey's
Bargy estate brought an income of £3,000.
In the rebellion as a General in the thick of
Wexford's fiercest battles, he distinguished himself not merely
for his bravery but also for his chivalry. With Catholic John
Henry Colclough and his wife, of Tintern, Mr. Harvey took refuge
in a cave in the Saltee Islands after Wexford's surrender- Soldiers
traced them down there. To save Mrs. Colclough (who had bravely
stood by her husband throughout his battles), both men surrendered
and, with the others, were executed on June 28.
The present owner of the castle is
Chris de Burgh and his family.
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Mulrankin Castle
| Mulrankin Castle
is in an excellent state of repair. It stands complete from
kitchens to watchtower, a silent sentinel of the past and
witness to more stirring and war-torn times. The keep is
missing only its roof and two upper floors. The corbels
for these, the murder-hole and the alcoves for various cupboards
and chimneys still remain to be seen, as does the arch which
supports the first floor, a structure which looks as if
it will last at least as long again. The castle formed one
of a wide chain which covered Southern Wexford, and was
built in sight of its nearest neighbours. |
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The castle was built by Sir Wm. and Sir Nicholas
Le Brun, or Browne, as the name was anglicised by the Norman
French, the language of the leaders of the Invasion for almost
three centuries after their coming to Ireland. These two knights
were among the first band to arrive, as can be proved by their
names being attached to the foundation charter of Dunbrody Abbey,
1175, as witnesses. The castle, the keep of which still stands
in fair preservation, shows by its architecture that it is one
of the earliest erected in the county. The name of Sir Nicholas
is attached, as a witness, to the Charter of King John concerning
the bounds of the City of Dublin, November 7th, 1200. He was
also witness to the Charter of the Earl of Pembroke to Tintern
Abbey, 1219.
As the family increased, they built other castles
and spread themselves over the county, amongst which the principal
were Rathronan, Browne's Castle (Taghmon), Brownswood, Newbawn,
Greyrobin and Ballyfistelane. Their property had so increased
that after the great rebellion of 1641 many thousands of acres
were distributed among the Cromwellians, and the head of the
family at that time, Sir William Browne, was taken prisoner
at the Battle of Dungan^s Hill (1647), where his brother Walter
was killed. He escaped to France where, having served the Crown
of England faithfully under ensigns abroad, was ordered to be
restored to his estate at the Restoration, but the policy of
the Possessors defeated the order of the King.
Mulrankin is described in a document of 1572 as:
"In a very civil country and far from the borders,"
i.e. far from the Irish Clans with whom the owners of Mulrankin
fought it out for five centuries.
In 1581, Mulrankin Castle became the hiding-place
of FitzEustace, Viscount Baltinglass, who had gone into rebellion,
and of Fr. Rochfort, S.J., who was implicated with him. They
were both conveyed thence to France and got safely out of the
clutches of Elizabeth.
The Inquisitions of the 17th century contains
many notices of the place and its owners. A very long one taken
in 1637, on the property of Patrick Browne, late of Mulrankin,
enumerates all his possessions and states that he held his Manor
of Mulrankin from Nicholas Browne of Rathronan, "by fealty
and the payment of one red rose annually."
The Book of Survey and Distribution gives the
particulars of the owners of the parish of Mulrankin, both before
and after 1641, by which we see that it was granted to several
different Cromwellians, including John Cliffe (who was General
Breton's secretary) and William Ivory. The latter got an enormous
property in the County, including some about Ross; but here
Cliffe appears to have bought the other grantees out, and his
descendants held the property until it was sold under the Wyndham
Act of 1903, when Kathleen Browne's father bought Rathronan,
a lease of which had been taken from Cliffe by her grandfather
in 1851, this restoring to the family part of the property granted
to them 700 years ago.
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Rathronan Castle
The enduring legacy of the Normans on the physical landscape
has been their tower houses and castles which are now part
of our vernacular structure. The continuity of Norman families
has also been a reminder of the cohesion in our society.
The townland of Rathronan, translated as Rath Ronáin
(Ronan's Ringfort), shows that there was human settlement
in the area for thousands of years. It is unfortunate that
the rath or ringfort which gave the townland its name was
removed during land reclamation in 1994.
The Baronies of Forth and Bargy were the heartland of the
Norman colony in County Wexford. It was densely populated
by the new settlers. In the early phase of Norman settlement
in Ireland after 1169, the principal defensive fortification
was the motte-and-bailey. The construction of the motte-and-bailey
castles, built of earth, for speed of construction, consisted
of a mound of earth (a motte), usually round and artificially
raised, with a fosse around its base.
The flat top supported a small fortified structure. A fortified
enclosure known as a bailey was also associated with these
early defensive developments. Motte and bailey castles were
built at strategic locations. Many were constructed on top
of or near native Irish ringforts or raths. At Rathronan Castle
the filled-in fosse or ditch is marked by a semicircular hedge.
During the 13th century, motte and bailey castles were replaced
by substantial stone structures. The Browne family received
grants of land in the parish of Mulrankin and held the advowson*
of the church there from the 13th century until 1642. They
also maintained the blessed well, dedicated to St. Catherine
near Mulrankin Castle.
Mulrankin Castle was the primary
residence of the Browne family and Rathronan Castle was erected
by the family in the 13th century. It is about one mile from
Mulrankin and from its position is one hundred feet higher
than Mulrankin. The tower house of the castle was lowered
in the 1870s by Michael Browne.
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Rathronan Castle in late 1800s
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Rathronan Castle is unique, as it remained as a residence
until the early 1980s. Unfortunately, it became unstable
and had to be taken down in recent years.
The family were actively involved in many of the great
episodes of Irish history. Col. William Browne of Rathronan
mortgaged 1,000 acres of land to the Rowe family of
Ballycross to raise and equip a regiment in the Great
Rebellion of 1641. He was captured at the battle of
Dungan's Hill, Co. Meath, and escaped to the continent.
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The family intermarried with many of the local families including
Staffords of Baldwinstown Castle, Grogans' of Johnstown Castle,
Devereuxs of Ballymagir, Keatings, Furlongs and Cardiffs.
Many others emigrated to Argentina where they formed a large
Irish colony in Buenos Aires.
The present Browne family of Rathronan and Bigbarn are descended
from Col. John Browne who married Anne Devereux of Ballymagir.
Following the Cromwellian confiscations, the lands passed
to the Jeffers and Cliffe families and the Browne family rented
their land from the Cliffe estate from 1851 until they purchased
the confiscated lands outright in 1903.
The family were always in politics. Michael Browne was a
Poor Law Guardian and worked with Isaac Butt and Charles Stewart
and Anna Parnell. He later became a member of the first County
Council. His daughter Kathleen was also a member of the County
Council and Free State Senate.
She was also a close friend of Arthur Griffith and was imprisoned
in Kilmainham Jail in 1916. Fr. Richard Browne, O.F.M., was
a founder member of the Cork Archaeological an Historical
Society and Kathleen was a founder member of the Ui Ceinnsealaigh
Society.
*Advowson : In English ecclesiastical law, the
right to nominate a successor to a vacant benefice.
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