BALLINAHINCH CASTLE
Traditional Irish Name
Baile na hInnse – town of the island, or place of the wet meadow.1
Associated Families
FitzGibbon.
Fenton.
Oliver.
Location
| Barony | Coshlea. |
| Civil Parish | Knocklong. |
| Townland | Ballinahinch. |
| OS Map Ref | Sheet 48. |
Protected Structure Record
Reg. No: 139.
Ref. No: A48(36).
Description
Ballinahinch was a FitzGibbon/ClanGibbon stronghold, built during the reign of Charles I (1625-49).
The castle was later cut down a couple of storeys and now resemblances more ‘a strongly-built house than a castle’,2 or ‘a pretty good imitation of a house’.3
The original section of the castle was retained; this is evident with the slit windows, arched doorways, and a section of spiral stairs. Another architectural feature of interest is the mantelpieces, albeit from a later date, on the first and second floors (see Image Gallery).
Condition
None of the floors remain, but the building is almost ivy-free and in relatively good condition.
Access
The castle is on private land. Permission is required.
Historical Timeline
| 1576: | Lands held by Edmund FitzJohn FitzGibbon from John MacSheehy. |
| 1587: | Estate granted to Elizabethan planters, Richard and Alexander Fitton. |
| 1590: | MacSheehy’s rents granted to Edmund FitzGibbon (ClanGibbon), the ‘White Knight’. |
| 1618: | Estate granted to Sir Richard and Dame Margaret Fenton. |
| 1625: (circa) | Castle built by Gibbon FitzGibbon, or his wife, Margaret Grady, during the reign of Charles I. |
| 1654: | Gibbon FitzGibbon held Ballinahinch Castle and lands. |
| 1656: | FitzGibbon transplanted to Connacht. |
| 1657: | Ballinahinch granted to Cromwellian Captain Robert Oliver. |
| 1663: | Estate claimed back by FitzGibbon family under the Act of Settlement (1662). |
| 1666: | Estate is confirmed to Robert Oliver by Charles II. |
1 Ballinahinch/Ballynahinch is sometimes referred to as Dunmoon (variously spelt) in older texts and manuscripts.
2 J. Graves (ed.), ‘Unpublished Geraldine Documents’ in JRSAI, vol. iv, part i (1876), 50.
3 M. Craig, Architecture of Ireland (1982), 100.
Notes
All historical information is compiled from archival material; primary sources (such as State Papers); secondary sources; plus authoritative digital sources (such as CELT). Any direct quote or a further reading suggestion is footnoted.
For queries or other relevant information, or if you would like to contribute an archival image of Ballinahinch Castle (of which you own the copyright), please leave a comment at the bottom of the page, or email (below).
limerickcastlesdatabase@gmail.com
Image Gallery
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