Rahinnane Castle
Tower house atop ringfort in County Kerry, Ireland
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Rahinnane Castle is a tower house and National Monument located in County Kerry, Ireland.[2][3]
County Kerry, Ireland
| Rahinnane Castle | |
|---|---|
| Native name Caisleán Ráthanáin[1] (Irish) | |
| |
| Type | tower house atop ringfort |
| Location | Rahinnane, Ventry, County Kerry, Ireland |
| Coordinates | 52.143050°N 10.383232°W |
| Owner | State |
| Official name | Rahinnane Castle, Ringfort & Souterrain |
| Reference no. | 10045 |
  Location of Rahinnane Castle in Ireland | |
Location
Rahinnane Castle is located 1.73 km (1.07 mi) northwest of Ventry, in the west of the Dingle Peninsula.[4]
History
The ringfort on the site was built in the 7th or 8th century AD. The Irish name was originally Rath Fhionnáin — Finan's ringfort.
Local tradition once claimed that this piece of land was the last in Ireland held by the Vikings, as it was so easily defended.[5]
The stone tower house was built in the 15th or 16th century by the FitzGeralds, hereditary Knights of Kerry.[6]
In 1602, towards the end of the Nine Years' War, the castle was taken by Sir Charles Wilmot. It was ruined during the Cromwellian conquest (1649–53).[7][8]
Building
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The ancient earthwork featured a 9 metres (30 ft) deep ditch, an entrance in the southwest and a souterrain in the southeast. The castle was rectangular and three storeys tall. Most of the outer walls remain; on the inside there is some mural stairway, traces of vaulting and a blind arcade. Two corner turrets are also visible. More than half the outer walls of the three-storey castle remain.[9]
