Dungarvan Castle or King John's Norman Castle is a

National Monument A national monument is a monument constructed in order to commemorate something of importance to national heritage, such as a country's founding, independence, war, or the life and death of a historical figure. The term may also refer to a spec ...

situated in

Dungarvan Dungarvan () is a coastal town and harbour in County Waterford, on the south-east coast of Ireland. Prior to the merger of Waterford County Council with Waterford City Council in 2014, Dungarvan was the county town and administrative centre of ...

County Waterford County Waterford ( ga, Contae Phort Láirge) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is part of the South-East Region, Ireland, South-East Region. It is named ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

Description

Dungarvan Castle is composed of a play dough shell keep, enclosed with a curtain wall, with corner and gate towers. The 12th-century shell keep is the earliest part of the structure, with this form of keep being common in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, but rare in Ireland. There is a two-storey military barracks within the walls dating from the early 18th-century. These barracks are restored and holds the exhibition space displaying the history of the castle. The current structure sits on the site of a former

Motte-and-bailey castle A motte-and-bailey castle is a European fortification with a wooden or stone keep situated on a raised area of ground called a motte, accompanied by a walled courtyard, or bailey, surrounded by a protective ditch and palisade. Relatively easy to ...

History

The castle has been described as Anglo-Norman, and was founded in 1185 by Prince John, on the mouth of the Colligan River. It was amongst a number of castles built around this time in the south east of Ireland. The castle was used as a barracks during the

Irish Civil War The Irish Civil War ( ga, Cogadh Cathartha na hÉireann; 28 June 1922 – 24 May 1923) was a conflict that followed the Irish War of Independence and accompanied the establishment of the Irish Free State, an entity independent from the United ...

, then taken by the IRA who upon leaving in August 1922, set fire to the structure. After the foundation of the

Garda Síochána (; meaning "the Guardian(s) of the Peace"), more commonly referred to as the Gardaí (; "Guardians") or "the Guards", is the national police service of Ireland. The service is headed by the Garda Commissioner who is appointed by the Irish Gover ...

in the Free State, the castle was restored and became the local Garda Station until 1987. After 1987 the castle fell into disrepair again, but under the management by

Dúchas Dúchas, sometimes Dúchas: The Heritage Service, was an executive agency of the Department of Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands of the Government of Ireland responsible for Heritage management, including: * natural heritage (including ...

was restored and now provides guided tours, an exhibition and an audio-visual show.

References

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External links

Discover Ireland
National Monuments in County Waterford

Description

History

See also

References

External links