The Trafalgar Monument is an ornamental tower (or
folly
In architecture, a folly is a building constructed primarily for decoration, but suggesting through its appearance some other purpose, or of such extravagant appearance that it transcends the range of usual garden buildings.
Eighteenth-cent ...
) in
Carrignamuck townland, north of
Coachford
Coachford () is a village in County Cork, Ireland. It is located on the north side of the River Lee. The village is located in the civil parish of Magourney. Coachford is part of the Dáil constituency of Cork North-West.
Coachford owes its n ...
village,
County Cork
County Cork ( ga, Contae Chorcaí) is the largest and the southernmost county of Ireland, named after the city of Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. Its largest market towns a ...
,
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 ...
. It was built by Nicholas Colthurst, who served during the
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...
, and was a
midshipman aboard during the
Battle of Trafalgar
The Battle of Trafalgar (21 October 1805) was a naval engagement between the British Royal Navy and the combined fleets of the French and Spanish Navies during the War of the Third Coalition (August–December 1805) of the Napoleonic Wars (180 ...
. Colthurst continued to serve in the
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...
until 1841, retiring with the rank of
commander. Parliamentary returns give his date of entry into the Royal Navy as 14 April 1797, promotion to
lieutenant
A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations.
The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...
followed on 19 September 1806, and his actual date of commission as a retired commander is given as 29 January 1841.
This tower is depicted as a rectangular structure in the 1841 and 1901 surveyed OS maps. The Irish Tourist Association survey of 1944 describes it as a plain, ivy-covered, rectangular structure, which once appeared to have a stone roof. It goes on to state that it was erected by 'Capt. Colthurst of the British Navy' to commemorate the victory at the Battle of Trafalgar.
The Archaeological Inventory of County Cork describes it as a mid/late nineteenth century roofless square tower, one storey in height, with a high parapet wall, located on a man-made mound, and overlooking both the Dripsey River and
Clonmoyle House. The tower is said to contain tall stone-arched windows and a fireplace. Local information erroneously asserts that it was built to commemorate the death of a Colthurst at the Battle of Trafalgar.
The
National Inventory of Architectural Heritage
The National Inventory of Architectural Heritage (NIAH) maintains a central database of the architectural heritage of the Republic of Ireland covering the period since 1700 in complement to the Archaeological Survey of Ireland, which focuses on ar ...
describes it as a ruinous square-plan folly tower, built c.1820, with rubble stone walls and an ogee-headed opening to each elevation. An entry also erroneously states that it was built by the Colthurst family to commemorate the death of a family member at the Battle of Trafalgar.
The tower is not accessible to the public and is located on private property.
See also
*
Dripsey Castle, Carrignamuck
Dripsey Castle is a country house in the townland of Carrignamuck, situated north-east of Coachford village and north-west of Dripsey village. The house and demesne were dominant features in the rural landscape of Ireland, throughout the eighte ...
*
Carrignamuck Tower House
Carrignamuck Tower House, located in Carrignamuck townland, is a 15th century tower house located north of Coachford village and north-west of Dripsey village. It is also sometimes known as 'Dripsey Castle', a name latterly attributed to the 1 ...
*
Dripsey Castle Bridge
*
Colthurst's Bridge
Colthurst's Bridge is situated north of Coachford village in County Cork, Ireland, east of Aghabullogue village, and is depicted on both the 1841 and 1901 surveyed OS maps. The bridge is located at the meeting point of the townlands of Carr ...
References
{{Reflist
External links
1841 surveyed OS map (maps.osi.ie)1901 surveyed OS map (maps.osi.ie)acrheritage.info
Folly buildings in the Republic of Ireland