The barony of Castleknock ( ga, Caisleán Cnucha meaning "Cnucha's Castle")Barony of Castleknock
/ref> is one of the baronies of Ireland. Originally part of the Lordship of Meath, it was then constituted as part of the historic

County Dublin "Action to match our speech" , image_map = Island_of_Ireland_location_map_Dublin.svg , map_alt = map showing County Dublin as a small area of darker green on the east coast within the lighter green background of ...

. Today, it lies in the modern

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

of Fingal,

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 ...

. The barony was originally also a feudal title, which became one of the subsidiary titles of the Viscounts Gormanston.

History

The barony was created by Hugh de Lacy, Lord of Meath, as his own feudal barony, to be held directly from himself '' in capite'' (his vassals were commonly called "De Lacy's Barons".) The first vassal was

Hugh Tyrrel Hugh Tyrrel (Anglo-Norman language, Anglo-Norman: ''Huge Tyrel''), 1st Castleknock (barony), Baron of Castleknock (died 1199) was an Anglo-Normans, Anglo-Norman nobleman and Crusades, crusader who played a prominent part in the Norman invasion of I ...

1177 Year 1177 ( MCLXXVII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events January–December * January – Eystein Meyla, leader of the Birkebeiner in Norway, is killed. Sve ...

. It was held for three and a half

knight's fee In feudal Anglo-Norman England and Ireland, a knight's fee was a unit measure of land deemed sufficient to support a knight. Of necessity, it would not only provide sustenance for himself, his family, and servants, but also the means to furnish h ...

s, owed to the superior Lord of Fingal. The title and lands of Castleknock were held by the Tyrell family until 1370 when Hugh Tyrell and his wife died of the

plague Plague or The Plague may refer to: Agriculture, fauna, and medicine *Plague (disease), a disease caused by ''Yersinia pestis'' * An epidemic of infectious disease (medical or agricultural) * A pandemic caused by such a disease * A swarm of pe ...

. It later passed to the

Viscount Gormanston Viscount Gormanston is a title in the Peerage of Ireland created in 1478 and held by the head of the Preston family, which hailed from Lancashire. It is the oldest vicomital title in the British Isles; the holder is Premier Viscount of Ireland. ...

Location

At the heart of the barony is the

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authorit ...

of the same name - Castleknock - which is one of eight civil parishes in the barony. In the

townland A townland ( ga, baile fearainn; Ulster-Scots: ''toonlann'') is a small geographical division of land, historically and currently used in Ireland and in the Western Isles in Scotland, typically covering . The townland system is of Gaelic orig ...

of Castleknock itself is the location of the eponymous "Cnucha's Castle" - Castleknock Castle. The town with the biggest population in the barony is

Blanchardstown Blanchardstown () is a large outer suburb of Dublin in the modern county of Fingal, Ireland. Located northwest of Dublin city centre, it has developed since the 1960s from a small village to a point where Greater Blanchardstown is the largest u ...

. It is one of seven and a half baronies that used to comprise the old

of Dublin. It stretches from Cabra to

(from east to west) and from

Finglas Finglas (; ) is a northwestern outer suburb of Dublin, Ireland. It lies close to Junction 5 of the M50 motorway, and the N2 road. Nearby suburbs include Glasnevin and Ballymun; Dublin Airport is to the north. Finglas lies mainly in the posta ...

Chapelizod Chapelizod () is a village preserved within the city of Dublin, Ireland. It lies in the wooded valley of the River Liffey, near the Strawberry Beds and the Phoenix Park. The village is associated with Iseult of Ireland and the location of Is ...

(from north to south). The Castleknock barony is located between the baronies of

Coolock Coolock () is a large suburban area, centred on a village, on Dublin city's Northside in Ireland. Coolock is crossed by the Santry River, a prominent feature in the middle of the district, with a linear park and ponds. The Coolock suburban are ...

to the east,

Nethercross Nethercross ( ga, An Chrois Íochtarach ) is a feudal title of one of the baronies of Ireland. Originally part of the Lordship of Meath, it was then constituted as part of the old county of Dublin. Today, it lies in the modern county of Fingal. ...

to the north and

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...

to the southeast. The

River Liffey The River Liffey ( Irish: ''An Life'', historically ''An Ruirthe(a)ch'') is a river in eastern Ireland that ultimately flows through the centre of Dublin to its mouth within Dublin Bay. Its major tributaries include the River Dodder, the Riv ...

separates it from the remaining baronies of County Dublin. With the exception of the parish of Chapelizod, the remainder of the barony is contained within the modern

of Fingal and it is subject to Fingal County Council.

Legal context

Baronies were created after the

Norman invasion of Ireland The Anglo-Norman invasion of Ireland took place during the late 12th century, when Anglo-Normans gradually conquered and acquired large swathes of land from the Irish, over which the kings of England then claimed sovereignty, all allegedly san ...

as subdivisions of counties and were used for administration. At the time of its creation, Castleknock was part of the Lordship of Meath. While baronies continue to be officially defined units, they are no longer used for many administrative purposes. While they have been administratively obsolete since 1898, they continue to be used in land registration, and specifications such as in planning permissions. In many cases, a barony corresponds to an earlier

Gaelic Gaelic is an adjective that means "pertaining to the Gaels". As a noun it refers to the group of languages spoken by the Gaels, or to any one of the languages individually. Gaelic languages are spoken in Ireland, Scotland, the Isle of Man, and Ca ...

túath ''Túath'' (plural ''túatha'') is the Old Irish term for the basic political and jurisdictional unit of Gaelic Ireland. ''Túath'' can refer to both a geographical territory as well the people who lived in that territory. Social structure In ...

'' which had submitted to the Crown. This is probably true in the case of Castleknock.

Civil parishes

Civil parish of Castleknock

What is now the parish of Castleknock was granted to

by Hugh de Lacy, Lord of Meath. Copies of the grant were discovered in the London Public Records Office in 1933 by Eric St. John Brooks. In English, the grant reads:

Henry, by the grace of God, King of England, Lord of Ireland, Duke of Aquitaine and Normandy and Count of Anjou to the Archbishops, Bishops, Ministers and all Earls, Barons, Justices, Sheriffs, Ministers and all his faithful French, English and Irish, greeting. Know that I have conceded, given, and by present Charter confirmed to Hugh Tirel, the man of Hugh de Lacy, Thwothyn and Thwothrom.''The Grant of Castleknock to Hugh Tyrel.'', The journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland. 7th series; Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland; Dublin Hodges, Figgis; 3v.; English; Holdings: Vol. 1-vol. 3; 1931-1933.; Also numbered vol. 61-63 of consecutive series. Continues 6th series; University of Liverpool Libraries

Brooks deduces that "Thwo" is an Anglicisation of the Gaelic word ''

'' and that "throm" is an Anglicisation of the word ''droma'' which means ridge or hill - a possible reference to the hill of Castleknock where Tyrrell was to build his castle. Townlands in the civil parish of Castleknock:Castleknock civil parish
/ref> * Not to be confused with Huntstown in Mulhuddart.

Civil parish of Chapelizod

contains a single townland of the same name. However, 465 acres are within the walls of the

Phoenix Park The Phoenix Park ( ga, Páirc an Fhionnuisce) is a large urban park in Dublin, Ireland, lying west of the city centre, north of the River Liffey. Its perimeter wall encloses of recreational space. It includes large areas of grassland and tre ...

while the village proper, outside the walls, contains only 67 acres. It is the only part of the barony that is not within the modern county of Fingal. It is administered by

Dublin City Council Dublin City Council ( ga, Comhairle Cathrach Bhaile Átha Cliath) is the authority responsible for local government in the city of Dublin in Ireland. As a city council, it is governed by the Local Government Act 2001. Until 2001, the council was ...

Civil parish of Cloghran

The parish of Cloghran consists of three townlands.Cloghran civil parish
/ref> Most of the land in the parish is taken up with the "Ballycoolen Industrial Estate".

Civil parish of Clonsilla

Townlands in the civil parish of

Clonsilla Clonsilla () is an outer suburb of Dublin in Fingal, Ireland. Clonsilla is also a civil parish in the barony of Castleknock in the historic County Dublin. Location and access Clonsilla used to be a small village in the inner western part of ...

:Clonsilla civil parish
/ref> :Note 1 The largest population centre in Castaheany / Hansfield is Ongar.

Civil parish of Finglas

The 34 townlands of the parish of

are split among two baronies.Finglas civil parish
/ref> The core village and two smaller parcels of land - exclaves of the village - lie in Castleknock. An additional exclave lies in

. Trading estate in the Tolka Valley - geograph.org.uk - 593692.jpg, Trading estate in the townland of Ballyboggan South Ballygall House.jpg, Ballygall House in the townland of Ballygall Old N2 at Balseskin, North of Finglas, Co. Dublin - geograph.org.uk - 1271824.jpg, Old N2 road at the townland of Balseskin Car Breakers' Yard, Finglas - geograph.org.uk - 511083.jpg, Breaker's yard in the townland of Cardiffsbridge Finglas Garda Station - geograph.org.uk - 491629.jpg, Garda station in the townland of Cardiffscastle Charlestown Shopping Centre complex.JPG, Charlestown Shopping Centre in the townland of Charlestown N1, looking south, Coldwinters, Co. Dublin. - geograph.org.uk - 906081.jpg, Old N1 road at the townland of Coldwinters County Dublin - Killreesk Bridge (Kilreesk) - 20190505202241.jpg, Bridge in the townland of Kilreesk R135 (old N2) at Kilshane, Co. Dublin - geograph.org.uk - 1271768.jpg, Old N2 road at the townland of Kilshane Seamus Ennis 5.jpg, Seamus Ennis plaque in the townland of Jamestown Little IKEA - BALLYMUN, DUBLIN, IRELAND - panoramio (2).jpg, IKEA store in the townland of Poppintree Finglas Prospect H 130323-01.jpg, Prospect apartment blocks in the townland of Tolka

Civil parish of Mulhuddart

Mulhuddart Mulhuddart () is an outer suburb situated 12 km (7.456 miles) north-west of Dublin, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The River Tolka passes near the village. Mulhuddart is also a Civil parishes in Ireland, civil parish in the Barony (Irelan ...

has 22 townlands, including:Mulhuddart civil parish
/ref>

Civil parish of Saint James'

The bulk of Saint James' parishSaint James' civil parish
/ref> lies south of the

. A single townland, situated north of the river in the

, is part of the barony of Castleknock. * Saint James' (part of Phoenix Park);Saint James' (part of Phoenix Park) townland
/ref> the eastern part containing the Magazine Fort, the Zoological Gardens, the Wellington Monument and the Criminal Courts of Justice. Dublin Irland-61

Civil parish of Saint Judes'

The bulk of Saint Judes'Saint Judes' civil parish
/ref> parish lies south of the River Liffey. A single townland, situated north of the river, is part of the barony of Castleknock. It was carved out of the parish of Saint James'. * LongmeadowsLongmeadows townland
/ref> which is the strip of land between the Park walls and the river from its narrowest pinch point to

Islandbridge Island Bridge (), formerly Sarah or Sarah's Bridge, is a road bridge spanning the River Liffey, in Dublin, Ireland which joins the South Circular Road to Conyngham Road at the Phoenix Park. Island Bridge and the surrounding area (often known ...

on the South Circular Road. Spectator Sport (139226819)

Civil parish of Ward

Townlands in the parish of

Ward Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...

: Cherryhound, Irishtown, Killamonan, Newpark, Spricklestown, Ward Lower and Ward Upper.Ward civil parish
/ref>

References

From : :Civil parishes :Townlands of Cloghran :Townlands of Clonsilla :Townlands of Mulhuddart :Townlands of Saint James's :Townlands of Castleknock :Townlands of Ward :Townlands of other parishes Other sources:

External links

Local Government Act, 2001
* Source given is "Ordnance survey". {{Fingal History of Fingal