Portora Castle is a castle in

Enniskillen Enniskillen ( , from ga, Inis Ceithleann , ' Ceithlenn's island') is the largest town in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. It is in the middle of the county, between the Upper and Lower sections of Lough Erne. It had a population of 13,823 a ...

County Fermanagh County Fermanagh ( ; ) is one of the thirty-two counties of Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the six counties of Northern Ireland. The county covers an area of 1,691 km2 (653 sq mi) and has a population of 61,805 ...

, Northern Ireland. The castle was built for Sir William Cole who purchased the land in 1612. It is strategically positioned by the narrow exit of the

River Erne The River Erne ( , ga, Abhainn na hÉirne or ''An Éirne'') in the northwest of the island of Ireland, is the second-longest river in Ulster, flowing through Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, and forming part of their border. ...

into the

Lower Lough Erne Lough Erne ( , ) is the name of two connected lakes in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. It is the second-biggest lake system in Northern Ireland and Ulster, and the fourth biggest in Ireland. The lakes are widened sections of the River Erne, ...

. It is a State Care Historic Monument sited 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 Portora, in

Fermanagh District Council Fermanagh District Council was a local council in Northern Ireland. It was created out of Fermanagh County Council and later merged with Omagh District Council in April 2015 under local government reorganisation to become Fermanagh and Omagh Di ...

area, at grid ref: H2221 4531.

Features

In 1619 Nicholas Pynnar described the castle as 'a bawn of lime and stone, 2.5m square, approximately 4m high, with four flankers and a stone house or castle three storeys high, strongly wrought'. Three of the flankers remain, the two on the west, flanking the walls of the castle. These round towers, about 3m in diameter, have several gun loops. Inside the castle can be seen proper fireplace chimneys in the north and west walls.

History

Sir Michael Cole and his family moved to Portora Castle in 1710 when their previous residence,

Enniskillen Castle Enniskillen Castle is situated in Enniskillen, County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. It was originally built in the 16th century and now contains the Fermanagh County Museum and a museum for the 5th Royal Inniskilling Dragoon Guards and Royal Inn ...

, was hit by fire. They remained there until about 1716, when Sir Michael's son, John Cole (1680–1726), started building

Florence Court Florence Court is a large 18th-century house and estate located 8 miles south-west of Enniskillen, County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. It is set in the foothills of Cuilcagh Mountain. The nearby village is distinguished by the one-word name F ...

. The ford at Portora was important in the Erne Waterways and must have seen considerable traffic in peace and war. In the course of the

Erne Drainage Scheme An erne is a sea eagle, or an eagle more broadly. Erne may refer to: People * Adam Erne (born 1995), American ice hockey player * Philippe Erne (born 1986), Liechtenstein footballer * Young Erne (1884–1944), American boxer Ships * HMS '' ...

(1951–1960) a bronze dirk and stone axes were recovered at this point. The castle is now in ruins, partly because a group of truanting school-boys from nearby

Portora Royal School Portora Royal School located in Enniskillen, County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland, was one of the public schools founded by the royal charter in 1608, by James I, making it one of the oldest schools in Ireland at the time of its closure. Origina ...

, now

Enniskillen Royal Grammar School Enniskillen Royal Grammar School, located in Enniskillen, County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland, is an academically selective, co-educational, non-denominational voluntary grammar school. The school opened its doors on 1 September 2016. Two former ...

, experimenting with gunpowder they learnt how to create in chemistry class, blew up a section in the latter part of the 19th century. They also tried digging under the building which added to its dereliction.

References

External links

Pictures of Portora Castle
Castles in County Fermanagh Ruined castles in Northern Ireland Enniskillen Northern Ireland Environment Agency properties {{NorthernIreland-castle-stub

Features

History

See also

References

External links