Hello:
For those who might be interested, I put up a simple line drawing "artistic
reconstruction" of the O'Callaghan Castle at Clonmeen based upon the
published description of its dimensions at
http://www.tc.umn.edu/~call0031/callahancastle.JPG
The drawing is best printed out in "landscape" orientation rather than
upright "portrait" orientation on a printer. The limited verbal description
I was working from was follows:
"The Castle of Clonmeen was built on a lime-stone rock, about a field
distant from the southern bank of the river Blackwater in the townland of
North Clonmeen, a mile and a half east of the present railway station of
Banteer, on the Mallow-Killarney railway. The bawn was nearly a square, each
side being about 275 feet in length, and this was enclosed by a strong
curtain wall, three feet thick, crowning the top of the rock, and in places
rising 20 feet from the ground outside. This wall was guarded at each of its
angles by round towers of 2 (possibly 3) storeys high. The north-western
tower has disappeared, but portions of the other 3 remain. They were 14 feet
in internal diameter, with walls 5 and one half feet thick, and each floor
has loops for hand-guns, not only toward the field but also 2 looking into
the bawn itself. The entrance to each tower was at the inner angle of the
bawn.The keep has wholly disappeared; some of its stones appear to have been
used in building a limekiln of a quarry close by to the east. The remains of
the castle indicate a structure of date 1590-1610, and its builder was,
therefore, probably Connoghor O'Callaghan, the chieftain who got a re-grant
in 1594 of the lands from the crown.He is known as "Connoghor of the Rock";
and may have used an earlier building than the one whose remains now appear.
Possibly the building was added to, and rendered stronger by works erected
by Donogh, husband of Connoghor's grand-daughter, a famous man in
Cromwellian times."
I am guessing at the complexity of the shape of the Keep but there are
other castles in England and France that used a four towered Keep similar to
the one shown. If the bawn had towers, why not also the Keep?
Feel free to use or improve on the drawing. It is kind of a "thought
experiment" since I have not seen anything but photos of the present day
ruins.
Kevin L. Callahan
Minneapolis, MN
call0031(a)umn.edu