{"id":49,"date":"2014-03-03T12:01:58","date_gmt":"2014-03-03T12:01:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/yvonneseale.org\/uncategorized\/coolbanagher-castle\/"},"modified":"2015-08-19T14:37:11","modified_gmt":"2015-08-19T14:37:11","slug":"coolbanagher-castle","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/yvonneseale.org\/blog\/2014\/03\/03\/coolbanagher-castle\/","title":{"rendered":"Coolbanagher Castle"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>We&#8217;re only a couple of months into 2014 and it&#8217;s already been a tough year for archaeological sites in Ireland. First we had the loss of most of D\u00fanbeg, a cliff-top Iron Age fort in Co. Kerry [<em><a href=\"http:\/\/www.irishtimes.com\/news\/environment\/part-of-iron-age-fort-at-d%C3%BAnbeg-in-dingle-falls-into-sea-1.1673526#.Uuptq2aUxnc.twitter\" target=\"_self\">Irish Times<\/a><\/em>, <em><a href=\"http:\/\/www.independent.ie\/regionals\/kerryman\/news\/sea-claims-part-of-2000-year-old-west-kerry-monument-29981611.html\" target=\"_self\">Irish Independent<\/a><\/em>], and now an eight-hundred-year-old Anglo-Norman castle in Laois has been demolished. I grew up only a couple of miles away from Coolbanagher Castle, and wrote my undergraduate thesis on nearby Dunamase Castle\u2014Coolbanagher and Dunamase were likely part of the one network of defensive fortifications\u2014so this is doubly shocking and disheartening to me.<\/p>\n<p>As you can see from the picture above (photo from National Monuments Service), Coolbanagher was in a ruinous condition and had been for some time\u2014the eighteenth century seems to have been the last phase of its inhabitation per the archaeological evidence. The most recent bout of severe weather brought down part of the castle&#8217;s south wall. News reports are still a little unclear as to what happened\u2014according to <a href=\"http:\/\/www.independent.ie\/irish-news\/castle-that-stood-for-800-years-brought-down-by-violent-storms-30051932.html\" target=\"_self\">a report in the <em>Irish Independent<\/em><\/a>, the structure was demolished following an order from Laois County Council; however, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/permalink.php?story_fbid=737622572922786&amp;id=563478597003852&amp;stream_ref=10\" target=\"_self\">National Monuments Service has issued a statement<\/a> saying that they only &#8220;granted consent for the removal of such parts of the structure as was identified as being strictly necessary to comply with specific directions from Laois County Council under dangerous buildings legislation or by a qualified engineer as being immediately and urgently necessary on the grounds of protecting public safety.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Right now, I cannot understand how reducing the entire structure to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/laois.archaeology\/media_set?set=a.508391285936021.1073741856.100002954623255&amp;type=1\" target=\"_self\">a mound of rubble<\/a> in a matter of days was necessary to protect public safety.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/mapsengine.google.com\/map\/u\/0\/embed?mid=zCx0QWxBjGhk.k1hGH1uqTT3I\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">I&#8217;ve seen some comments on line saying that Coolbanagher was simply a rather run-of-the-mill late medieval tower house and as such is no great loss. This seems to me quite wrong-headed. Even if we disregard the fact that Coolbanagher was likely an early example of an Anglo-Irish stone castle, if we preserve only the extraordinary, the exceptional, the monumental, we end up losing much of our heritage and are left with a skewed historical narrative which concentrates on the elite.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">There&#8217;s also the fact that no archaeological site exists in isolation. As you can see from the map above, Coolbanagher Castle (marked in orange) was located just to the east of Shaen Castle (blue) and not far to the northwest of the great stronghold of Dunamase (pink). Coolbanagher existed in, and can only be properly understood in, relation to these and other defensive sites in Laois. Each time we lose a piece of the jigsaw puzzle, however small, we reduce our potential for understanding the medieval history of our county.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">The collapse of D\u00fanbeag may have been unavoidable. The destruction of Coolbanagher Castle should not have been.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/yvonneseale.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/6a013486c64e2e970c01a3fccb333c970b.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-292 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/yvonneseale.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/6a013486c64e2e970c01a3fccb333c970b.png\" alt=\"6a013486c64e2e970c01a3fccb333c970b\" width=\"445\" height=\"510\" srcset=\"https:\/\/yvonneseale.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/6a013486c64e2e970c01a3fccb333c970b.png 445w, https:\/\/yvonneseale.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/6a013486c64e2e970c01a3fccb333c970b-262x300.png 262w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 445px) 100vw, 445px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em><span style=\"font-size: 10pt;\">Mid-17th century map of area, taken from the <a href=\"http:\/\/downsurvey.tcd.ie\/down-survey-maps.php#bm=Maryborough&amp;c=Laois+%28Queens%29&amp;indexOfObjectValue=-1&amp;indexOfObjectValueSubstring=-1\" target=\"_self\">Down Survey of Ireland<\/a>. Dunamase is at the top of the image; Coolbanagher and Shaen are shown at the bottom.<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><strong><span style=\"font-size: 10pt;\">Further Reading<br \/>\n<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-size: 10pt;\">Chapple, Robert M. &#8220;Demolition of 13th\/14th century Castle | Coolbanagher, Co. Laois.&#8221; February 28, 2014. [<a href=\"http:\/\/rmchapple.blogspot.co.uk\/2014\/02\/demolition-of-13th14th-castle.html\" target=\"_self\">Link<\/a>]<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-size: 10pt;\">Fitzgerald, Lord W.\u00a0 &#8220;The history and antiquities of the Queen&#8217;s county barony of Portnahinch&#8221; in <em>The Journal of the Kildare Archaeological Society<\/em> 4 (1904): 184-204, 285-311, 325-51.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-size: 10pt;\">LA 008-015 (Archaeological Survey of Ireland, Record Details). Revised by Caimin O\u2019Brien. Posted February 26, 2014.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-size: 10pt;\">The Standing Stone. &#8220;Coolbanagher, Hall\/Tower House (demolished), Co. Laois.&#8221; March 1, 2014. [<a href=\"http:\/\/www.thestandingstone.ie\/2014\/03\/coolbanagher-halltower-house-demolished.html\" target=\"_self\">Link<\/a>]<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-size: 10pt;\">Sweetman, P. David, Olive Alcock and Bernie Moran,\u00a0<em>Archaeological inventory of County Laois\u00a0<\/em>(1995). <\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>We&#8217;re only a couple of months into 2014 and it&#8217;s already been a tough year for archaeological sites in Ireland. First we had the loss &hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":291,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[18,12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-49","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-archaeology","category-medieval-ireland"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":82,"url":"https:\/\/yvonneseale.org\/blog\/2011\/08\/12\/local-history\/","url_meta":{"origin":49,"position":0},"title":"Local History","author":"Yvonne Seale","date":"August 12, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"I've long been aware that my family's homeplace in Ireland is situated in the midst of a rich archaeological landscape\u2014our fields lie on top of Celtic field systems; half a mile's walk down the lane is enough to bring you to the site of an early Christian monastery. The discovery\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Archaeology&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Archaeology","link":"https:\/\/yvonneseale.org\/blog\/category\/archaeology\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/yvonneseale.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/08\/6a013486c64e2e970c0154347733bf970c.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/yvonneseale.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/08\/6a013486c64e2e970c0154347733bf970c.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/yvonneseale.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/08\/6a013486c64e2e970c0154347733bf970c.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":574,"url":"https:\/\/yvonneseale.org\/blog\/2016\/01\/28\/helenmayburyroe\/","url_meta":{"origin":49,"position":1},"title":"Helen Maybury Roe\u2014A Pioneering Historian of Medieval Ireland","author":"admin","date":"January 28, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"I can claim a certain kinship with Helen Maybury Roe: not only was she a medieval historian, as I am, but she was also from my home county of Laois in the Irish Midlands. Though never formally trained as a historian, Roe was a key figure in developing interest in\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Medieval Ireland&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Medieval Ireland","link":"https:\/\/yvonneseale.org\/blog\/category\/medieval-ireland\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/yvonneseale.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Screen-Shot-2015-12-09-at-20.56.56.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/yvonneseale.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Screen-Shot-2015-12-09-at-20.56.56.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/yvonneseale.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Screen-Shot-2015-12-09-at-20.56.56.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/yvonneseale.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Screen-Shot-2015-12-09-at-20.56.56.png?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/yvonneseale.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Screen-Shot-2015-12-09-at-20.56.56.png?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":76,"url":"https:\/\/yvonneseale.org\/blog\/2012\/05\/20\/fmia2012\/","url_meta":{"origin":49,"position":2},"title":"Friends of Medieval Dublin Symposium, 2012","author":"Yvonne Seale","date":"May 20, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Yesterday I attended the 14th Medieval Dublin Symposium\u2014the first one I've been able to attend in a while, and indeed the first time I've set foot on Trinity's campus in a little over two years, thanks to last summer's trip to Africa. I think that's the longest I've gone without\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Conferences &amp; Lectures&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Conferences &amp; Lectures","link":"https:\/\/yvonneseale.org\/blog\/category\/conferences-lectures\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/yvonneseale.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/05\/6a013486c64e2e970c0168eb9eb74a970c-e1690983908345.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":3349,"url":"https:\/\/yvonneseale.org\/blog\/2024\/05\/04\/medieval-portlaoise\/","url_meta":{"origin":49,"position":3},"title":"When Medieval May Be More Modern Than Tudor","author":"admin","date":"May 4, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Many migrants know the experience of returning to your homeplace after months or years away and being struck by some change, large or small, that's long since been absorbed by everyone around you. An empty shopfront now houses a coffeeshop; new homes are being built where there were once green\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Medieval Ireland&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Medieval Ireland","link":"https:\/\/yvonneseale.org\/blog\/category\/medieval-ireland\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/yvonneseale.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/156830727_2801044123545298_3092479779192679986_n.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/yvonneseale.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/156830727_2801044123545298_3092479779192679986_n.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/yvonneseale.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/156830727_2801044123545298_3092479779192679986_n.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/yvonneseale.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/156830727_2801044123545298_3092479779192679986_n.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/yvonneseale.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/156830727_2801044123545298_3092479779192679986_n.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/yvonneseale.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/156830727_2801044123545298_3092479779192679986_n.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":2870,"url":"https:\/\/yvonneseale.org\/blog\/2021\/07\/02\/talk-brides-of-christ-conference\/","url_meta":{"origin":49,"position":4},"title":"Talk: Brides of Christ Conference","author":"admin","date":"July 2, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"On July 3, I will be speaking at the \"Brides of Christ: Women and Monasticism in Medieval and Early Modern Ireland\" conference. This, the fifth in the Glenstal History Conferences, will focus on the history, archaeology, and theology of women's monasticism in Ireland from its earliest years right the way\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Conferences &amp; Lectures&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Conferences &amp; Lectures","link":"https:\/\/yvonneseale.org\/blog\/category\/conferences-lectures\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/yvonneseale.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/E2zU7_sWEAMUkvj.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/yvonneseale.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/E2zU7_sWEAMUkvj.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/yvonneseale.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/E2zU7_sWEAMUkvj.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/yvonneseale.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/E2zU7_sWEAMUkvj.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/yvonneseale.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/E2zU7_sWEAMUkvj.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/yvonneseale.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/E2zU7_sWEAMUkvj.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":178,"url":"https:\/\/yvonneseale.org\/blog\/2015\/05\/18\/kalamazoo-2015\/","url_meta":{"origin":49,"position":5},"title":"Kalamazoo 2015","author":"Yvonne Seale","date":"May 18, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"I think we need to coin a term for the specific kind of exhaustion that hits the day after the IMC. Thursday Session 8: Transforming Women: Gender and the Creation of the Early Franciscan Tradition \"Lady Jacopa and Franciscan Mysticism: Completing the Image of Francis as an Alter Christus\" Darleen\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Conferences &amp; Lectures&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Conferences &amp; Lectures","link":"https:\/\/yvonneseale.org\/blog\/category\/conferences-lectures\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"6a013486c64e2e970c01bb082ebe6e970d","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/yvonneseale.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/6a013486c64e2e970c01bb082ebe6e970d.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/yvonneseale.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/6a013486c64e2e970c01a73d866431970d-e1690962414507.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/yvonneseale.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/yvonneseale.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/yvonneseale.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yvonneseale.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yvonneseale.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=49"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/yvonneseale.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yvonneseale.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/291"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/yvonneseale.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=49"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yvonneseale.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=49"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yvonneseale.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=49"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}