King John's Castle, also known as Carlingford Castle, is an

enclosure castle An enclosure castle is a fortified residence or stronghold, in which defence is facilitated by walls and towers. Such fortifications were usually composed of wood or stone, but there are later examples built of brick. Features In enclosure castl ...

and

National Monument A national monument is a monument constructed in order to commemorate something of importance to national heritage, such as a country's founding, independence, war, or the life and death of a historical figure. The term may also refer to a sp ...

located in

Carlingford, County Louth Carlingford (; ) is a coastal town and civil parish in northern County Louth, Ireland. For the purposes of local government, the town is part of the Dundalk Municipal District. It is situated on the southern shore of Carlingford Lough with S ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

Location

King John's Castle is located in Carlingford town's harbour, halfway along the south coast of

Carlingford Lough Carlingford Lough (, Ulster Scots dialects, Ulster Scots: ''Carlinford Loch'') is a glacial fjord or sea inlet in northeastern Ireland, forming part of Republic of Ireland – United Kingdom border, the border between Northern Ireland to the nor ...

History

Carlingford Castle's west wing was built in the late 12th century by

Hugh de Lacy, Lord of Meath Hugh de Lacy, Lord of Meath, 4th Baron Lacy (; before 1135 – 25 July 1186), was an Anglo-Normans, Anglo-Norman landowner and royal office-holder. He had substantial land holdings in Herefordshire and Shropshire. Following his participation in ...

shortly 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 in Ireland over which the monarchs of England then claimed sovereignty. The Anglo-Normans ...

. It acquired the name "King John's Castle" after King John,

Lord of Ireland The Lordship of Ireland (), sometimes referred to retrospectively as Anglo-Norman Ireland, was the part of Ireland ruled by the King of Kingdom of England, England (styled as "Lord of Ireland") and controlled by loyal Normans in Ireland, Anglo ...

, supposedly stayed there for three days in 1210, during his second expedition, when he invaded

Ulster Ulster (; or ; or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional or historic provinces of Ireland, Irish provinces. It is made up of nine Counties of Ireland, counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United Kingdom); t ...

to apprehend

Hugh de Lacy, 1st Earl of Ulster Hugh de Lacy, 1st Earl of Ulster (c. 1176after December 26, 1242) was an Anglo-Norman soldier and peer. He was a leading figure in the Norman invasion of Ireland in the 12th century, and was created Earl of Ulster in 1205 by King John of ...

. Local

myth Myth is a genre of folklore consisting primarily of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society. For scholars, this is very different from the vernacular usage of the term "myth" that refers to a belief that is not true. Instead, the ...

claims that he began to draft

Magna Carta (Medieval Latin for "Great Charter"), sometimes spelled Magna Charta, is a royal charter of rights agreed to by King John of England at Runnymede, near Windsor, on 15 June 1215. First drafted by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Cardin ...

(agreed in 1215) at Carlingford. Other accounts associate its construction with Ralph Pepper in 1204. The east wing of the castle was added c. 1261. In 1326 the castle was committed to Geoffrey le Blound. Edmond Loundres was constable in 1388, Stephen Gernon in 1400.

Henry MacShane O'Neill Henry MacShane O'Neill (; – 1622) was an Irish nobleman and a son of Shane O'Neill. He was the leader of the MacShanes in the late 16th century and early 17th century, and sought control of the O'Neill Clan, fighting with his brother Ar ...

attempted to take the castle in 1596. During the

Irish Confederate Wars The Irish Confederate Wars, took place from 1641 to 1653. It was the Irish theatre of the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, a series of civil wars in Kingdom of Ireland, Ireland, Kingdom of England, England and Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland, all then ...

, the castle was held by the

Irish Catholic Confederation Confederate Ireland, also referred to as the Irish Catholic Confederation, was a period of Irish Catholic self-government between 1642 and 1652, during the Eleven Years' War. Formed by Catholic aristocrats, landed gentry, clergy and military ...

; then was taken by Sir Henry Tichborne, 3rd Baronet (Parliamentarian) in 1642, then by

Murrough O'Brien, 1st Earl of Inchiquin Murrough MacDermod O'Brien, 1st Earl of Inchiquin (September 1614 – 9 September 1673), was an Irish nobleman and soldier, who came from one of the most powerful families in Munster. Known as ''Murchadh na dTóiteán'' ("Murrough the Burner"), ...

in 1649 and

Charles Coote, 1st Earl of Mountrath Charles Coote, 1st Earl of Mountrath ( 1609 – 18 December 1661) was an Anglo-Irish soldier and politician from County Roscommon. A strong advocate of the Protestant Ascendancy in Ireland, he fought for Parliament and the Commonwealth in the 16 ...

in 1650. During the

Williamite War The Williamite War in Ireland took place from March 1689 to October 1691. Fought between Jacobite supporters of James II and those of his successor, William III, it resulted in a Williamite victory. It is generally viewed as a related conflic ...

it was fired on by Jacobites in 1689 and used as a Williamite

hospital A hospital is a healthcare institution providing patient treatment with specialized Medical Science, health science and auxiliary healthcare staff and medical equipment. The best-known type of hospital is the general hospital, which typically ...

Frederick Schomberg, 1st Duke of Schomberg Frederick Herman de Schomberg, 1st Duke of Schomberg (6 December 1615 – 1 July 1690) was a German-born army officer who served as the English Master-General of the Ordnance from 1689 to 1690. Having fought in the French, Portuguese, Dutc ...

prior to the

Battle of the Boyne The Battle of the Boyne ( ) took place in 1690 between the forces of the deposed King James II, and those of King William III who, with his wife Queen Mary II (his cousin and James's daughter), had acceded to the Crowns of England and Sc ...

Description

King John's Castle is a D-shaped

with walls thick. The curtain wall in the west wing had a gate house and a square flanking tower. The curtain wall also contains deep

embrasure An embrasure (or crenel or crenelle; sometimes called gunhole in the domain of Age of Gunpowder, gunpowder-era architecture) is the opening in a battlement between two raised solid portions (merlons). Alternatively, an embrasure can be a sp ...

s with narrow

arrowslit An arrowslit (often also referred to as an arrow loop, loophole or loop hole, and sometimes a balistraria) is a narrow vertical aperture in a fortification through which an archer can launch arrows or a crossbowman can launch Crossbow bolt, bolts ...

s. A large rectangular hall is in the east wing: this hall had two main floors over a basement.

References

{{Authority control Buildings and structures completed in the 12th century National monuments in County Louth Castles in County Louth Norman castles Norman architecture in Ireland Carlingford, County Louth