Dromaneen Fortified House
OS 32: 11: 2; OD 210-270ft. North county
Cork.
Dromaneen a fortified house and bawn complex build on a limestone cliff overlooking the river Blackwater;
the river is located to the north. The complex is situated within a trapezoidal bawn (c.180m southwest-northeast
and c.200m southeast-northeast) on sloping ground to the south of the complex. This complex consists of a rectangular
house (STRUCTURE 1), with an addition built against the west end of its south wall (STRUCTURE 2), and another rectangular
building (STRUCTURE 3) c. 15m to the east of this addition. All the buildings are linked by a series of low enclosing
walls. There is an entrance gateway to the east of structure three. Structure 1: The main block (20m east-west and 10m north-south)
is a three storey house with an attic and gables crowned by rectangular chimney stacks. The entrance was through a ground,
first and second floor doors positioned in the south wall. The upper door was accessed by a wooden stairs. A few fragments
of door jamb survive. Within the main block there is a rubble stone masonry partition and a semi-basement. The house is divided
to first floor by this wall into a main chamber (12m east-west and 8m north-south) to the west and smaller chamber (7m north-south
and 4m east-west) to the east. The latter has the basement which is entered down steps from the main ground floor entrance.
The north wall, which over looks the river, has symmetrical fenestrations and three large windows on each floor. The windows
on the north wall have three or four light divisions separated by mullions. Defence is also provided for with many gun loops;
the windows at the west end of the main block are in projecting bay, with inverted-keyhole-shaped gun loop on either side
of the bay at ground floor level. The west gable has two windows located on each floor, and an attic fireplace. The east gable
has a fireplace and windows on each floor level. There is a large ornamented fireplace on the south wall. The house had wooden
floors throughout, indicated by joist sockets, corbels and scarcements between levels. Atop the north wall are four evenly
spaced box machicolations; there is also a box machicolation at the east end of the south wall. There is a string course on
the north and south wall incorporating hood mouldings over second floor windows and over a door. Structure 2: This is a rectangular
extension (13m north-south and 7m east-west); it is attached to the west end of the south wall of structure #. This structure
is a two storeys building with an attic space. There is a fireplace with a bread oven on the ground floor located on the west
wall. There are single-light windows on the north end of this wall; one with a three-centred arch and also found here a two
light window. The south gable has windows at each floor level. On the south-west corner of structure 2 is a square flanking
tower (4.5m north-south and 5m east-west). This tower has a separate entrance at ground floor level there are a number of
small rectangular gun loop in the east, south and west walls and the upper floors lit by single-light windows. Structure 3:
This building is a rectangular gable-ended structure (19m northeast-southwest and 7m southeast-northwest). It is a two storeys
building with attic and extends southwest from a limestone edge. It contains a rebuilt ground floor doorway in the northwest
wall and a blocked doorway in the southeast with a box machicolation overhead. There are three poorly preserved ground floor
openings in the southeast wall – two may have been windows, one was a door as it has a surviving drawbar socket. There
is a window with a wooden lintel preserved in the northwest wall and rubble filled blocked doors to the north, one with a
surviving wooden lintel. There is a fireplace in the northwest wall. A wall connected structure 2 and 3, creating an inner
courtyard. Access to this enclosure was through a wide doorway in this southern wall. This door had a highly decorated surround.
The cliff top wall continued on to the remains of gateway passage which probably gave entry into an outer courtyard within
the bawn wall. Bawn
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;-)
