Woodstock Castle as reported in the Dublin Penny Journal / Ben Taaffe

The Dublin Penny Journal was founded in 1831 by Caesar Otway who was later joined by George Petrie and John O’Donovan. In its early life the Journal published original articles of Irish interest which were regarded as being of a high scholarly standard. In 1833 the Journal was taken over by a new owner. Barbara Hayley, in her essay ‘On periodicals as the voice of 19th century Ireland’ in her jointly edited book 300 Years of Irish Periodicals, accused the new owner of having turned the Journal into “a cheap and snippety ragbag of extracts.” She may have a point, but to a reader hunting for local history The Dublin Penny Journal can yield fine historical nuggets. In its issue of 14th March 1835 it gave an account of Woodstock Castle, Athy from which the following is taken: “From its vicinity Woodstock Castle has partaken of nearly all the changes that befell Athy. Standing on the Western bank of the River Barrow it was designed to command the principle ford on this part of the river in conjunction with White’s Castle situated on the opposite bank – the ford lying between… Tradition assigns the building of the Castle to the year 1290 and that a descendant of the Earl of Pembroke was its first master. Antiquaries with more reason are inclined to attribute the castle’s construction to Thomas Fitzgerald, Lord of Offaly and afterwards seventh Earl of Kildare who, on marrying Dorothea, the daughter of Anthony O’Moore of Leix, received in dower the manors of Woodstock and Rheban. The plan of the building was originally a regular square, in after times an addition was made to it of a square tower joining the south side and built in uniformity with the front facing the river. The walls are of great thickness…. The mullioned windows are much admired and were elegantly executed… A fine arched gateway and part of the outer court-wall yet remain… The ford which the castle commanded and from which Athy derives its name was called Athelehac or anciently Athlegar, the ford towards the west; also Ath-trodan or the Cattle Ford. It was here the great battle was fought in the third century between the people of Munster and those of Leix under Laviseagh Cean Mordha. In 1642 the Marquis of Ormond took Woodstock from the rebels and subsequently in 1647 Owen Roe O’Neill surprised it and put the garrison to the sword. His victory however was of short duration for Lord Inchiquin compelled him in a little time after to surrender it and Athy. The lordship of Woodstock and Castlemitchell was set by the Earl of Kildare to Daniel Hutchinson, alderman, for 99 years from May the 1st 1657 at 100 guineas the first 41 years yearly, and 200 guineas a year during the remainder of the lease, with six fat wethers or £3.” In the cavalier manner of The Dublin Penny Journal, I’ll now move from six fat castrated rams – those curious wethers – to another unrelated snippet. Confined to our 5k limit for the past few months, many of us have discovered laneways and byways in our town that we never much noticed before. But one young member of my family has been discovering Athy for the first time. Early in 2020 we welcomed a new grandson, and like most grandparents last year, we visited the new family member more often on screen than in person. When the first lockdown arrived last March he was an eight-week old Dubliner; by the time he could visit Athy again it was already high summer. This year began differently. The small fellow was here on a short Christmas break when the latest lockdown closed his creche, and so he stayed on a little longer. And longer, and longer. The toddler is now an expert on the People’s Park and the loveliest stretches of the River Barrow. This week we’ll finally have to say goodbye to the smallest Taaffe as he and his parents move home to Munster and to his re-opened creche. The Eye on the Past might be written a little quicker without the childminding duties, but like so many families, we’ll be looking forward to a summer reunion. There is a real danger the smallest Taaffe may turn out a Corkman one day, but it’s a lucky Corkman who took his first steps in Athy.

Woodstock Castle, Sean Cunnane, Frank English

The National Monuments Committee of Kildare County Council made a journey to Athy last week during which the Committee members and Council officials visited Woodstock Castle.  The ancient stones of this neglected building have withstood wind, storm and rain for more than 600 years and during the first 200 years of its life, even more destructive elements such as arrow, lead shot and cannonball.

I was put in mind of how the stout walls of Woodstock Castle have resisted the depredations of man and beast and the unwelcoming elements as I stood outside its protective shuttering explaining its importance in terms of local, regional and national history.

     

To the disinterested passer by Woodstock Castle may seem to be an uninteresting pile, but hidden within its thick walls are stories of intrigue and rebellion.  It was here that the disaffected native Irish sought to inflict punishment on the Anglo Norman settlers for their audacity in taking over land which had been theirs.  It was there that the followers of Silken Thomas plotted and planned what would turn out to be an unsuccessful rebellion, while a century later Owen Roe O’Neill, the Confederate leader, had used Woodstock as his base after seizing the town of Athy. 

The importance of Woodstock Castle in the history of Athy and South Kildare has not yet been fully assessed, but clearly the Anglo Norman Castle contains within its scarred walls stories and legends of the early years of the village of Athy which once boasted a monastery and a priory and survived constant attacks from the disaffected natives of the surrounding countryside.  It’s a story which must await another day.

Last week two men with whom I have shared many experiences over the years began to wind down their last weeks as public representatives for the modern town which grew out of the building of Woodstock Castle on the western bank of the River Barrow.  Sean Cunnane, a Mayo man, who in the early 1960s settled in Athy, a National School teacher by profession and my next door neighbour, has been a Town Councillor for 15 years.  Party political labels are unnecessary at Town Council level where a shared interest in the common good of the local community is the basis for any desire to be elected as a public representative.  Sean has been a fine public representative for his adopted town, bringing to his representative role experience, common sense and above all a grasp of the importance of community action in addressing the shortcomings in our present local government system.  I wish him well in his retirement from the Town Council.

The second retiree is a man with whom I have been honoured to have shared a friendship since long before he became a member of the Town Council.  Frank English is not a ‘blow in’ like Sean Cunnane  or myself.  He is a true Athyenian whose family connections go back generations and given his surname his forebearers may well have been a party to the original settlers who sailed up the Barrow over 800 years ago. 

Frank first stood for election for what was then the Athy Urban District Council in 1967.  I well remember that election for as a newly appointed Town Clerk for Kells in County Meath with just 4 weeks experience of the job I was responsible for the elections in that Meath town and the subsequent election count.  It was a daunting task for one so young and inexperienced, but perhaps not so daunting as the role which faced Frank English in his home town as he put his name before the electorate for the first time.  In 1967 he shared an election platform with the likes of Michael G. Nolan, Paddy Dooley, Jack McKenna, Tom Carbery and Michael Cunningham, all of whom were experienced local politicians of many years standing.  The election held in June resulted in the election of Jack McKenna, Joe Deegan, Jim McEvoy, M.G. Nolan, Frank English, Tom Carbery, Enda Kinsella, Mick Rowan and Paddy Dooley.  Since then Frank has contested 7 further elections, each time retaining the confidence of the local people who have returned him as a Councillor for a record 42 years.

His length of service in Athy Town Council is unique in these modern times.  However, in the 19^th century during the days of Athy Town Commissioners an even longer period of municipal service was commenced by Thomas Plewman who was first elected to the Town Commissioners in 1866.  He replaced his father, also named Thomas, who had been elected to the newly formed Town Commissioners in 1847 as the Great Famine was still at its height.  Thomas Plewman, the son, first elected in 1866, was continuously re-elected to the Town Commissioners and from 1900 to the Urban District Council until he retired on 3^rd May 1920.  He had contested his last election on 15^th January of that year, only to retire months later when the Urban District Council decided to change the times of Council meetings previously held during the day to 7 o’clock in the evening.  So ended 54 years of public service by Thomas Plewman and 73 years continuous service by Thomas and his father. 

Frank English’s service of 42 years in more modern times is unlikely to be equalled in the South Kildare town, but the unique record of the Plewman family might be challenged as Frank passes to his son Conor the challenge of representing the people of Athy following this weeks local elections. 

Athy’s streetscape, festooned with election posters, is a far cry from the election experience of 1967 when Frank English first canvassed for votes.  The printing presses of today are busy as each candidate seeks the advantage of every available pillar, post and pole to display carefully posed photographs.  Modern elections almost have the appearance of a beauty contest rather than as one might expect in local elections a contest based on local issues and personalities.  Even worse perhaps is the unremitting and farfetched pronouncements of candidates on national issues as if election to the Town Council gives them a say in how those issues are to be decided. 

The role of the Town Councillor is one which was readily understood and well practiced by Sean Cunnane and Frank English.  If only all of those elected shared that understanding minds could be concentrated on helping to resolve the issues affecting Athy’s social, commercial and industrial progress. 

Sean Cunnane and Frank English, to paraphrase the words of a former Taoiseach, ‘have done this town some service.’

Woodstock Castle and its stone carvings

A recent article in the Irish Times dealt with the history of the bagpipes and their usage and popularity in Ireland from the early medieval period to the present time. In the course of this reference was made to a carving of a man garbed in medieval dress playing the bagpipes. The columnist mistakenly described it as being in wood and from “Woodstock Castle, Co. Kilkenny”. The sculpture is however in stone and once formed part of the elaborate chimney piece which adorned the fireplace of the great hall on the first floor of Woodstock Castle, in this town, in the sixteenth century. Today all that remains of the fireplace in the castle is one or two simple, undecorated fragmentary remains high up in the internal wall face of the now roofless castle. Although the fireplace has long since disappeared, we can get some idea of its splendour as it originally appeared. Lord Walter Fitzgerald the renowned antiquarian and founder member of the Kildare Archaeological Society recorded these stones. One fragment would have formed the centre of the mantel consisting of a pair of opposed lions figures holding the Fitzgerald coat of arms while a similar piece has a pair of opposing angel-like figures either side of the Fitzgerald arms. It is likely that the carvings date to the late fifteenth/early sixteenth century. Of particular interest is the absence of the monkey traditionally found on the crest of the Fitzgerald family which is evident on another carved stone from Woodstock Castle which now rests in the south wall of Whites Castle. These various carvings were first recorded by an anonymous writer at the turn of the nineteenth century who noted that angel-like figures and the lions formed compartments of the cornice of the chimney piece. After this authors visit the carvings were removed to the Earl of Kildare’s residence at Carton.

The castle, like many in the Irish countryside, is remarkably absent from the historical record for large parts of its history, but considerable information may be garnered from the architecture of the castle and most particularly from its carved and decorated fragments. The Fitzgeralds occupied many castles in Kildare with their principal seat at Maynooth but the delicacy of the carved ornamentation from Woodstock Castle with its bold display of the family coat of arms is sufficient proof of the importance of the castle in Athy.

Castles by their very nature were dark and gloomy places which afforded title light or warmth to their residents and while the thick walls might provide a cool refuge from the heat of the summer sun, they were in the depths of winter often oppressively cold and damp dwellings.

The inhabitants might seek to alleviate such cold and discomfort by a variety of methods, principally thick and voluminous layers of clothing which found suitable accompaniment in large open fires. The fireplace, particularly in the throws of winter, formed a natural focal point in the principal rooms for the castle dwellers. It was thus not unnatural that considerable care and effort would be expended in the design and execution of such a feature. Naturally the visitor to the castle on entering the ‘great hall’ would immediately be drawn to the fire by his host and thus the visitors eye might fall upon the intricacies and subtleties of a large and well-decorated chimney piece. The style and nature of the carvings would indicate that they were executed in the period of the castles history when it was undergoing substantial alterations to its structure and form. In a sense the insertion of the large well-decorated chimney pieces might well be said to mark the evolution of the castle from a simple castle structure to the prototype of the later country house of the gentry. The small and narrow windows which since the 13th century had served to ventilate and light the castle were replaced by large gracious mullioned windows with sleek hood mouldings lighting the great hall on the first floor to an extent never possible before. Within these windows would have been set large window seats adding to the comfort of this the principal room of the castle. Woodstock of the many Fitzgerald castles was not alone in experiencing such additions. Maynooth Castle underwent substantial alterations in the sixteenth century, similar to those at Woodstock. These served to increase the comfort afforded by these buildings while at the same time reducing their defensive abilities by creating much large openings in the external walls. At Woodstock one concession to security was made by the addition of a defensive tower on the south face with narrow windows and gunports.

The only reference to building or repairs at the castle dates to 1536 when remedial work to the structure was necessitated by damage caused to doors, windows and battlements. A lease of the castle in 1560 stipulated that new lofts be constructed which may not have been done as another lease of the castle was granted to William Sheregolde in 1569. It is likely that all the finely carved stones from Woodstock Castle relate to the earlier residence of the Fitzgerald family and it is appropriate that these very same carvings were rescued from the ruins of Woodstock Castle by a member of the family that originally commissioned some unknown mason to create them many centuries ago. The stones to this day remain at Kilkea Castle, another ancestral home of the Fitzgerald family although the carving of the piper is now lost.

Woodstock Castle

Last week the South Kildare Branch of An Taisce hosted a talk in the Town Hall dealing with Woodstock Castle. Concern has been expressed at the present state of disrepair of this important building which has stood on the site for over 700 years. The recent granting of heritage status to Athy was in part a recognition of the building heritage of the town. If we wish to maintain Athy's claim to that heritage status then we must show a willingness to save and protect those local buildings which are an important part of our heritage. Chief amongst those must be Woodstock Castle which stands some distance from the centre of the town. It was built in the 13th century by the St. Michael family of Rheban following the allocation to them of lands in the area by Strongbow. Following such land division it was customary to construct a fortified building at a place of strategic importance and so it was that Woodstock Castle was built on the western side of the Ford of Ae, a river crossing on the Barrow.
The first castle built on the site was probably of wood which was replaced in time by the stone building which still stands as a lonely sentinel guarding the west bank of the River Barrow. More properly referred to as a Hall Keep it was the Manor Castle of Woodstock and figured large in the developing history of Athy, especially in the medieval years. It was to Woodstock Castle that the Friars of the Holy Cross came in the early years of the 13th century to establish their monastery. The area in which that monastery was located was known as St. John's, a name still retained for the laneway which runs parallel to Duke Street. The future town, then a mere village, was taking shape on the west bank of the River and in 1253 the Dominican Order founded a second monastery in the area, now known as The Abbey at the rear of Emily Square.

The village of Athy was home to French speaking Anglo Normans and understandably the native Irish, who lived in the wooded regions of the area now known as Laois and beyond, soon vented their displeasure by attacking the village. On at least four occasions during the 13th century the village of Athy, including Woodstock Castle and the monasteries, was attacked and badly damaged by the warring Irish.

The settlers were a resilient lot and on each occasions rebuilt their settlement. At this time another settlement was to be found near Rheban Castle which was also built by the St. Michael family again near a river crossing. Nothing now remains of that settlement other than the remains of Rheban Castle itself. The survival of the Athy settlement while neighbouring settlements were disappearing might have been due to nothing more than mere chance. Rheban, like Athy, was attacked on many occasions but unlike its neighbour Rheban was soon deserted and reverted to its original rural status as did the nearby medieval village of Ardscull. Another village settlement to disappear was Ardreigh on the Carlow side of Woodstock Castle.

It was Sir John Talbot, Viceroy of Ireland, recognising the strategic importance of Athy on the Marches of Kildare who built a bridge across the Barrow and a Fortress to protect it. In time Whites Castle became the focus of future development on the east bank of the river. The earlier village settlement on the west bank may have been abandoned at this stage given the difficulties of protecting it from the Irish. Whites Castle, then garrisoned and protecting the only bridge across the river afforded greater protection for the settlers who lived and worked in the village on the east bank. Woodstock Castle which was still occupied and remained so up to the 17th century was left virtually isolated. Nevertheless it continued to present itself as a formidable fortress while it was occupied.

As originally constructed Woodstock Castle was a rectangular keep which in architectural terms might be more correctly described as a "Hall Keep". It is a classical example of an Anglo Norman construction of the early 13th century and similar if larger examples can be found at Grennan, Co. Kilkenny and Greencastle, Co. Down. Woodstock has been subject to alterations especially in the 16th century. A tower at the southeast angle of the original Keep was added then as an additional defensive feature. On the west face of the tower at first and second storey level are a pair of circular gunports set within rectangular openings. This form of gunport first appeared in England in the 1520's. The gunports which are now blocked up served to defend the Castle on the only side which did not have an enclosing wall. They were used in connection with floor cannons and above each gunport are to be seen viewing slits to enable the gunner to look out while firing the cannon. These features are of national importance, being very fine examples of 16th century gunports, very few of which are to be found in Irish castles.

Other alterations made in the Castle in the 16th century including the raising of the walls to provide another storey and the insertion of large windows in the west, east and south walls. All these windows have hood mouldings with the finest example to be found at the northeast corner of the east wall. These features probably coincided with the leasing of the Castle to William Sheregolde in 1560 under a Lease which provided for improvements to be carried out by the Lessee.

Woodstock Castle has survived for over 700 years but it now needs urgent repair work to protect some of its more important features. It would be shameful if we were to allow the first building erected on the future town of Athy to be lost to future generations. It is a priceless if somewhat sadly neglected building which could and should be restored to enhance Athy's claim as a heritage town. Athy Urban District Council are the owners of Woodstock Castle and now that the area around the Castle is being landscaped perhaps it is now an opportune time to look at the possibility of saving this 13th century building.