Slade Castle

Slade Castle
Native name Irish: Caisleán an tSlaoid
Type	tower house
Location	Slade, Hook Peninsula, County Wexford, Ireland
Coordinates	52°08′02″N6°54′39″W / 52.13387°N 6.91071°W / 52.13387; -6.91071 Coordinates: 52°08′02″N6°54′39″W / 52.13387°N 6.91071°W / 52.13387; -6.91071
Area	Hook Peninsula
Height	17 m (56 ft)
Built	early 16th century
Owner	State
Location of Slade Castle in Ireland
National Monument of Ireland
Official name	Slade Castle
Reference no.	429 [1]

Slade Castle is a tower house and National Monument in County Wexford, Ireland. ^{[2] [3]} It is located in the village of Slade on the Hook Peninsula and primarily dates to the late 15th or early 16th century. ^[4]

Location

Slade Castle is located in the village of Slade, near the tip of the Hook Peninsula, 1.7 km (1.1 mi) northeast of Hook Head Lighthouse. ^[5]

History

The original fort was built by the Laffin (Laffan) family in the late 15th century. The fortified two-storied hall was added in the 16th century also adding crenellations. The Laffin estate was quite small, 86 ha (210 acres). This suggests that other sources of revenue, such as fishing or trade, must have funded the castle.

The Laffins lost Slade after the 1641 Rebellion. It was used for storage by the salt works until the 19th century, when that the castle was converted into tenement housing. When the castle was taken over by the Office of Public Works in the 1940s, the castle was restored to its previous condition. ^{[6] [7]}

Building

Another view of the castle, with many arrowslits.

The earliest part of the castle is the four-storey tower. ^[4] The ground and third floors have vaulted ceilings, with Irish crenelations on the parapet, from which there are views of Bannow Bay and Waterford Harbour, important for defence. The entrance doorway is protected by a machicolation and murder-hole. A fireplace and garderobe survive on the second level. The three ground-floor rooms cannot be entered from the living quarters above and may have been used as warehouses.^{[ citation needed ]}

The hall is two storeys tall, and its entrance is protected by a murder-hole. There is a large fireplace at the west end and an oubliette in the south wall. A mural staircase leads to the upper floor. ^{[8] [9]}

References

1. "National Monuments of County Wexford in State Care" (PDF). archaeology.ie. National Monument Service. p. 2. Retrieved 23 November 2022.
2. "Irish Castles - Slade Castle". britainirelandcastles.com.
3. Grose, Francis; Ledwich, Edward (1 January 1791). "The Antiquities of Ireland". Printed for S. Hooper – via Google Books.
4. Leask, H. G. (1951). "Slade Castle, Co. Wexford". Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland. Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland. 81 (2): 198–201. JSTOR   25510789. While the tower [..] may be of XVth century date the house [..] can be ascribed to the first half of the XVIth century
5. Colfer, Billy (1 January 2004). The Hook Peninsula: County Wexford. Cork University Press. ISBN   9781859183786 – via Google Books.
6. "Slade Castle, Slade. co. Wexford. c.1470". curiousireland.ie. 24 May 2014.
7. "Slade castle, Co. Wexford - Irish Archaeology". irisharchaeology.ie. 21 February 2013.
8. "Slade Castle Co Wexford". irelandinruins.blogspot.ie. 17 October 2013.^{[ better source needed ]}
9. "Slade Castle, County Wexford". irelandseye.com.