Clough Castle - Caisleán an Chloch

Clough Castle (Irish: Caisleán an Chloch) is located in Clough, County Down, north of Ireland (Irish: Irish: an Chloch, Contae an Dúin, Tuaisceart Éireann). The 25 ft high motte and bailey Anglo-Norman earthwork castle is thought to have been built at around 1200 AD.  It has a mount (motte), stone tower and outer enclosure (bailey) with views that give it a commanding defensive position. It is situated near the junction of the A25 and A24 roads in Clough and access is always open to the public.

Excavations in the 1950s uncovered evidence of a wooden palisade surrounding the summit. Also discovered were stone foundations of long rectangular hall in the northeast of the area, which have been dated to the mid 13th century. A small rectangular stone keep was added in the 13th century in the SW area. The stone keep was restored and enlarged as a tower-house in the late 15th early 16th century. The tower is off centre on the top of the motte because a section of part of the top was taken up with a large hall to its north-east. This hall was subsequently destroyed by fire.

Link: DiscoverNorthernIreland - Clough Castle.

Image: Clough Castle, Main Street, Clough, County Down, Northern Ireland, October 2009 courtesy Commons Wikipedia with attributed author Ardfern