# Castlebrack, Co. Laois: townland, land parcels and planning

Townland in the civil parish of Castlebrack, barony of Tinnahinch, Co. Laois; in Irish An Caisleán Breac.

- Area (Tailte Éireann): 662,870 m² (66.29 ha, 163.8 acres)
- Land parcels (Tailte Éireann): 17 registered freehold parcels lie mostly in it, median 8,604 m² (0.86 ha, 2.13 acres)
- Zoning (national zoning, MyPlan): not in a zoned settlement
- Planning (National Planning Applications): 0 applications since 2010
- Civil parish: Castlebrack, https://everytownland.com/laois/parish/castlebrack.md
- Barony: Tinnahinch
- Electoral division: Cappalough, the unit of the census
- Census 2022 (Central Statistics Office): 361 people lived in 116 households in the Cappalough electoral division. 94% of households owned their home. 34% of homes were built since 2001. 10% of dwellings stood vacant on census night, and 1% were holiday homes.
- County: Co. Laois, https://everytownland.com/laois.md
- Placenames Database of Ireland: https://www.logainm.ie/en/28344
- Townland number at Tailte Éireann: 100284
- Centre: latitude 53.195575, longitude -7.395201 (WGS 84)

## Land parcels (registered freehold land, Tailte Éireann)

17 registered freehold parcels lie mostly in Castlebrack, from 53 m² to 213,026 m² (21.3 ha, 52.64 acres); 12 neighbouring parcels touch its boundary. Largest first:

- Parcel 5078030: 213,026 m² (21.3 ha, 52.64 acres), https://everytownland.com/parcel/5078030.md
- Parcel 5076692: 147,098 m² (14.71 ha, 36.35 acres), https://everytownland.com/parcel/5076692.md
- Parcel 249473: 28,950 m² (2.9 ha, 7.15 acres), https://everytownland.com/parcel/249473.md
- Parcel 234906: 28,001 m² (2.8 ha, 6.92 acres), https://everytownland.com/parcel/234906.md
- Parcel 263041: 20,615 m² (2.06 ha, 5.09 acres), https://everytownland.com/parcel/263041.md
- Parcel 255462: 14,617 m² (1.46 ha, 3.61 acres), https://everytownland.com/parcel/255462.md
- Parcel 253474: 13,658 m² (1.37 ha, 3.37 acres), https://everytownland.com/parcel/253474.md
- Parcel 5076668: 8,782 m² (0.88 ha, 2.17 acres), https://everytownland.com/parcel/5076668.md
- Parcel 4327473: 8,604 m² (0.86 ha, 2.13 acres), https://everytownland.com/parcel/4327473.md
- Parcel 5412565: 7,979 m² (0.8 ha, 1.97 acres), https://everytownland.com/parcel/5412565.md
- Parcel 4327843: 3,286 m² (0.33 ha, 0.81 acres), https://everytownland.com/parcel/4327843.md
- Parcel 263924: 2,845 m² (0.28 ha, 0.7 acres), https://everytownland.com/parcel/263924.md
- Parcel 358398: 2,210 m² (0.22 ha, 0.55 acres), https://everytownland.com/parcel/358398.md
- Parcel 357565: 2,066 m² (0.21 ha, 0.51 acres), https://everytownland.com/parcel/357565.md
- Parcel 5412579: 688 m², https://everytownland.com/parcel/5412579.md
- Parcel 235747: 388 m², https://everytownland.com/parcel/235747.md
- Parcel 5412568: 53 m², https://everytownland.com/parcel/5412568.md

## Zoning (national zoning of development plans, MyPlan)

No zone of a development plan covers Castlebrack in the national zoning. Outside zoned towns and villages, the county development plan's rural policies apply to each application.

## Planning applications whose site touches the townland (National Planning Applications, Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage)

No planning application touches the townland of Castlebrack in the national file, which goes back to 2010.

## Designated sites (National Parks and Wildlife Service)

No designated site (Special Area of Conservation, Special Protection Area, Natural Heritage Area or proposed one) touches the townland of Castlebrack.

## Recorded monuments (Sites and Monuments Record, National Monuments Service)

- LA001-004: Graveyard, https://heritagedata.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=0c9eb9575b544081b0d296436d8f60f8&query=18a4b61b268-layer-9%2CSMRS%2CLA001-004----. Square-shaped graveyard (int. dims. 68m N-S; 77m E-W) enclosed by a stone wall with ruins of church (LA001-004003-) in the centre of the graveyard with site of castle (LA001-004001-) 60m to SE. Architectural fragment consisting of a hood moulding terminal of a late medieval window decorated in relief with a vine leaf motif has been inserted into the graveyard wall. Middle spandrel of a tiwn light ogee headed late medieval window with hollowed spandrel and second spandrel decorated with incised stiff leaf pattern has been inserted into S wall of church (LA001-004003-). Compiled by: Caimin O'Brien Date of upload: 17 December 2007
- LA001-004001: Castle - tower house, https://heritagedata.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=0c9eb9575b544081b0d296436d8f60f8&query=18a4b61b268-layer-9%2CSMRS%2CLA001-004001-. Erected by the Dunne family in 1427 (Crossdaile 1959, 13). Situated c. 25m to SSE of Castlebrack church (LA001-004003-) and at a lower level. Consists of a pile of featureless rubble but probably measured 20m E-W. Remains of bawn wall at S with ditch outside it at E and S. Castle appears to have been situated in the centre of a large circular enclosure defined by an earth and stone bank and outer fosse with entrance gap at W. This enclosure or ringwork appears to be the earthen foundations of a bawn wall (LA001-004006-) that enclosed the castle. Situated c. 25m to SSE of Castlebrack church (LA001-004003-) and graveyard (LA001-004-) and at a lower level. Consists of a pile of featureless rubble but probably measured 20m E-W. Remains of bawn wall (LA001-004006-) at S with ditch outside it at E and S. In the O'Doyne Manuscript, it claims that Tadhg Mac Laighnigh Ui Duinn (Dunne) (O'Doyne) in 1475 was the builder of this castle (Nicholls 1983, 116-7.). In 1608 the castle is described as 'a castle , hall, parlour at end of hall, kitchen, brewhouse, Bakehouse and the rest of the houses within the bawn the haggart and bawns on S side of castle, the garden, the orchard, the parke, the stable and houses for cattle on the west side and also the houses and tenements for tenants and other uses on N and W parts of the said town of Castlebrack (Nicholls 1983, 40). Described by O'Hanlon as 'a castle once strong and stately, hade been erected by the Dunne family. Its last inhabitant was a Colonel Dunne (O'Hanlon & O'Leary 1907, 199). In 1653 the castle was taken by Colonel Hewson and dismantled, but not completely destroyed the next year. In 1680 the castle was repaired and strengthened by extensive outworks by Colonel Terence O'Dunne in preparation for the Williamite wars. Around 1691 the castle appears to have finally fallen into ruins. The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Laois' (Dublin Stationery Office, 1995) compiled by P. David Sweetman, Olive Alcock and Bernie Moran. In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Date of upload: 17 December 2007
- LA001-004002: Settlement deserted - medieval, https://heritagedata.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=0c9eb9575b544081b0d296436d8f60f8&query=18a4b61b268-layer-9%2CSMRS%2CLA001-004002-. SW and down-slope from the ruined tower house (LA001-004001-), church (LA001-004003-) and graveyard (LA001-004-) appears to have been the site of a deserted medieval village. Slight remains of earthworks visible. Walls c. 1m thick discovered some years ago in this area. In the O'Doyne Manuscript, it claims that Tadhg Mac Laighnigh Ui Duinn (O'Doyne/Dunne) in 1475 was the builder of this castle (K.W. Nicholls (ed.) 1983, p. 116-7.). In 1608 the castle is described as 'a castle , hall, parlour at end of hall, kitchen, brewhouse, Bakehouse and the rest of the houses within the bawn the haggart and bawns on S side of castle, the garden, the orchard, the parke, the stable and houses for cattle on the west side and also the houses and tenements for tenants and other uses on N and W parts of the said town of Castlebrack (Nicholls (ed.) 1983, 40). Archaeological testing in the vicinity of the tower house and deserted settlement was carried out by John Purcell in 2004 under excavation licence no. 04E1048. The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Laois' (Dublin Stationery Office, 1995) compiled by P. David Sweetman, Olive Alcock and Bernie Moran. In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Date of upload: 17 December 2007
- LA001-004003: Church, https://heritagedata.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=0c9eb9575b544081b0d296436d8f60f8&query=18a4b61b268-layer-9%2CSMRS%2CLA001-004003-. Featureless and undifferentiated church in poor condition recently cleaned up and repointed situated in elevated position on high ground overlooking valley to S, in centre of graveyard (LA001-004-) to NNW of castle (LA001-004001-). Built of roughly coursed rubble (dims. 24.7m E-W, 8m N-S; wall T 0.8m) of which only the S wall stands to its full height only the foundations remain. Possible remains of doorway at W end of S wall. Fragment of window tracery lies under nearby table-tomb. It is hammer-dressed limestones as are the quoisn surviving in the NE angle of the church. Middle spandrel of a tiwn light ogee headed late medieval window with hollowed spandrel and second spandrel decorated with incised stiff leaf pattern has been inserted into S wall of church. According to O'Donovan this church was only a chapel of ease for the castle from which the townland received its name (O'Hanlon and O'Leary 1907, vol. 1, 199) O'Donovan described the church as measuring 80 ft. long by 30 ft. broad and seems to have been destroyed about 1691 (O'Flanagan 1933, Vol. 1, 212-16). Church may have been built around 1425-27 when the nearby castle was built. The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Laois' (Dublin Stationery Office, 1995) compiled by P. David Sweetman, Olive Alcock and Bernie Moran. In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Date of upload: 17 December 2007
- LA001-004006: Bawn, https://heritagedata.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=0c9eb9575b544081b0d296436d8f60f8&query=18a4b61b268-layer-9%2CSMRS%2CLA001-004006-. Situated c. 25m to SSE of Castlebrack church (LA001-004003-) and graveyard (LA001-004-) and at a lower level. Castle or tower house (LA001-004001-) consists of a pile of featureless rubble but probably measured 20m E-W. Remains of grass covered wall footings of a bawn wall to S of towerhouse with ditch outside it at E and S which forms a circular earthwork like a ringwork around the stone castle. In the O'Doyne Manuscript, Tadhg Mac Laighnigh Ui Duinn (O'Doyne) in 1475 states that he was the builder of this castle (K.W. Nicholls (ed.) 1983, p. 116-7.). In 1608 the castle is described as 'a castle , hall, parlour at end of hall, kitchen, brewhouse, Bakehouse and the rest of the houses within the bawn the haggart and bawns on S side of castle, the garden, the orchard, the parke, the stable and houses for cattle on the west side and also the houses and tenements for tenants and other uses on N and W parts of the said town of Castlebrack (K.W. Nicholls (ed.) 1983, p. 40). In 1680 the castle was repaired and strengthened by extensive outworks by Colonel Terence O'Dunne in preparation for the Williamite wars. Souterrain described by O'Hanlon when he says that in 'There is a remarkable moat at Castlebrack. In the beginning of the last century, the occupying tenant of the farm on which it was situated, L. McEvoy, found under it some subteranneous passages.' (O'Hanlon and O'Leary 1907, vol. 1, p. 199). The moat that enclosed the bawn may have been associated with the defences constructed in 1680 for the Williamite wars. Compiled by: Caimin O'Brien Date of upload: 17 December 2007
- LA001-004007: Well, https://heritagedata.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=0c9eb9575b544081b0d296436d8f60f8&query=18a4b61b268-layer-9%2CSMRS%2CLA001-004007-. Remains of a well located 73m to the SE of the castle (LA001-004001-) at Castlebrack which may be medieval in date. Compiled by: Caimin O'Brien Date of upload: 17 December 2007

Works at or in relation to a recorded monument need two months' written notice to the National Monuments Service (National Monuments (Amendment) Act 1994, section 12).

## Architectural heritage (National Inventory of Architectural Heritage)

No building of the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage stands in the townland of Castlebrack.

## Ground and risks (Radon Risk Map of Ireland, EPA; Landslide Susceptibility Classification and LiDAR, Geological Survey Ireland)

- Radon: at the centre of the townland of Castlebrack, about 1 in 10 homes in this area is likely to have high radon levels. Testing a home: https://www.epa.ie/environment-and-you/radon/radon-testing/#d.en.82887
- Landslides: The 1:50,000 map rates the landslide susceptibility here as moderately low, low, partly inferred.
- Terrain model: no LiDAR survey of the Office of Public Works covers the centre of the townland of Castlebrack.
- Flooding: the flood maps of the Office of Public Works, https://www.floodinfo.ie/map/floodmaps/, linked only: their licence does not allow re-use.

LiDAR: contains Irish Public Sector Data (Geological Survey Ireland & the Office of Public Works) licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence.

## Downloads

- DXF, in Irish Transverse Mercator metres, with its boundary, parcels and buildings, for a drawing program: https://everytownland.com/laois/castlebrack.dxf
- GeoJSON, in WGS 84, for a map: https://everytownland.com/laois/castlebrack.geojson
- KML, for Google Earth: https://everytownland.com/laois/castlebrack.kml

## Homes sold (Residential Property Price Register)

No address of the register names Castlebrack with five sales or more. The sales of the area are on the page of Co. Laois: https://everytownland.com/laois.md

## Neighbouring townlands (National Statutory Boundaries, Tailte Éireann)

- Cappalough: https://everytownland.com/laois/cappalough.md
- Cappanlug: https://everytownland.com/laois/cappanlug.md
- Grange: https://everytownland.com/laois/grange-100655.md
- Lackamore: https://everytownland.com/laois/lackamore.md
- Moneyquid: https://everytownland.com/laois/moneyquid.md
- Roskeen: https://everytownland.com/laois/roskeen.md

A townland is the smallest land division of Ireland, and the unit of a rural address; old registers such as the 1901 and 1911 censuses file it under its civil parish and barony.

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Everytownland reads the registered freehold land and the statutory boundaries of Tailte Éireann, the national zoning, planning file and heritage records of the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, and the Residential Property Price Register. A parcel is the land of a title, not an address. The owner's name is in the Land Registry of Tailte Éireann: a copy of the folio can be ordered on landdirect.ie, for a fee; this site names no owner. A price is the price recorded for a past sale, not a valuation.

Sources: Cadastral Parcels Freehold, Townlands, Civil Parishes, Baronies, Electoral Divisions and Buildings, Tailte Éireann, CC BY 4.0; national zoning of development plans (GZT, MyPlan) and National Planning Applications, Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, CC BY 4.0, applicants not shown; designated sites, National Parks and Wildlife Service, CC BY 4.0; Sites and Monuments Record, National Monuments Service, CC BY 4.0; National Inventory of Architectural Heritage, CC BY 4.0; Residential Property Price Register, Property Services Regulatory Authority, re-used with the source acknowledged.

- Page: https://everytownland.com/laois/castlebrack
- In JSON: https://everytownland.com/api/townland/laois/castlebrack