Knockrobin

Area

7,431 m² (0.74 ha, 1.84 acres)

Buildings

1 building touches it. Its footprint covers 2,018 m².

Zoning

S5 Community & Education (Wicklow Town - Rathnew Local Area Plan) The objective
G3 Natural Areas (Wicklow Town - Rathnew Local Area Plan) The objective

Townland

Knockrobin

Planning applications on this parcel

• 17 Jun 2022Conditional

  the development will consist of modifications to Phase 2 of the Primary Healthcare Centre granted under planning Ref. 19/1017. The proposed modifications comprise:- 1) provision of a partial basement accommodating plant and an additional full level of accommodation at 3rd floor accommodating HSE clinical and administrative rooms; 2) Revised internal layout and elevations; 3) Revised car parking layout with an additional 24 no. car parking spaces (total = 236 spaces); 4) revised site boundary to incorporate ESB substation; 5) Landscaping, screened plant compound, signage and all associated site works and services

  Permission · Wicklow County Council, 22683

• 16 Sept 2019Conditional

  3 storey building as Phase 2 of the Wicklow Primary Healthcare Centre. The building will accommodate Tusla services, HSE mental health and social care services, primary care administrative offices, as well as ancillary accommodation including staff facilities, offices, meeting rooms, reception / waiting areas and plant rooms. Phase 2 will be accessed via the existing Phase 1 entrance and access road. The proposal will remove 83 no existing car parking spaces and provide 211 no new car parking spaces. The application also provides for service compound, bicycle parking, landscaping and boundary treatments and all ancillary site works and services

  Permission · Wicklow County Council, 191017

• 30 May 2017Conditional

  provision of 57 no additional car spaces to include the alteration of 3 no existing car spaces to 2 no accessible car spaces and assocaited ancillary site works

  Permission · Wicklow County Council, 17619

• 22 May 2017N/a

  57 no additional car spaces to include the alteration of 3 no existing car spaces to 2 no accessible car spaces, and associated ancillary site works

  Permission · Wicklow County Council, 17583

Source: National Planning Applications, Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, CC BY 4.0. Applicants are not shown.

Designated sites

No designated site (Special Area of Conservation, Special Protection Area, Natural Heritage Area or proposed one) touches this parcel.

Recorded monuments around it

This parcel is in the zone of notification of 3 recorded monuments.

• WI025-011001 Church
  Description

  Situated at a break in a marked S/SE-facing slope. Traditionally the site of the church of Drumkay; not visible at ground level. A Romanesque doorway (Leask 1955, 160-61) and a tub-shaped limestone font (H 0.42m; Wth 0.56m; basin diam. 0.24m) with cushion capitals at the front and sides were removed from here and placed in the Protestant parish church in Wicklow Town. The location of this church site is incorrectly indicated on all editions of the OS 6-inch map. In 2006, fourteen archaeological features/deposits were uncovered during test excavation under licence no. 06E0273 in Glebe townland, Co. Wicklow. The test excavation was undertaken in advance of a proposed housing development at the site. The deposit types identified in the assessment consisted of ditches (field enclosures dating from between ad 1000 and 1800) and 18th-century brick-manufacturing deposits. The most interesting discovery was the identification of a substantial hearth within a rectangular house foundation in Trench 13. A rectangular ‘church’ building is illustrated on the first-edition of the OS as ‘site of the church of Drumkay’ in this location (WI011–025). Other features and deposits such as pits, a possible corn-drying kiln and the foundations of a masonry wall were also identified throughout the remainder of the site. There was no definitive evidence to suggest that the features identified in the separate trenches were contemporary. Archaeological deposits similar to those described above were also uncovered in an assessment carried out by William O. Frazer close to the site (Bennett 2004, 542-3). Significantly, no characteristic church-type deposits, burials, church masonry or ecclesiastical structural remains were found in the test-trenches. The testing demonstrated that the church of Drumkay was not located within the RMP constraint circle, although a ‘building’ with a hearth was discovered within the constraint circle. It is clear from the OS mapping that this structure was no longer standing in 1837, although the foundations must have been visible and recorded in error as the church site. These findings suggest that either the church site of Drumkay is located beyond the current test-trench locations, or that the nature of the recorded monument is not consistent with a typical church site. Postscript: Subsequent to the testing on this site, archaeological excavations in a neighbouring part of Glebe townland uncovered the church and graveyard of Drumkay (Bennett 2009, 574-5). In 2006 a significant excavation under licence no. 06E0091 was undertaken in Glebe townland under Knockrobbin Hill. A previously unlocated church and cemetery site was discovered adjacent to the Rathnew/Wicklow town road. A total of 191 burials were uncovered, enclosed within a series of ditches. The burials date from the early medieval period (c. ad 600) and appear to continue in an unbroken sequence up to at least ad 1600. The foundations of a stone church were also recorded during the excavations. It is suggested that the discovery is the church site of ‘Drumkay’. Previous documentary and cartographic evidence suggested that the site was located c. 400m to the north-east (Bennett 2009, 578). The church, Phase I The foundations of a substantial stone church were uncovered in the centre of the site. The primary church building measured 14.65m east–west by 7.3m externally. The walls were between 1 and 1.3m wide with an interior space of 12.35m east–west by 5.18m. The southern wall of the church was orientated east–west (280°W, 100°E). It was c. 15m in length, with the south-west corner located beyond the limit of excavation. It survived to a maximum height of 0.85m. The wall was constructed with roughly hewn limestone blocks, light to mid-grey in colour. The size of the stones varied considerably, with the largest measuring 0.69m by 0.34m by 0.12m and the smallest 0.22m by 0.12m by 0.04m. It appeared to be constructed of random coursing. This wall turned north at the east end and continued for c. 3.7m, where it was removed by later phases of activity. The church, Phase II The east wall of the church was clearly removed at some point. A new east wall was constructed 1.6m to the west. Thus the remodelled church (Phase II) was shorter than the original building. The Phase II structure measured 12.05m east–west by 7.3m externally. The walls were once again between 1 and 1.3m wide with an interior space of 9.35m east–west by 5.18m. The new east wall was 5.1m long. It is probable that this wall abutted the northern wall of the church, which was visible in test-trenches located outside the road-take. The wall survived to a width of 1m at its south end and widened to 1.5m to the north. It was constructed of very mixed masonry. Four large granite boulders formed the core of the wall. Three of these were of a similar size and measured c. 0.74m by 0.61m by 0.51m, while the fourth was approximately half that size. The rest of the masonry consisted of a mix of limestone and shale. There was no evidence of mortar, but clay had been packed between the stones as a bonding. There was no obvious coursing. There was some evidence of facing on the east side, but this was not substantial. The wall survived to a maximum height of 0.58m, with some sections as low as 0.13m. The church, Phase III A walled annexe or ancillary building was added to the eastern end of the church. The annexe measured 4.2m east–west by 5.5m externally, with internal dimensions of 3.5m east–west by 4m. The east wall of the annexe building (F841) was 4m to the east of the Phase II church and parallel to the earlier east wall. The annexe wall was built from rubble. It was clearly later than the Phase I and Phase II building, as the base of its foundation was higher than the bases of the other walls; it was also stratigraphically above the east end of the Phase I church wall. It measured 5m long and survived to a width varying between 0.2 and 0.51m. It was of mixed rubble construction, which included limestone, granite, sandstone and a small amount of mudstone. A number of burials were interred over this wall, including Burial XXX, which was directly over it. The wall was robbed-out in places, with a gap where a later burial cut through it. A large sandstone boulder (0.55m by 0.59m by 0.29m) at the north end of F841 marked the corner between it (F841) and the north wall (F776) of the annexe. The north wall ran east–west. It survived only to a height of one to two courses and was constructed of smaller stones than the rest of the walls associated with the church, with a mixture of sandstone, limestone and mudstone. The stones varied from 0.15m by 0.08m by 0.08m, to 0.36m by 0.26m by 0.06m. This may suggest that it was associated with a separate phase of construction, probably contemporary with F841. F776 survived to a total length of 3.75m (including the sandstone boulder linking F776 with F841). It measured 0.47m in width at the western end, widening to 0.61m at the point where it turned to join the east wall (F841). Ditches and boundaries The church was surrounded by three enclosure ditches and a fourth post-medieval field boundary. The earliest of these was also the innermost ditch, which was located at the brow of the hill. It was excavated to a length of 26.5m and continued under the western baulk of the site. The terminal of the ditch was quite ephemeral and appeared to slope gradually upwards to the east. This ditch had a maximum depth of 0.75m and contained two fills. The lower fill was a mid-brown silty clay, with moderate inclusions of small stones (c. 0.05m in diameter) and a maximum depth of 0.34m. The upper fill was mid-orangey-brown silty/sandy clay with similar inclusions to the lower fill. This fill had a depth of 0.24m. There were no finds from this ditch. It was cut on its southern side by the second ditch. This was recorded over a 19m length, with a maximum depth of 0.6m and width of 2m. No definitive terminus was identified

• WI025-011006 Graveyard
  Description

  In 2006 a significant excavation under licence no. 06E0091 was undertaken in Glebe townland under Knockrobbin Hill. A previously unlocated church (WI025-011001-) and cemetery site was discovered adjacent to the Rathnew/Wicklow town road. A total of 191 burials were uncovered, enclosed within a series of ditches. The burials date from the early medieval period (c. ad 600) and appear to continue in an unbroken sequence up to at least ad 1600. The foundations of a stone church were also recorded during the excavations. It is suggested that the discovery is the church site of ‘Drumkay’. Previous documentary and cartographic evidence suggested that the site was located c. 400m to the north-east (Bennett 2009, 578). The church, Phase I The foundations of a substantial stone church were uncovered in the centre of the site. The primary church building measured 14.65m east–west by 7.3m externally. The church, Phase II The east wall of the church was clearly removed at some point. A new east wall was constructed 1.6m to the west. Thus the remodelled church (Phase II) was shorter than the original building. The Phase II structure measured 12.05m east–west by 7.3m externally. The church, Phase III A walled annexe or ancillary building was added to the eastern end of the church. The annexe measured 4.2m east–west by 5.5m externally, with internal dimensions of 3.5m east–west by 4m. The east wall of the annexe building (F841) was 4m to the east of the Phase II church and parallel to the earlier east wall. The annexe wall was built from rubble. It was clearly later than the Phase I and Phase II building, as the base of its foundation was higher than the bases of the other walls; it was also stratigraphically above the east end of the Phase I church wall. It measured 5m long and survived to a width varying between 0.2 and 0.51m. It was of mixed rubble construction, which included limestone, granite, sandstone and a small amount of mudstone. A number of burials were interred over this wall, including Burial XXX, which was directly over it. The wall was robbed-out in places, with a gap where a later burial cut through it. A large sandstone boulder (0.55m by 0.59m by 0.29m) at the north end of F841 marked the corner between it (F841) and the north wall (F776) of the annexe. The north wall ran east–west. It survived only to a height of one to two courses and was constructed of smaller stones than the rest of the walls associated with the church, with a mixture of sandstone, limestone and mudstone. The stones varied from 0.15m by 0.08m by 0.08m, to 0.36m by 0.26m by 0.06m. This may suggest that it was associated with a separate phase of construction, probably contemporary with F841. F776 survived to a total length of 3.75m (including the sandstone boulder linking F776 with F841). It measured 0.47m in width at the western end, widening to 0.61m at the point where it turned to join the east wall (F841). Ditches and boundaries The church was surrounded by three enclosure ditches and a fourth post-medieval field boundary. The earliest of these was also the innermost ditch, which was located at the brow of the hill. It was excavated to a length of 26.5m and continued under the western baulk of the site. The terminal of the ditch was quite ephemeral and appeared to slope gradually upwards to the east. This ditch had a maximum depth of 0.75m and contained two fills. The lower fill was a mid-brown silty clay, with moderate inclusions of small stones (c. 0.05m in diameter) and a maximum depth of 0.34m. The upper fill was mid-orangey-brown silty/sandy clay with similar inclusions to the lower fill. This fill had a depth of 0.24m. There were no finds from this ditch. It was cut on its southern side by the second ditch. This was recorded over a 19m length, with a maximum depth of 0.6m and width of 2m. No definitive terminus was identified and it gradually petered out to the east. The basal fill consisted of a mid-orangey-brown sandy clay. The secondary fill consisted of a brown silty clay. A stone perforated pendant was found within this fill. The upper fill of the ditch was a mid-brown silty clay with some sand and occasional mottling of yellow clay. The second ditch was in turn cut by a later ditch located immediately outside it. The third ditch had an excavated length of 32m, with a maximum depth of 0.9m and a maximum width of 2.4m. It had a maximum of six fills, with only three visible in some sections. The lowest fill was a clayey silt that was very similar to the surrounding natural. It is probable that this was a natural silting of the ditch. The remaining fills consisted of a clayey silty sand and silt. The three enclosure ditches followed the same course on the site, along a break of slope roughly parallel to the wall of the church. A fourth ditch of post-medieval date cut across the earlier enclosures at a different angle. It appears that the later post-medieval ditch followed the line of the earlier enclosing elements of the site and removed evidence for them as it continued north-east and north. The enclosure ditches mirror the orientation of the church walls marking the limit of the burial-ground. The burials were mainly contained within the line of the two inner ditches. Three burials (Burials I, LXXV and LXIV) were within the upper fill of the two innermost ditches. This supports the interpretation that the ditches were not contemporary and were realigned as the cemetery expanded. The overall dimensions of the enclosing ditches, including the extents uncovered within the test-trenches, surround a site c. 33m north–south by 47m. Burials A total of 191 burials were excavated on the Glebe site. This number includes truncated burials, where later activity (often burial) removed part of the earlier burial, and burials where some or all of the bone has degraded. In cases where bone has completely decayed, evidence for the presence of a burial was recorded through the observation of a visible grave-cut into the boulder clay. Fifteen infants, 48 juveniles and 120 adults were excavated on the site. There were eight empty grave-cuts, where the skeletons had disintegrated completely. Additional burials are likely to have been interred at the site where neither the bone nor grave-cut has survived. The predominant burial rite was extended inhumation in the supine position, while a small number had flexed limbs. The majority of the burials were orientated east–west, with the skull to the west, indicating a Christian tradition. They were tightly clustered within and outside the walls of the church. The burials varied in date, with some pre-dating the church, such as the lintel grave (Burial CLX) which ran under the southern wall of the church. Burials XC and LXXXIII ran under the north–south wall of the church and were therefore earlier than the church structure. Burials such as CXXXIV and LVI were more accurately orientated in line with the church than others, such as Burial LIX. This would suggest that some individuals were buried in a period where the orientation of the church was less influential, perhaps pre-dating the church, or from a period after it fell out of use. Other burials, such as Burial XXX, which lay directly over the stones of the north–south wall, clearly post-date the building (Bennett 2009, 578-9). Date of upload: 22 October 2012

• WI025-011007 Building
  Description

  Fourteen archaeological features/deposits were uncovered during test excavation under licence no. 06E0273 in Glebe townland, Co. Wicklow. The test excavation was undertaken in advance of a proposed housing development at the site. The deposit types identified in the assessment consisted of ditches (field enclosures dating from between ad 1000 and 1800) and 18th-century brick-manufacturing deposits. The most interesting discovery was the identification of a substantial hearth within a rectangular house foundation in Trench 13. A rectangular ‘church’ building is illustrated on the first-edition of the OS as ‘site of the church of Drumkay’ (WI025-011----) in this location. Other features and deposits such as pits, a possible corn-drying kiln and the foundations of a masonry wall were also identified throughout the remainder of the site. There was no definitive evidence to suggest that the features identified in the separate trenches were contemporary. Archaeological deposits similar to those described above were also uncovered in an assessment carried out by William O. Frazer close to the site (Excavations 2002, No. 1993, 02E0226). Significantly, no characteristic church-type deposits, burials, church masonry or ecclesiastical structural remains were found in the test-trenches. The testing demonstrated that the church of Drumkay was not located within the RMP constraint circle, although a ‘building’ with a hearth was discovered within the constraint circle. It is clear from the OS mapping that this structure was no longer standing in 1837, although the foundations must have been visible and recorded in error as the church site. These findings suggest that either the church site of Drumkay is located beyond the current test-trench locations, or that the nature of the recorded monument is not consistent with a typical church site. Postscript: Subsequent to the testing on this site, archaeological excavations in a neighbouring part of Glebe townland uncovered the church and graveyard (WI025-011006-) of Drumkay (Bennett 2009, 574-5). Date of upload: 22 October 2012

Architectural heritage

No building of the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage stands on this parcel.

Designated sites: National Parks and Wildlife Service. Recorded monuments: Sites and Monuments Record, National Monuments Service. Buildings: National Inventory of Architectural Heritage. Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, CC BY 4.0. 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).

Ground and risks

Radon

About 1 in 10 homes in this area is likely to have high radon levels. Testing a home

Landslides

The 1:50,000 map rates the landslide susceptibility here as moderately low, low, low (inferred).

Terrain model

LiDAR of the Office of Public Works, flown in 2011, at 2 m: tile OPW_3389 (ZIP).

Flooding

The Office of Public Works publishes its flood maps on floodinfo.ie.

Radon Risk Map of Ireland, Environmental Protection Agency, and Landslide Susceptibility Classification, Geological Survey Ireland, both under CC BY 4.0. 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.

Download this parcel as DXF, in Irish Transverse Mercator metres, with its neighbours and buildings, for a drawing program. GeoJSON, in WGS 84, suits a map, and KML opens in Google Earth.

Registered freehold land, Tailte Éireann, CC BY 4.0. 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.