Templeshannon, Enniscorthy

Area

111 m²

Buildings

6 buildings touch it, 232 m² on the ground

Zoning

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

Townland

Templeshannon

Planning applications on this parcel

No planning application touches this parcel in the national file, which goes back to 2010.

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 18 recorded monuments.

• WX020-031 Historic town
  Description

  The origins of Enniscorthy are obscure and disputed (Grattan-Flood 1904; Hore 1905) but the settlement seems to have grown up as the caput of the manor of Duffry that extended from the River Slaney west as far as the Blackstairs Mountains, and was more or less co-terminous with the original parish of Templeshanbo. Duffry was granted before 1172 by Strongbow to Robert de Quincy who married Strongbow's sister, Basilia. She married Raymond le gros in 1175, and he may have built an earthwork castle at Enniscorthy on the site of the present castle. Basilia's daughter Maud, married Philip de Prendergast in 1198, and in 1227 he acquired Templeshannon on the E bank of the river from the Bishop of Ferns. In 1251 the manor passed to the Rochfort family, who are still described officially as owners in 1391, although it was described in 1326 as destroyed by the Irish. The MacMurroughs seem to have possession in the 15th century and in 1460 Donal Reagh founded the Franciscan friary. In 1585 Sir Henry Wallop acquired the lease of the town and set about re-building it and developing a timber and iron industry. He probably built the Castle in its present from, modelled on Ferns Castle with corner towers but on a smaller scale and with distinctive late 16th century features. (Hore 1900-11, vol. 6, 335-552; Bradley and King 1990, 34-7; Colfer 2010; Edwards 2010) No charters or mural grants survive, although it had weekly markets and an annual fair held in August. The town occupied an indeterminate area on the W bank of the N-S River Slaney that slopes down steeply to the river and a smaller area on the E bank. There is no evidence that it was ever walled. The castle (WX020-031003-), the site of the Franciscan friary (WX020-031002-), the church of Templeshannon (WX020-031001-) and the site of St Mary's parish church (WX020-031004-) are identifiable monuments within the modern town. A bridge (WX020-054----) was planned in the late 16th century but one was not built until the end of the 17th century. Archaeological testing has produced no identifiable monuments, apart from a well (WX020-031007-) and two tanneries (WX020-031008-; WX020-031010-) that could pre-date 1700. The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Wexford' (Dublin: Stationery Office, 1996). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Compiled by: Michael Moore Date of upload/revision: 31 May, 2012

• WX020-031001 Church
  Description

  Situated on a slight rise on the flood-plain of the N-S River Slaney, with the stream c. 200m to the W. This is the Romanesque parish church of Templeshannon, which is named after St. Seanán of Scattery Island in Clare (Ó Riain 2011, 558). It is within a D-shaped graveyard (dims c. 50m N-S; c. 40m E-W) defined by masonry walls with straight walls at the E and S. The church pre-dates the Anglo-Norman settlement of Enniscorthy and it was surrendered by the Bishop to Phillp Prendergast in 1227, in exchange for other lands (Hore 1900-11, vol. 6, 342-4). It consists of a nave with an added chancel. The nave (ext. dims. 13.1m E-W; 7.5m N-S) walls survive to roof level, except the W and E walls which are partly rebuilt. The entrance in the W wall is destroyed, but there is a plain 12th century round-headed window in the S wall at E the end. Only the E wall of the chancel (ext. dims 11.4m E-W; 7.5m N-S) survives with a late rectangular, mullioned granite window. There is a stoup and a shale bullaun stone (dims 0.8m x 0.43m; T 0.26m) with a single basin (dims 0.35m x 0.28m; D 0.14m) in the nave. Archaeological monitoring (95E0047) of the laying of a sewage pipe in the street to the W and N of the graveyard, produced no related material (Channing 1997, 192, No. 595). (Culleton 1999, 127-8; Breen 2010) The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Wexford' (Dublin: Stationery Office, 1996). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Compiled by: Michael Moore Date of upload/revision: 31 May, 2012 Amended: 7 April, 2014

• WX020-031002 Religious house - Franciscan friars
  Description

  In 1460 Donal Reagh Kavanagh founded a friary for Observant Franciscans at Enniscorthy. Little is known about it except that it was supressed in 1541 when its buildings were leased to the Earl of Ormond. At that time it was described as a church with a bellfry, a chapter-house, dormitory, hall, four chambers, a kitchen, two orchards and three gardens. In 1582 Henry Wallop destroyed the house, and in 1595 it was granted to him with the Manor of Enniscorthy (Gwynne and Hadcock 1970, 250). A tower remained standing until 1839 (Ffrench 1895, 407-08). It was located in the block S of Abbey Square and between Mill Park Road and the river. There are no visible remains of it but a fireplace now built into the wall of a warehouse (WX020-070----) c. 200m to the SW may have come from it, but it is more likely to have come from the castle (WX020-031002-). (Hore 1900-11, vol. 6, 354-5) The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Wexford' (Dublin: Stationery Office, 1996). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Compiled by: Michael Moore Date of upload/revision: 31 May, 2012

• WX020-031003 Castle - tower house
  Description

  Enniscorthy town developed around the caput of the manor of Duffry that extended from the River Slaney west as far as the Blackstairs Mountains, and was more or less co-terminus with the original parish of Templeshanbo. This was probably an earthwork castle originally, but it cannot be known when and by whom it was built first (Grattan-Flood 1904; Hore 1905). Duffry was granted before 1172 by Strongbow to Robert de Quincy who married Strongbow's daughter, Basilia. As a widow Basilia married Raymond le Gros in 1175, and he may have built an earthwork castle at Enniscorthy as the stepfather and guardian of de Quincy’s daughter, Maud. A buried ditch was discovered in building the Athenaeum club c. 30m to the W of the castle in the late 19th century which might have been from it (Hore 1900-11, 6, 337). Maud married Philip de Prendergast in 1198, and in 1227 he acquired Templeshannon on the E bank of the river from the Bishop of Ferns. In 1251 the manor passed to the Rochfort family, who are still described officially as owners in 1391, although it had been described in 1326 as destroyed by the Irish. Murtagh (2010, 105) suggests that a strong masonry structure must have been built to withstand Irish incursions during this period. The MacMurroughs seem to have possession of Enniscorthy in the 15th century and in 1460 Donal Reagh founded the Franciscan friary (WX020-031002-). In 1585 Sir Henry Wallop acquired the lease of the town and set about re-building it and developing a timber and iron industry. He probably built the Castle in its present form as a late tower house modelled on Ferns Castle with four corner towers but on a smaller scale and with distinctive late 16th century features such as square-headed doors, windows and fireplaces, and gun-loops. (Hore 1900-11, vol. 6, 335-50; Bradley and King 1990, 34-7; Murtagh 2010) The castle is situated on an area of rock outcrop on an E-facing slope overlooking the NW-SE River Slaney which is c. 70m to the NE. It is a rectangular building (ext. dims. c. 14m NE-SW; c. 12m NW-SE) with three circular corner towers originally. The entrance is through a granite doorway with an elliptical head and a square hood moulding on the SE side. It is protected by a yett and by a lateral loop in the S tower. A newel stairs in this tower leads through the original pointed doorways to two upper storeys, while an oubliette or hidden chamber in the foundations of the W tower has an image of a soldier in late 16th century attire scratched in the plaster on the wall. The cross-wall on the ground floor is inserted and there is no barrel vault, but the NE wall at ground level contained a mural stairs. There are diamond-shaped chimney-stacks incorporating brick or tile on the SE, SW and NW walls. The castle was restored in 1903 by Mr H. J. Roche, who modernised all the windows and extended the castle with a new block on the NE side. Murtagh (2014, 290) identifies a subrectangular walled enclosure or bawn (dims c. 30m NE-SW; c. 25m NW-SE at NE to c. 40m NW-SE at SW) extending to the N and W that had a large tower at its NE angle which appears in 18th century views (Grose 1791-5, 2, pl. 110, B). This would have been associated with the later phase of the castle. The castle now houses the County Wexford Museum, which has re-opened after a refurbishment in 2010. (Adams 1904, 168–71: Harbison 1975, 246) Compiled by: Michael Moore Date of revised upload: 5 January, 2015

• WX020-031004 Church
  Description

  Situated on a steep E-facing slope down to the NW-SE River Slaney, c. 160m to the NE. This is the site of the parish church of St Mary's, Enniscorthy. References date at least from 1433 (Leslie 1936, 149). According to a Visitation by Thomas Ram, the Protestant bishop of Ferns, in 1615 it was impropriate to Kilcolgan, John Hughes was the curate, and the church and chancel were in repair (Hore 1900-11, vol. 6, 272). The church was damaged in the 1798 rebellion and the present Church of Ireland church was built on the site in 1846. There are no visible remains of older structure within the subrectangular graveyard (dims. c. 55m E-W; c. 30-50m N-S). Archaeological testing (02E0540) in the area S of the present graveyard demonstrated that the graveyard was once more extensive (Stafford 2004). Compiled by: Michael Moore Date of upload/revision: 31 May, 2012 Amended: 4 Sep. 2013

• WX020-031005 Graveyard
  Description

  Situated on a steep E-facing slope down to the NW-SE River Slaney, c. 160m to the NE. The parish church of St Mary's, Enniscorthy (WX020-031004-) is within a subrectangular graveyard (dims. c. 55m E-W; c. 30-50m N-S) defined by masonry walls. Archaeological testing (02E0540) in the area S of the present graveyard demonstrated that the graveyard was once more extensive (Stafford 2004). Compiled by: Michael Moore Date of upload/revision: 31 May, 2012

• WX020-031006 Bullaun stone
  Description

  Located in the nave of St. Senan's church (WX020-031001-). There is a stoup and a shale bullaun stone (dims. 0.8m x 0.43m; T 0.26m) with a single basin (dims. 0.35m x 0.28m; D 0.14m) in the nave. Compiled by: Michael Moore Date of upload/revision: 31 May, 2012

• WX020-031007 Well
  Description

  Located on the flood-plain of the NW-SE River Slaney at Enniscorthy, with the river c. 100m to the SW. Archaeological testing (97E0202) recorded a stone-lined well (diam. 0.92m) to a depth of c. 18m. The date of construction is not certain but it has been preserved in situ beneath a modern structure. St. Senan's church (WX020-031001-) is c. 140m to the N. (Henry 1998) Compilded by: Michael Moore Date of upload: 31 May, 2012

• WX020-031008 Tannery
  Description

  Situated on a steep E-facing slope down to the NW-SE River Slaney, c. 250m to the NE. Archaeological testing (04E1697) recorded a number of wooden uprights and a base-beam associated with fills that included animal hair and are interpreted as the fill of tanning pits. They are preserved in situ beneath a modern structre. (McLoughlin 2008) Compiled by: Michael Moore Date of upload: 31 May, 2012

• WX020-031009 Graveyard
  Description

  Situated on a slight rise on the flood-plain of the N-S river Slaney, with the stream c. 200m to the W. The Romanesque parish church of Templeshannon (WX020-031001-) is within a D-shaped graveyard (dims. c. 50m N-S; c. 40m E-W) defined by masonry walls with straight walls at the E and S. There is a stoup and a shale bullaun stone (WX020-031006-) in the nave of the church. Archaeological monitoring (21E0592) by Y. Whitty of a watermain pipe c. 15m N of the N angle of the graveyard at the closest point produced no related material (excavations.ie 2022:096). Compiled by: Michael Moore Date of upload: 31 May, 2012 Amended: 23 December 2022

And 8 more.

Designated sites: National Parks and Wildlife Service. Recorded monuments: Sites and Monuments Record, National Monuments Service. 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).

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