Pre-Norman fortification in eleventh and twelfth-century Ireland

View/ Open
Date
2012Author
O'Conor, Kieran
Naessens, Paul
Metadata
Show full item recordUsage
This item's downloads: 1444 (view details)
Recommended Citation
O'Conor, Kieran, & Naessens, Paul. (2012). 'Pre-Norman fortification in eleventh and twelfth-century Ireland. In P. Ettel, A.-M. Flambard Héricher & K. O'Conor (Eds.), L’origine du château médiéval, actes du colloque de Rindern, Allemagne (Vol. 25, pp. 259-268). Caen: Publications du CRAHM, Château Gaillard, Université de Caen.
Published Version
Abstract
This paper examines the evolution of fortification in Connacht during the 11th and 12th centuries, prior to the arrival of theAnglo-Normans to Ireland in 1169. Our main argument is that Irish fortresses of the period, while generally stronger and more substantial than what was seen before, evolved out of the native cashel, rath and crannog traditions. Recent fieldwork carried out in the west of Ireland on various lakeland sites is used to demonstrate this point.