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Castlemagner (Irish: Caisleán an Mhaignéaraigh)[2] is a village and townland in the Duhallow area of north-west County Cork, Ireland. Castlemagner is within the Cork North-West (Dáil constituency).

History

The ruined remains of Castle Magner's stair turret

The area takes its name from the eponymous Castle Magner, a Norman-era tower house which is located approximately 500 metres (1,600 ft) east of the village itself on the eastern boundary of Castlemagner townland. Owned by a Richard Magner during the Irish Rebellion of 1641, the tower house was largely destroyed in the late 16th century.[3][4] The lands surrounding Castle Magner were confiscated during the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland.[5] The castle is largely in ruin, though the stair turret and parts of the surrounding bawn wall remain.[3]

Close to the castle is Saint Bridget's Church, a disused but largely extant Church of Ireland church.[6] While the church itself was built in the early 19th century, the surrounding cemetery contains gravestones which are dated from the 18th century and earlier.[7]

Holy well entrance, with 1789 inscription and carved figures

A nearby holy well, also dedicated to Saint Bridget, is covered by a carved stone surround including an 18th-century inscription and a carving, sometimes claimed to be a Sheela na gig.[8][9][10]

Castlemagner's Roman Catholic church, which is dedicated to Saint Mary and was built c.1880, is located within the village itself.[11] There is a shrine to Edel Quinn, a local lay missionary, within the church grounds.[12]

Amenities

Castlemagner has a community centre building,[13] a pub (the Castle Bar, known locally as Geoff's).[14] The local Gaelic Athletic Association club, Castlemagner GAA, fields Gaelic football and hurling teams in the Duhallow division.[15] The club won the Cork Junior B Hurling Championship in 2012.[16]

References

  1. ^ "Castlemagner". CSO.ie. Retrieved 16 June 2024.
  2. ^ "Caisleán an Mhaignéaraigh - Castlemagner". Irish Placenames Database. Retrieved 2 May 2019.
  3. ^ a b "Castle Magner". castles.nl. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
  4. ^ Charles Smith (1815). The Ancient and Present State of the County and City of Cork, Volume 1. J. Connor. p. 296. About two miles to the N. of Clonmene [Banteer], is Castle-Magner [..] In the rebellion of 1641, this castle belonged to Richard Magner, agent for the Irish inhabitants of Orrery and Kilmore
  5. ^ Samuel Lewis (1837). "Castle-Magner". A Topographical Dictionary of Ireland. Castle-Magner, a parish [..] derives its name from the family of Magner, to whom this part of the country formerly belonged, and who erected a castle here, which was forfeited during the [Cromwellian] protectorate
  6. ^ "Saint Bridget's Church, Castlemagner, County Cork". buildingsofireland.ie. National Inventory of Architectural Heritage. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
  7. ^ "Castlemagner, RMP/Site number: CO024-108001-". historicgraves.com. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
  8. ^ "St Bridget's Well, Castlemagner". holywellscorkandkerry.com. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
  9. ^ "The Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland". 67. Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland. 1937: 180. That such [Sheela na gig] figures, though in a more restrained style, might be carved in all sincerity even later, is shown by the example at St. Bridget's Well, Castlemagner [..] It is carved by the door of the well, and [..] dated by Du Noyer to the seventeenth century {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  10. ^ Barbara Freitag (2004). Sheela-na-gigs - Unravelling An Enigma (PDF). Routledge. p. 113. ISBN 0-415-34553-7.
  11. ^ "Saint Mary's Church, Lisduggan South, County Cork". buildingsofireland.ie. National Inventory of Architectural Heritage. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
  12. ^ "Saintly men and women of our Diocese: Venerable Edel Quinn". cloynediocese.ie. Cloyne Diocese. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
  13. ^ "Three Paddys are men of the hour". The Corkman. Independent News & Media. 28 June 2019. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
  14. ^ "About Us". castlemagner-his-soc.com. Castlemagner Historical Society. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
  15. ^ "Club Profile - Castlemagner". gaacork.ie. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
  16. ^ "Glory for Castlemagner". irishexaminer.com. Irish Examiner. 3 September 2012. Retrieved 27 April 2020.


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