Monkstown Castle lies in a nicely kept green area near the Village of Monkstown. The Castle was built between the 14th and 15th centuries by the Cistercian Monks of St Mary's Abbey as a stronghold to protect the area from the frequent attacks of the O'Tooles and O'Byrnes of Wicklow. The Castle originally consisted of three strong towers and thick walls surrounding a large house within. Two of the towers remain today but there is nothing left of the inner house. The Castle has had a long history. When the Monasteries were dissolved in 1539 the lands passed to Sir John Travers and subsequently to The Cheevers family in 1660. In 1580 it was used as a rebellion stronghold.
The remains of the Castle today are quite Striking. sitting on the edge of a roundabout they are the last thing you would expect to come across. The area surrounding is residential, so there are plenty of places to park and take a stroll around.
The towers still look quite solid but the doors are bricked up. whether this is for safety reasons or to detract any anti-social behaviour is debatable, but the rest of the area is quite accessible.We visited on a Saturday afternoon and although the road was busy outside there were only one or two people about. The once inner courtyard is now a very well kept lawn.
To find Monkstown Castle take the R119 from Blackrock. When you reach the very architecturally striking Church Of Ireland you will see that the road forks to the left and right. Take the right hand fork. This is Carrickbrennan Rd. About 300 Yards down this road you will find the Castle on the far side of the roundabout.
Excellent photos, but may I advise you that on the death of Mary Travers(grand-daughter of Sir John)on 28th November 1610, she bequeathed her estates to Henry Cheevers, her sister Katherine's second son. The estates,were considerable,and ran into seven counties. Henry's son Walter was disposssessed and transplanted to Connaught on 16th December 1653. When Charles II was restored to the throne in 1660, Monkstown was restored to Cheevers. Shortly before his death on 20th December 1678, he sold the estate to Michael Boyle, Archbishop of Armagh, and Lord Chancellor. It passed in turn to his son Viscount Blessington. In due course the ground-rents of the Monkstown area were owed to the Pakenham and De Vesci families.
ReplyDeleteWith best regards,
Max Chevers
Many thanks Max for the kind comments and as always your detailed information is invaluable.
DeleteMy name is ginger Chivers, I just learned of this castle. when I can visit Ireland, is this a place I can go inside of to check it out?
ReplyDeleteHi Ginger
DeleteThe castle is situated on a green area in a housing development and yes you can walk around it but there is no access to the interior as it has been blocked up. Still a wonderful ruin to visit
Hi Max I'm great granddaugther Thomas chiverc son of Henry chevers
ReplyDeleteMy great granddad came to USA and settled across from jamestown va son of henry chevers love to talk to you max
ReplyDeleteHello - My name is Lorie Mouklas. My mother was Marion Shivers (Chevers). I am a decendant of Thomas and John Chevers. My Grandfather was Lorenzo Brown Shivers and my great grandfather was Edward Shivers, mayor of Anglesea NJ.
ReplyDeleteMy great uncle was Walter Shivers, probably named after Walter Chevers. Would love to visit the castle someday. Lorie