Kilkenny Castle is one of our most visited monuments, and an iconic landmark in the city. But did you know that the shape of the castle was forever altered in the 19th century, when a whole wing was demolished? A new excavation by Cóilín Ó Drisceoil of Kilkenny Archaeology seeks to find and expose the missing wing of the castle. So we just had to go along to join Cóilín and his team for a trench-side chat.

Kilkenny Castle is surely one of the most familiar heritage sites in Ireland. The castle is visited by hundreds of thousands of tourists every year, who enjoy the beautiful parklands and the grandeur of this former home of the Butler family. However, the castle that we know so well today is largely the result of centuries of development and renovation as each generation sought to tailor Kilkenny Castle to suit their needs.

The story of Kilkenny Castle is thought to begin with a motte and bailey constructed by Strongbow (Richard de Clare, Lord of Pembroke, one of the leaders of the Normans when they first arrived in Ireland). A motte and bailey was a typical fortification in the early phases of the Norman arrival in Ireland, typically consisting of an earthen mound topped with a wooden tower (if you’re interested in castle development in Ireland you might enjoy our episode on Irish Castles with Professor Tadhg O’Keeffe).  Later, William Marshal began the construction of a mighty four sided fortress, and it is this castle that forms the core of the building that we know today – with one key exception – today Kilkenny Castle only has three sides, so what happened to the fourth wing?

An exciting excavation led by Cóilín Ó Drisceoil, and his team from Kilkenny Archaeology, has uncovered the fourth wing of the castle allowing us new glimpses into the story of this iconic site. As well as a better understanding of the construction of the castle, Cóilín and his team have discovered wonderful range of artefacts, including medieval pottery and a medieval harp tuning peg. The story of conflict at the castle has also been revealed with a number of musket balls associated with Cromwell’s siege of the castle in 1650.

In this edition of the Amplify Archaeology Podcast Neil visited the excavations to have a trench-side chat with Cóilín, who told us all about the remarkable history of Kilkenny Castle and the new discoveries made during the dig.

 Episode 10 – The Lost Wing of Kilkenny Castle – Show Notes

• For more information and great images from the excavation please visit the Kilkenny Archaeology Facebook Page.
• You can also find more information on Kilkenny Archaeology on their website.
• For a discussion on the origins and development of castles in Ireland, please see the Castles episode of Amplify Archaeology.
• William Marshal (c.1146–1219) is one of the most significant figures in Irish (and British) history. Cóilín, along with Michael Potterton and the late John Bradley edited a superb volume on William Marshal and Ireland. Available from Four Courts Press.
• The excavations are now completed, but if you’d like to visit Kilkenny Castle you can find information on opening times and entry fees on the Office of Public Works Website.
• You can also find an overview of its history and how to visit in our article on Tuatha.ie here.
• The castle also features in Neil’s guidebook to Ireland’s Ancient East, along with 99 other wonderful heritage sites to explore. Available with free shipping from Kenny’s Bookshop.

Amplify Archaeology Podcast

During this podcast series we will meet some of Ireland’s archaeologists to discuss the key periods, places and people that tell the story of Ireland, and we’ll gain new insights into the practice and techniques of modern Irish archaeology.  This is the tenth instalment of Amplify Archaeology, previous episodes have featured discussions on Living History, excavations at the Rock of Cashel, the Beaker People, History of Food, Passage Tombs, Castles, Mesolithic Ireland and Glendalough.

I’d love some feedback, so please do leave a comment below – and if you have any questions about Irish archaeology please do let me know, we can try to answer them in forthcoming episodes.  Finally if you enjoyed this podcast I’d be really grateful if you could leave us a review on iTunes, or please share it and tell your friends.

The podcast is an Abarta Heritage production.  It was recorded on site at Kilkenny Castle, with Neil Jackman (the interviewer), with Cóilín Ó Drisceoil and Kilkenny Archaeology. We are so grateful to Cóilín for his generosity with his time and insights during a busy dig.