Remembering a ‘ruinous castle’ in Limerick

THE COUNCIL’S heritage and conservation officer has been asked to identify and mark the remains of a former castle in the city.

Local election candidate for City North Mark Spain has written to Tom Cassidy, having seen the Reboge Castle marked on an ancient map of Limerick.

He now wants to see its location formally identified and the history of the tower marked.

In a letter to Mr Cassidy, he has called on local authority staff to do an identification of the site of the former castle.

Then, he hopes there can be a complete archaeological dig on the site and surrounding area.

Following this, Mr Spain says he hopes council would: “Create a small recreational space on or near the site with some hard landscaping, benches and an information board telling the history of the former castle and the surrounding area.”

“The location of the former castle is near the popular walkway from the city centre to University of Limerick. This would make an interesting project in collaboration with the University or Limerick Civic Trust,” he suggested.

Mr Spain supplied Mr Cassidy with a dossier of information on Reboge Castle, which was prepared by local historian John Elliott.

This information reveals that the castle was located in the St Patrick’s parish of the city, in the townland of Reboge - modern day Rhebogue.

It features on a 1752 map of Limerick by William Eyre, which is titled ‘A coloured draught of the country round Limerick’.

A century prior to that, a civil survey of Limerick recorded that Alderman Thomas Arthur held in Reboge what he described as “a ruinous castle, an orchard and a water corn mill”.

The castle was also depicted in a 1651 map, and a further map, where it was depicted as a “tall tower house like structure.”

Limerick City and County Council is expected to consult with the National Monuments Service and the Minister for Heritage.