While this area would have been settled from the
earliest days of Ireland's history, Castletown itself developed around the 12th
century castle which originally stood at this location. All that remains today
is the mound (motte) which the original castle stood on which is still visible
in the garden of Castletown House and which is represented by the black circle
on the map. The original Norman borough of Castletown would likely have
stretched from the motte at Castletown House to the site of the present church
just down the road. It has been estimated that perhaps 30 families or about 150
families lived there in 1348 when 30/-. was rendered by the burgesses of the
town to the Earl of Pembroke. The usual annual rental was 1s. from each burgess
(a citizen of a borough). It's quite likely that a town of this size would have
also had a church which would have likely been located on the same site as the
present church. Click on the map above for the full archaeological map of the
Castletown area.
The Archaeological Inventory Report on Castletown
states that "Castletown was the site of one of the most important Anglo-Norman
boroughs in Laois." The Anglo-Normans of the 12th century are only known to have
established three boroughs in Co. Laois and Castletown was one of these. The
earlier Irish name for Castletown, Baile chaisleain Ua mBuidhe, would be
consistent with the name which the Norman's gave to their castle which was
Castle Oboy. This castle would have been the manorial home of Robert de Bigarz
who was granted this area before 1176 by Strongbow. The castle was built in 1182
for Bigarz by Hugh de Lacy and passed through several hands in the subsequent
years. In the 1300's the borough at Castle Oboy was first referred to as
Castleton. The town would have been quite prosperous in the 12th and 13th
centuries but then declined rapidly with the decline of the Norman fortunes
after the 14th century. There is no further recorded mention of the town or
castle until 1570 when the castle as well as the surrounding land were granted
to John Barnyse during Queen Elizabeth's reign. The castle and remaining town
site disappeared during the next 200 years.
In the Parliamentary Returns of 1766 there is only one
chapel listed in Killabban parish and that was at Arles. Coote's statistical
survey of 1801 records that there is "not one parish church now existing, there
is service each week alternating at Ballickmoyler and at the Rector's house at
Sheffield near Ballylynam (Ballylynan)".
That same year a group of Protestant parishioners of
the area led by Rev'd. Arthur Weldon met at Churchtown to discuss the
"rebuilding" of the church at Castletown. This would seem to imply that this had
been the location of the previous church for the parish. Others currently
believe that the previous church had been at Ballickmoyler and that it was
burned in the 1798 rebellion. Neither theory has been proven yet but with the
help of the Church of Ireland Archives it should be possible to establish
whether there had been a church at either Ballickmoyler or Castletown prior to
1801. The role that my Bowles ancestors played in the building of the new church
is told at
The Bowles of Ballickmoyler and the Church at Castletown.
The 1850's Griffith's Valuation of Castletown lists all
the landowners and the size and value of their property at that time. The names
listed include: Furney, Ward, Hickey, Kelly, Doonan, Brennan, Keating, Moore,
Farrell, Walsh and McDonald. Griffiths Valuation of Castletown
Note: This Castletown is not the better
known Castletown which is located west of Portlaoise near Mounthrath, Co. Laois which was also
the site of a Norman castle in the 1300's. For clarification this town is
sometimes called Killabban-Castletown.
See also
Bowles of co. Laois and
Bowles of co. Carlow
Foot-note by William Muldowney:
CASTLETOWN KILLABBAN
The present Protestant church stands on an ancient church site. Local
tradition has it that Father Bryan Moore, the then P.P., celebrated mass here on
the day on which was fought the Battle of the Boyne, (Battle of the Boyne July
12th 1690). There is also a tradition of a priest having been drowned by
accident, in the adjoining river. Some Catholics are still interred in the
burial-ground attached to this church. A remarkable mound, probably a Tumulus,
stands at a few paces' distance from the church.
