Ballindooley Castle is one of a number of Castles in Castlegar, County Galway, Ireland.
- It is believed to be a De Burgo House and is built on the right hand side of the Galway to Headford road. This is a National Road, designated the N84.The De Burgo's (Burke - Clanricard) had Terryland Castle, and Castlegar Village Castle as well.
- Coordinates : 53.308401, -9.028284.
- This castle is unusually close to the road (relatively new); a few yards (metres), perhaps. The original road would have been the higher one to the North which passes through the Village and still exists today (see old map below).
- Around the year 1990, it was bought and renovated to the point that it can be lived in with a modern degree of comfort. The owner is based in Chicago, but is a Mayo woman with friends in Castlegar.
- Ballindooley Castle may technically be, a Tower House.
Maps
See a dynamic map of Ballindooley Castle.
See on Yahoo
- The Pastures that it looks to, would have been underwater at the time, and offered some defense as well as a navigation vehicle.
- Turrets or Castelatted features were common and Psychological in Nature - offering a few feet worth of height for less expense and breaking its outline with the Sky - serving to impose.
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- In the Photograph above, you can see it in its renovated state - taken from the back road of Ballindooley Village to the North of the Castle.
- Its exterior was rough-dashed, presumably to offer some weather protection. It may also be the case that that rough dash was a common rendering practice and applied to castles of a particular period.
- You may notice the narrow windows, a defensive architectural strategy which was common in castles and not a phobia about sunlight.
- In the 1980's and if you had nerve enough, you could climb this Castle - and so could livestock. So someone might have nudged a few steps from the spiral stair case (hear say - folklore).
- Behind or bearing South-West, is the Ballindooley Lake .
Helga Gun Boat ??
- Some reports suggest that the Helga fired a few shells towards Ballindooley at the beginning of the 1916 Rising, to disband Rebels who were supposed to be gathered to march on the City?
- See a photo of her at http://www.ict.mic.ul.ie/websites/2002/MichelleGeraldine_Carey/gunboat.htm
- "The Helga was later bought by the Irish Free State and, having been renamed the LE Muirchu, became a fishery protection vessel until it was eventually scrapped in 1947" ref. http://www.irishtimes.com/focus/easterrising/eventfultimes/
- Another suggestion is that it may have been the HMS Gloucester and not the Helga at all. Ref. Jmcg.
