THE IRISH PENNY JOURNAL.
| Number 31. | SATURDAY, JANUARY 30, 1841. | Volume I. |
DUN-GARBRY CASTLE, COUNTY OF LEITRIM.
The Castle of Dun-garbry, or properly Dun-cairbré, signifyingthe Dun or Fort of Cairbre, is situated on a hill, on thesouth side, and not far from the mouth, of the Drowis, orDrobhaois—a river very celebrated in Irish history—and theestuary of the beautiful Lough Melvin, in the lower part ofthe county of Leitrim, bordering on the county of Sligo.Though marked on the maps made in the reign of Elizabethas an important fortress, its ruins are now but inconsiderable,and consist only of a side wall perforated by an arched doorway.But trivial as these vestiges are, they impart somehistoric interest to scenery of the most delightful characterby which it is surrounded, and are valuable as a memorial ofan ancient Irish family, once of great rank in the county,though now reduced to utter decay, at least in their originallocality.
Dun-garbry Castle was erected by the chief of the Mac-Clanchys,or correctly Mac-Fhlannchadha, a sept or clan whopossessed the ancient district called Dartree, the present baronyof Rossclogher, and of which the Castle of Rossclogher,situated on an island in Lough Melvin, was their chief residence.The name of its founder and the date of its erectionare not preserved; but the latter may with probability bereferred to a period anterior to the reign of Henry VIII., asthe Annals of the Four Masters record at the year 1538, that“Cahir (the son of Feradach, the son of William), the son ofMac Clanchy, heir-apparent to the chieftainship of Dartree,died in that year in Dun-cairbre.”
It may be proper to state that there are in Ireland two perfectlydistinct families of the name Mac Clanchy, or, as it is nowmore usually written, Clancey; first, the family of Thomondor Clare, some of whom were hereditary Brehons or judges tothe O’Briens, and who were a branch of the Macnamaras;and, secondly, the family of Dartree, who were hereditarychiefs of that district from a very remote period.
The notices of the chiefs of this family, as preserved in theIrish Annals from the twelfth till the seventeenth century,will serve to convey a very vivid impression of the insecurityof life resulting from the unsettled state of society, and itsretrogression towards absolute barbarism during this unhappyperiod of our history, and will teach us also to appreciatethe blessings we derive from the progress which civilizationhas made within the last century.
1241. Donnell Mac Clanchy, chief of Dartree, died.
1274. Cathal Mac Clanchy, chief of Dartree, died.
1278. Gillchreest Mac Clanchy, chief of Dartree, was slain.
1301. William (the son of Cathal) Mac Clanchy, chief ofDartree, was slain.
1303. Murtogh Mac Clanchy, chief of Dartree, was slain.
1337. Teige (the son of William) Mac Clanchy, chief ofDartree, was slain by O’Conor.
1349. Hugh Mac Clanchy, chief of Dartree, and GillchreestMac Clanchy, were slain.
1366. Cathal (the son of Teige) Mac Clanchy, chief ofDartree, was slain.
1418. Teige (the son of Cathal) Mac Clanchy, chief ofDartree, died in a monastery.
1420. Cathal (the son of Teige) Mac Clanchy, chief ofDartree, and Hugh boy (o