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Ballydugan bawn is a post-medieval fortification located in County Down, Northern Ireland, protected as a monument of archaeological and historical importance by the Historic Environment Division under reference 8018. The structure sits upon bedrock of the Hawick Group, a wacke formation dating to the Wenlock period of the Silurian, which underlies much of the surrounding landscape and would have influenced both the construction and defensive capabilities of the site.
Bawns were characteristic fortified enclosures that emerged in Ireland during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, typically comprising a high stone wall surrounding a domestic or agricultural complex. They represent a practical response to the uncertain political and military conditions of early modern Ireland, providing both residential security and protected space for livestock and provisions.
The monument's location in County Down places it within the Ulster region, where such fortified residences were constructed by both English settlers and Anglo-Norman landholders establishing control over their estates. The surviving earthworks and stone remains at Ballydugan preserve evidence of early modern settlement patterns and defensive architecture specific to this period and locality.
Ballydugan bawn. bawn is a scheduled monument protected by Department for Communities NI under reference 8018. View the official record →
Ballydugan bawn is a post-medieval fortification located in County Down, Northern Ireland, protected as a monument of archaeological and historical importance by the Historic Environment Division under reference 8018.
Ballydugan bawn. bawn dates from the post-med period, and is classified as a fortification. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Ballydugan bawn. bawn is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, legally protected by DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR) — the body responsible for designating and safeguarding heritage sites in Ni. The official designation reference is 8018.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Windmill stump (c.f. ihr 3454 for details) (4.7 km), Rathmullan motte, rathmullan mound, rathmullan. raised rath reused as motte (5.7 km), A.p. site - barrow? (5.7 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Ballydugan bawn. bawn's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
Ballydugan bawn. bawn stands on Hawick Group, bedrock that formed in the Wenlock. The rock here is wacke.