© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR)
Bullock Fort Rath is a prehistoric Irish fortified enclosure located in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. The monument sits on bedrock of Palaeogene extrusive rocks—mafic lava and tuff formed during volcanic activity in the geological period between 66 and 2.6 million years ago. This ancient volcanic geology underlies much of the Antrim plateau and shaped the landscape in which later communities built their settlements.
The rath is a type of ringfort characteristic of early Christian Ireland, typically consisting of a circular or oval earthwork enclosed by one or more defensive banks and ditches. Such fortifications served as farmsteads and territorial markers, occupied by families of varying social status from around the 5th century onwards. The site's name, Bullock Fort, reflects a later folk memory of its defensive character, though raths were primarily domestic and agricultural centres rather than military strongholds.
The monument is protected by the Historic Environment Division under reference 4023, ensuring its preservation as an important record of early medieval settlement patterns in Ulster. The survival of such earthworks across the Antrim landscape provides valuable evidence of how communities organised their domestic and territorial spaces during the early Christian period.
Bullock fort. rath is a scheduled monument protected by Department for Communities NI under reference 4023. View the official record →
Bullock Fort Rath is a prehistoric Irish fortified enclosure located in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR) under reference 4023.
Bullock fort. rath dates from the e.christ. period, and is classified as a rath. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Bullock fort. rath 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 4023.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Rath (5.6 km), Motte (6.1 km), Mound (6.1 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Bullock fort. rath'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.
Bullock fort. rath stands on Unnamed Extrusive Rocks, Palaeogene, bedrock that formed in the Paleogene. The rock here is mafic lava and mafic tuff.