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Dungall Motte is a medieval motte located near Ballymena in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. The monument sits upon bedrock composed of Palaeogene extrusive rocks—mafic lava and tuff laid down during volcanic activity in the early Tertiary period. This geological foundation provided a naturally stable base for the earthwork's construction. The motte is protected as a scheduled historic monument by the Historic Environment Division under reference 1645.
Mottes of this type were typically erected during the medieval period, most commonly in the 11th and 12th centuries, as strongholds and symbols of Norman or Anglo-Norman authority. The earthwork would have supported a wooden palisade and defensive structures on its summit, with an associated bailey or outer enclosure at its base. Such monuments served both military and administrative functions in the landscape they dominated.
Dungall Motte remains a significant archaeological feature within the Ballymena district, contributing to the wider understanding of medieval settlement patterns and territorial control in north Antrim. Its survival is testimony to the durability of earthwork construction, whilst its protection reflects the importance of preserving such monuments for future research and public heritage interpretation.
Dungall. motte is a scheduled monument protected by Department for Communities NI under reference 1645. View the official record →
Dungall Motte is a medieval motte located near Ballymena in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR) under reference 1645.
Dungall. motte dates from the medieval period, and is classified as a motte. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Dungall. motte 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 1645.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Mound (6.4 km), Rath & souterrain (7.4 km), Cross-slab (7.7 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Dungall. motte'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.
Dungall. motte stands on Unnamed Extrusive Rocks, Palaeogene, bedrock that formed in the Paleogene. The rock here is mafic lava and mafic tuff.