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Forthill, known locally as Gracey's Forth, is a early Christian rath situated in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. Raths were enclosed farmsteads characteristic of early medieval Ireland, typically comprising a dwelling area surrounded by one or more defensive earthen or stone banks. This monument occupies ground underlain by wacke of the Gala Group, a hard sedimentary rock formation dating to the Telychian period of the Ordovician epoch, which provided a stable foundation for the earthwork's construction.
The site is protected by the Historic Environment Division under statutory reference 5531, recognising its archaeological and historical significance. Early Christian raths such as this were occupied during the early medieval period and served as residences for farming families of varying social status. The monument's survival to the present day, marked at grid reference J0323047430, provides evidence of settlement patterns and land use in early Christian Armagh.
The landscape context of the site would have been significant to its original inhabitants, offering defensibility and access to resources. Raths like Forthill represent a crucial phase in Irish settlement archaeology, bridging pagan and Christian periods and illustrating the continuity of settlement in the region during the early medieval centuries.
Forthill, gracey's forth?. rath is a scheduled monument protected by Department for Communities NI under reference 5531. View the official record →
Forthill, known locally as Gracey's Forth, is a early Christian rath situated in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR) under reference 5531.
Forthill, gracey's forth?. 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.
Forthill, gracey's forth?. 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 5531.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Danes cast. linear earthwork (5.9 km), Wwii pillbox - dhp no.44 (6 km), Bivallate rath (6 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Forthill, gracey's forth?. 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.
Forthill, gracey's forth?. rath stands on Gala Group, bedrock that formed in the Telychian. The rock here is wacke.