E.CHRIST. · RATH

Rath

Fermanagh, Northern Ireland
NISMR MonID 9869
Period
E.CHRIST.
Site type
RATH
Nation
Northern Ireland
The designation
Reference
NISMR MonID 9869
Authority
DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR)
Grid reference
H2752050350
Boundary

Scheduled area

© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR)

Overview

History & significance

Rath — a is an early Christian earthwork monument located in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. The site sits upon bedrock of the Kilskeery Group, a formation of Chesterian age comprising sandstone, mudstone, siltstone and conglomerate, which would have influenced both the construction methods and drainage characteristics of the monument. Protected by the Historic Environment Division under reference 9869, the rath represents an important example of early medieval settlement in the region.

Raths were typically small, fortified farmsteads characterised by one or more concentric banks and ditches, serving as the domestic and defensive centres of early Christian Irish and Ulster society. Such monuments frequently appear across the northern landscape, occupying strategic positions in the local topography to provide security and visibility for pastoral communities.

The Fermanagh location places this rath within a landscape rich in early Christian heritage, where such settlements formed the backbone of rural society between approximately the fifth and twelfth centuries. The underlying Chesterian geology, with its mixture of resistant sandstones and softer sediments, would have created variable ground conditions that the monument's builders would have worked with in constructing their defensive earthworks.

Rath is a scheduled monument protected by Department for Communities NI under reference 9869. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Rath?

Rath — a is an early Christian earthwork monument located in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR) under reference 9869.

What period does Rath date from?

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.

Who is responsible for protecting Rath?

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 9869.

What other scheduled monuments are near Rath?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Church, graveyard & enclosure (8.6 km), Rectangular enclosure (8.6 km), Crannog (8.7 km).

Unlimited access

Everything a full report reveals about Rath

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Rath's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:

Overview
An interactive map of the location with every monument and battle plotted, and a plain-language history built only from what the record holds.
Monuments
The legally protected scheduled monuments around the location, each with its period, type and significance.
Battlefields
The battles and sieges fought on this ground, mapped and set on a timeline of the wider conflict.
Roman World
Ireland was never conquered by Rome, so this traces the island's Iron Age kingdoms and its contact with the Roman world.
Historic Records
The 19th-century records of this place: valuations, Ordnance Survey memoirs and topographical accounts.
Civil War
The Civil War fighting, garrisons and recorded militaria in this area, woven into the arc of 1642 to 1651.
Geology
The bedrock beneath the site, its age and rock type, reaching back hundreds of millions of years.
Local Names
What the street and field names around here actually mean, and the history buried inside them.
Historical Maps
Ordnance Survey maps from the 1800s, layered over the location as it stands today.
Literature
The books, county histories, charters and archives that mention this place, quoted with their sources.
Legal
The protected sites nearby and the metal-detecting, access and treasure laws that apply to this ground.
Spotlight
A deep dive into the most remarkable, lesser-known history of the place, traced back to the record.
Target Zones
For detectorists: the most promising ground to search nearby, ranked by confidence, with what to expect.
Timeline
The whole story of the location told era by era, from prehistory to the present day.
First month just £4.99, then £9.99 a month. Unlimited locations, cancel anytime.

Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.

Start your Rath report
Or see a real report first
The ground beneath

The bedrock under Rath

Rath stands on Kilskeery Group, bedrock that formed in the Chesterian. The rock here is sandstone, mudstone, siltstone and conglomerate.