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Rathturret is a trivallate rath situated in the Newry and Mourne district of County Down. The monument consists of three concentric earthen banks that once enclosed a domestic settlement, a settlement form characteristic of early Christian Ireland from roughly the fifth to twelfth centuries. The rath's defensive earthworks would have protected a timber-built dwelling and associated structures within its innermost enclosure, the arrangement typical of high-status farmsteads across the period.
Underlying the site is bedrock of the Hawick Group, a Wenlock-age wacke formation, which would have shaped both the drainage and the availability of stone for construction and daily use by the settlement's inhabitants. A possible souterrain—an underground stone-built passage or chamber—has been identified at the site, a feature commonly associated with raths that may have served for storage, refuge, or ritual purposes. Such subterranean structures are among the most distinctive elements of early medieval Irish settlement archaeology.
Rathturret is protected as a scheduled monument under Historic Environment Division reference 8918, ensuring the preservation of this important archaeological resource within the wider landscape of early Christian settlement in the north-east of the island.
Rathturret. trivallate rath & possible souterrain is a scheduled monument protected by Department for Communities NI under reference 8918. View the official record →
Rathturret is a trivallate rath situated in the Newry and Mourne district of County Down. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR) under reference 8918.
Rathturret. trivallate rath & possible souterrain dates from the e.christ. period, and is classified as a rath & souterrain. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Rathturret. trivallate rath & possible souterrain 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 8918.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Stone faced rath - one of a pair with 051 (1.1 km), Stone faced rath - one of a pair with 051 (1.2 km), Windmill - ihr 03599 (1.4 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Rathturret. trivallate rath & possible souterrain'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.
Rathturret. trivallate rath & possible souterrain stands on Hawick Group, bedrock that formed in the Wenlock. The rock here is wacke.