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Tullyrusk fort is a raised rath and plantation fort situated in Lisburn, Northern Ireland. The monument occupies land underlain by Palaeogene extrusive rocks, a foundation of ancient mafic lava and tuff that cooled in place during volcanic activity tens of millions of years ago. This geological setting was typical of the wider region, where volcanic bedrock supported the fertile soils favoured for early settlement and fortification.
The site comprises two distinct phases of fortification. The rath, an early Christian ringfort, represents the earlier occupation, when such circular or oval earthwork enclosures served as defended farmsteads or small strongholds for local aristocratic families. The raised earth banks characteristic of this form provided both domestic protection and status display within the wider landscape.
The plantation fort overlay or succeeded the rath, reflecting the sixteenth-century fortification practices brought to Ireland during English colonial expansion. These structures combined defensive requirements with the administrative control of newly settled territory. Tullyrusk fort is protected as a scheduled monument by the Historic Environment Division of Northern Ireland under reference number 4514, safeguarding both phases of its fortification history.
Tullyrusk fort. raised rath & plantation fort is a scheduled monument protected by Department for Communities NI under reference 4514. View the official record →
Tullyrusk fort is a raised rath and plantation fort situated in Lisburn, Northern Ireland. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR) under reference 4514.
Tullyrusk fort. raised rath & plantation fort 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.
Tullyrusk fort. raised rath & plantation fort 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 4514.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Counterscarp rath (4.6 km), Castle robin. c17th fortified house built near motte & bailey (6.2 km), Barrow (6.6 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Tullyrusk fort. raised rath & plantation fort'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.
Tullyrusk fort. raised rath & plantation fort stands on Unnamed Extrusive Rocks, Palaeogene, bedrock that formed in the Paleogene. The rock here is mafic lava and mafic tuff.