Forts - More Than Meets The Eye

Dotted throughout the Irish landscape, the fort is the most widely distributed ancient monument with up to 40,000 throughout the countryside.

Sometimes known as the ‘Fairy Fort’

It has become revered and so many forts have been left untouched. The link with fairies is thought to be as a result of the Tuatha de Danann, a mystical magical race who ruled Ireland before being conquered by the Milesians. However, they could never be fully conquered and instead were banished to the underworld and forts represent their openings to the natural world.

This link to fairies protected forts from damage and led to strong beliefs associated with forts. For example building between two forts was not to be recommended as the fairies would be passing from one fort to another. In case of doubt, the foundations would be dug and left for a few nights to see if the fairies would fill them in. A shy sickly man could be imbued with the fiery temperament of a Tuatha de Danann warrior by sleeping on a fairy fort. It was said that standing at one fort, there was always another visible to the right and left.

Science has perhaps ruined a good story and tradition

Forts were in fact built as farmsteads, enabling the family to bring their cattle in at night. There is some evidence that they are linked with dairy farming. Dairy cows offered the production of milk and meat, with butter an important bartering tool. A dairy cow was a valuable commodity and needed to be protected at night from cattle rustlers and wolves. The great majority of forts excavated would suggest that they were constructed in the early Christian period of history, between 500-800AD.

In their simplest form the fort is a circular earthwork surrounded by a bank and ditch. Small houses enclosed by the fort were usually made of woven branches, known as wattle. The number of banks on a fort was often an expression of prestige, two or more banks being a sign of wealth and importance. As the population increased the number of forts increased in a similar way to the present with an increasing number of farmhouses dotted throughout our countryside.

As time moved on these forts were abandoned with houses often built beside them, the superstition associated with them protected them and slowly the growth of scrub on banks produced the wooded image which is so common on most forts.

What the future holds

Whilst there still is a respect for forts, other forms of protection are needed to ensure their survival. One aim of agri-environment schemes is to enhance landscape and heritage features such as forts. Individual management plans are drawn up with the farmer with any threat to the monument identified. Financial payments are available as part of the scheme to offset any of the cost associated with their protection. As farmers, these are the homestead of our predecessors, and with good management we can pass them on to future generations in good condition.