A ringfort is a defensive feature that would appear to be obvious both from the name with the defensive implications that fort implies, and also from the generally understood morphological definition of the ringfort, with the banks and fosse been commonly seen as defensive.

Ringforts are the most common monument surviving in Ireland with up to 60,000 examples spread across the whole of the island. Most were built during the Early Medieval period (c.500-900CE), although some are thought to date to Late Iron Age (c.100-500CE).

Caherconnell (Irish: Cathair Chonaill, meaning 'Conall's stone ringfort') [1] is an exceptionally well-preserved medieval stone ringfort in region known as the Burren, County Clare, Ireland. It lies about 1 km south of the Poulnabrone dolmen.

Raths, also known as ringforts, are one of the most common archaeological features in Ireland, dating back to the early medieval period. Raths were typical dwelling places of the nobles and “strong farmers” from around 500 to 1000 AD.

Fairy forts (also known as lios or raths from the Irish, referring to an earthen mound) are the remains of stone circles, ringforts, hillforts, or other circular prehistoric dwellings in Ireland. [1] . From possibly the late Iron Age to early Christian times, people built circular structures with earth banks or ditches.

Feb 9, 2023 · The rath or ringfort should not be confused with the hillfort e.g Brusselstown Hill Fort. Raths were mainly constructed from 500 to 1100AD as farmsteads with limited protection.

Mar 6, 2020 · A ringfort is a general term for a circular space, which could sometimes be raised above the surrounding ground, and in other cases could be surrounded by a shallow ditch as a demarcation. The “ring” of the ringforts was a boundary which encompassed the dwelling or group of dwelling within.

Ringforts are the most common monuments on the Irish landscape and are known by a variety of names, including fort, rath, dún, lios, cashel and caher. They consist of an area, usually …

Named in Irish as An Ráth Gheal (The Bright Fort) and also known as An Rath Gall (The Fort of Foreigners or The Fort of Strangers), this important Bronze Age hillfort, dating mainly to the 12th and 11th centuries BC, is situated in the townland of Rath East.

Ringforts are circular areas, measuring c.24-60m in diameter, usually enclosed with one or more earthen bank enclosures, often topped with a timber palisade. In the west of Ireland the ringfort equivalent, the cashel, was often enclosed by a stone wall, with stone huts in the interior.