Slade Castle


Map Reference: X746985 (2746, 0935)

Slade Castle was built by the Laffan family possibly at the beginning of the 16th century. It consists of a two-storey building beside a high tower.



The doorway, in the south wall, of the lower building was protected by a murder hole which is now blocked. To the left of the doorway is a large mural chamber with a good corbelled ceiling. There is a window opening to the tower but there is no other connection at this level. The ground floor has a series of very fine vaulted rooms with a least one fireplace. A straight mural stairway rises to the right of the doorway. The first floor has three rooms with a very fine fireplace. There is attic space above but the roof is now missing.



There are some very good single- and double-light windows with seats. Access to the tower at this level is through a hole in the wall. The tower-house is four storeys high with vaults over the ground-floor loft and third storey. The doorway to the tower is in the south wall and is protected by a murder hole and a machicolation.



A spiral stairway rises on the right. Both sections of the castle have very fine crenellations.

I first visited Slade Castle in 1984 when I took the photographs shown above. I was able to explore the interior of the castle during my next visit in 1989 but none of the photos taken then have survived. All of the following photos were taken in 2008 but unfortunately the interior of the building is no longer accessible. However a great deal of detail can be seen and recorded through the bars of the gate.









Interior of the ground floor room



One of the mural stairways



The murder hole



On the quayside beside the castle are the remains of an 18th century saltworks. It consists of a line of corbelled chambers about 60m long. Much of the east end was destroyed in the 19th century but parts of the west end survive almost intact.







Return to County Wexford List
Return to Gazetteer