These rectangular or square enclosures, surrounded by water-filled ditches, served as defensive residences for colonising families from the 13th to 15th centuries. The Ashtown site, like others of its kind, would have featured a timber hall or stone building at its centre, protected by the moat which typically measured between two and five metres deep; a formidable barrier against raiders and wildlife alike.

Archaeological evidence suggests these moated sites were particularly common in Kilkenny, with over 30 examples recorded throughout the county. The Ashtown enclosure follows the typical pattern: a raised platform surrounded by the remnants of what was once a substantial water-filled ditch, with an entrance causeway providing access to the interior. While the original structures have long since vanished, the earthworks themselves tell a story of medieval life on the frontier, where Anglo-Norman settlers carved out estates amongst the native Irish territories, creating fortified farmsteads that served both as symbols of authority and practical defensive positions.

Today, the site appears as little more than a series of grass-covered banks and depressions in the landscape, easily overlooked by casual observers. Yet these subtle earthworks represent a fascinating chapter in Ireland’s medieval history, when the countryside was dotted with hundreds of these moated homesteads. Each one housed a family who lived through the tumultuous centuries of conquest, rebellion, and cultural exchange that shaped modern Ireland. The Ashtown site, though silent now, once echoed with the daily activities of medieval life: the clatter of horses crossing the causeway, the shouts of workers in the fields beyond the moat, and the evening smoke rising from the hall’s central hearth.