Rodanstown Fort, Rodanstown, Co. Meath
Standing atop a prominent hillock in County Meath, Rodanstown Fort commands attention across the otherwise level landscape.
Rodanstown Fort, Rodanstown, Co. Meath
This impressive earthwork consists of a raised, flat-topped mound covered in grass, measuring approximately 41 metres east to west and 40.5 metres north to south at its summit. The mound rises 5.5 metres above the surrounding ground, its base spanning 58 metres across. A defensive fosse, or ditch, encircles the central mound, ranging from 4 to 5 metres wide at its base and reaching depths of 1 to 1.4 metres.
The fort’s defences extend beyond this inner ditch, with an outer bank measuring 7 to 10 metres wide at its base and standing 2.9 to 3.5 metres high. A slight fosse runs outside this bank, whilst a second outer bank, approximately 7 metres wide at its base and 4 metres at the top, curves from the south-southwest to the north, connecting with the inner bank at the southern point. The entire complex spans up to 90 metres east to west at its greatest extent. Access to the central mound is provided by a wide earthen ramp on the southeast side, allowing relatively easy entry to what would have been a well-defended position.
Located about 550 metres to the southeast lies the site of the medieval Rodanstown parish church, suggesting this area held significance across multiple historical periods. The fort’s elaborate multi-ringed defences; its central mound, surrounding ditches, and multiple banks; indicate considerable effort went into its construction, marking it as an important site in the local landscape. These features, typical of Irish ringforts, would have provided both defensive capabilities and a visible statement of power and status in early medieval Ireland.





