Clogher Hillfort: Rathmore

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A magnificent complex of earthworks crowns this hilltop, spanning the long period from the late Bronze Age to the 9th century AD. Part of the Ancient Pilgrim route Clones – Clogher.

The location of this monument is very important, dominating the vital route through the Clogher Valley between mountain ranges. Excavation between 1969 and 1977 suggested an enclosure of the late Bronze Age, but no sign of this appears above ground.

In the Iron Age the hilltop was enclosed with a roughly rectangular earthwork, which enclosed an earlier, small ring-barrow at the south end of the site. In the late 6th century AD, when this was the royal centre of the Uí Chremthainn, rulers of the kingdom of Airgialla, the site was remodelled with the building of the substantial circular earthwork, still visible, on the highest part of the hill.

Other features include the complex, probably multi-period earthworks at the north approach to the hill, the triangular mound at the south end, interpreted as a ceremonial or inauguration site, and a double-banked droveway running off to the south east, outside the area in State Care. Finds from the excavation confirm the importance of the people who lived here and include imported ceramics (from Gaul / the Mediterranean region), high-quality bronze work, brooches (in particular “developed zoomorphic penannular brooches”), evidence of bronze-working and iron working. This indicates the site was wealthy, with contacts beyond the local.

Clogher (Clogher Cathedral and Hillfort site): One of Ireland’s oldest ecclesiastical sites, Clogher was a major pre-Christian royal centre and inauguration place for the kings of Airgíalla, featuring a hillfort, possible inauguration mound, and ancient barrow. St Patrick appointed St Mac Cairthinn (Macartan) as bishop here in the 5th century, establishing the diocese. The cathedral (rebuilt in later centuries), graveyard, and the legendary Clogher Stone (a possible pre-Christian inauguration or fertility symbol) make it a profound site blending pagan kingship rites with early Christian foundation.

After the 8th century this was no longer a royal headquarters and the site may have been abandoned in the 9th century.

Site Plan & Cross-Sections (Archaeological Details)
From the sources (“Clogher: an archaeological window on early Medieval Tyrone and Mid Ulster”, “Clogher in Late Prehistory”, plus the NI heritage site info) here are the reconstructed / excavated elements:

Feature Description
Plan shape On Castle Hill drumlin (double hump). The southern hump (Castle Hill) holds the main earthworks.

Iron Age enclosure A roughly rectangular enclosure that encloses earlier features (e.g. a ring-barrow at the south end).

Ringfort / Royal Fort (“Great Fort”) In the late 6th century AD, a large circular earthwork/ringfort built on the highest part of the hill. This replaced or overlaid earlier defensive works.

Defensive works Deep “V”-section ditch, outer bank, high ramparts. There’s an “ankle-breaker” ditch (i.e. steep drop) outside, a counterscarp bank just outside in some places. Entrance was via a stone-revetted entry, with causeway across ditch. There was also a six-post wooden tower over the entrance.
Academia

Internal structures Inside the ringfort: a very large circular timber building (~40 m diameter) thought to be the royal hall. Also zones for bronze-working, iron-working, possibly glass working outside of the ring fort.

Inside the Fort –

A Royal hall: at the centre, a huge circular timber hall (about 40 m in diameter). A great wooden building with thatched roof, visible above the ramparts, where the local king and nobles gathered.

Craft areas: evidence of bronze-working, iron-working, and possibly glass-working suggests parts of the enclosure were used as workshops. Fires, anvils, and pits would have been visible.
Domestic huts: smaller roundhouses for retainers, servants, or craftsmen likely clustered inside or just outside the main fort.

Ceremonial Features
At the southern end, a triangular mound may have been used for inauguration ceremonies (where rulers were symbolically installed). People might gather here for ritual and political occasions.

A visual reconstruction drawing of the fort (based on archaeology)