Rathcoffey was given to Sir John Wogan, then Viceroy, by King Edward II in 1317, and it became the chief seat of that family which, in its time, provided three Viceroys.

There appears to be no record of who built Rathcoffey Castle, but by the time of the death of Sir David a century later, his widow was assigned to the manor house, gate house, dovecote, tower house, the long sheep pen, the middle barn, the great orchard, part of the haggard, the chapel, the kiln, part of the bakehouse and the mill, the long sheep house in Rathcoffey town, with parts of specified woods, pastures, meadows, moors, a rabbit warren, a weir and the rents and services attached to various other parcels of land. She also received part of three other manor houses, including one that was originally a prison. As this bequest included only part of Sir David's possessions, it gives an idea of the size and self-sufficiency of the whole. Large castles could fulfil al the functions of a small town, having their own breweries and slaughterhouses and being licensed to hold fairs.

Rathcoffey castle was probably only second in greatness in Kildare to that of Maynooth. The other remains at Rathcoffey are that of the late eighteenth century 'great house' built by Archibald Hamilton Rowan, the United Irish leader, using stone from the castle ruins.

Reproduced from "Le Chéile" by kind permission.