castles historical ireland

Typical of the late 13th century, the castle is nearly square in plan, with rectangular towers at the two southern corners, and smaller turrets at the other two corners. Remains of the main interior buildings can be seen on the eastern side of the courtyard. While the castle is not mentioned in existing records until the 14th century, the shape of the trefoil window in the south wall shows that it was built probably towards the end of the 13th century. Clonmore was captured by the Earl of Kil...

Ormond Castle is situated at a strategic point on the river Suir, commanding access to Clonmel to the west and the busy port of Waterford to the south east. An Elizabethan manor house built by Black Tom, 10th Earl of Ormonde. Next to a 15th century fortified dwelling. Ormond Castle is renowned for the quality of its stucco work, the best example of 16th century plaster work in Ireland.

It is also significant as Ireland's only major example of a completely unfortified dwelling dati...

The original keep was 3 storeys high and was square in shape with stout three-quarter round towers at the corners, but only the eastern half still stands, with its two corner towers and the connecting wall. The entrance was through a door on the first floor of the north side. The topmost storey of the north-western tower dates back to the 15th-16th century.
Although the castle is only first mentioned in 1231, it was probably built by William the Marshall or by his son not long after...

Askeaton Castle: The Castle was founded around the turn of the 13th century, on an island in the River Deel. Part of the 15th century tower on the site remains, itself a replacement of an older tower. Similarly the mid-15th century banqueting hall just inside of the outer wall on the island was built on the foundations of an earlier hall. This hall has finely carved windows and is one of the finest remaining medieval secular buildings, although there was once a chapel attached. After changing...

This 16th century O'Hynes castle, with six sided by windows, set on a rock on the edge of Galway Bay by the approach to Kinvara has been restored.
From mid-May to mid-September medieval banquets are held and guests are afterwards entertained with Irish music and dancing as well as the reading of extracts from writers with local connections -Yeats, Lady Gregory, Martyn and blind Raftery the poet....

This is a fine early 16th century tower standing in a bawn. The ground and third floors are vaulted, and there are mullioned windows and a fine fireplace on the 3rd floor. The six-sided bawn is one of the best preserved in the country, and the projecting angle in the west wall, constructed so as to have a wider range of fire, is probably imitated from the star-shaped forts. Nearby are the ruins of a contemporary gatehouse.

The castle was one of three built and owned by the O'Shaughne...

Richard de Burgo granted a charter to Meiler de Bermingham in 1235 and shortly afterwards de Bermingham started building his castle at Athenry. It was probably completed by 1250 and consists of a three storey tower surrounded by the remains of a strong outer wall. Among the buildings was a Dominican friary, also built by Meiler, which is now in ruins.
The basement of the tower has a vault carried by three pillars. The door is on the first floor, though the steps leading to it are moder...

A little past Coole, Gort, the road passes the entrance to Tullira Castle, the home of Edward Martyn, poet and patron of the arts.

He was instrumental in starting the Dublin School of Stained Glass, some early and remarkable examples of which can be seen in nearby Labane church....

Dunguaire Castle has, for hundreds of years, stood proudly on the site of the 7th century stronghold of Guaire, the King of Connaught, its majesty dominating the shore of Galway Bay. The castle was built in 1520 by the O’Hynes clan and it gets its name from the ancient fort of Guaire. This restored 16th century tower house sits on a rocky outcrop on the shores of Galway Bay, 300 yards outside the picturesque village of Kinvara.
The Castle bridges 13 centuries of Irish history, from the...

TITLED/UNTITLED, the current exhibition at Lismore Castle, Co Waterford, Ireland is an unusual collaborative exhibition bringing together work from the Devonshire Collection and Rubell Family Collection based in Miami; works from the Devonshire Collection having been selected by the Rubell Family, while pieces from the Rubell Collection were selected by William and Laura Burlington.

The complex relationships that exist between the collector, the artwork and the passage of time are ex...