Darver Castle is a fortified tower and manor house located in Readypenny, Dundalk, County Louth, Ireland, dating back to the 12th century. The name "Darver" is derived from the Gaelic word "Dairbhe" meaning "Oakwood."
Following the second stage Norman invasion of Ireland in 1171, King Henry II of England granted 500 acres of land to Patrick Babe, on land formerly owned by the church. These were probably awarded for services rendered during the invasion though the circumstances remain unknown. Patrick would go on to erect a fortified tower on the north hill nestled on the edge of the deep slope that led to the banks of two rivers, these rivers serving both defensive and alimentary roles. In the south hill Patrick built a round watchtower to guard the approach. These original buildings on the site of Darver castle would have been wooden (hence the "Darver" name). [1]
The stone tower visible today was added c. 1432. Despite being on the borders of The Pale and preparations for the possibility of a siege being taken, there is no record of any siege being attempted at Darver castle.
In 1740 the Babe family sold Darver Castle to Randal Booth, and Booths descendants lived at Darver until 1980. In 1997 the castle was sold to the Carville family, who have renovated and refurbished it, turning it into a luxury hotel, wedding venue and restaurant. [2]
Broughty Castle is a historic castle on the banks of the River Tay in Broughty Ferry, Dundee, Scotland. It was completed around 1495, although the site was earlier fortified in 1454, when George Douglas, 4th Earl of Angus, received permission to build on the site. His son, Archibald Douglas, 5th Earl of Angus, was coerced into ceding the castle to the crown. The main tower house forming the centre of the castle with four floors was built by Andrew, 2nd Lord Gray, who was granted the castle in 1490.
Kilkenny Castle is a castle in Kilkenny, Ireland, built in 1260 to control a fording-point of the River Nore and the junction of several routeways. It was a symbol of Norman occupation, and in its original 13th-century condition, it would have formed an important element of the town's defences with four large circular corner towers and a massive ditch, part of which can still be seen today on the Parade.
A manor house was historically the main residence of the lord of the manor. The house formed the administrative centre of a manor in the European feudal system; within its great hall were usually held the lord's manorial courts, communal meals with manorial tenants and great banquets. The term is today loosely applied to various English country houses, mostly at the smaller end of the spectrum, sometimes dating from the Late Middle Ages, which currently or formerly house the landed gentry.
Rathfarnham Castle is a 16th-century fortified house in Rathfarnham, South Dublin, Ireland. Originally a semi-fortified and battlemented structure it underwent extensive alterations in the 18th century. It is in State care, has been restored and is open to the public.
Castleknock Castle is a ruined Norman castle in Dublin, Ireland. It is now the site of St. Vincent's Castleknock College, an all-boys Catholic school.
Oughterard is an ecclesiastical hilltop site, graveyard, townland, and formerly a parish, borough and royal manor in County Kildare, nowadays part of the community of Ardclough, close to the Dublin border. It is the burial place of Arthur Guinness.
Limerick, in western Ireland was the scene of two sieges during the Irish Confederate Wars. The second and largest of these took place during the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland in 1650–51. Limerick was one of the last fortified cities held by an alliance of Irish Irish Confederates and Royalists against the forces of the English Parliament. Its garrison, led by Hugh Dubh O'Neill, surrendered to Henry Ireton after a protracted and bitter siege. Over 2,000 soldiers of Cromwell's New Model Army were killed at Limerick, and Henry Ireton, Cromwell's son-in-law, died of plague.
Red Castle of Lunan is a ruined fortified house on the coast of Angus, Scotland. It is about 4 miles (6.4 km) south-southwest of Montrose.
Bailieborough Castle was located in Bailieborough, County Cavan, Ireland. It was built in an enclosed demesne by 1629. Also known as Castle House, Lisgar House, or simply 'The Castle', the country house was located just to the south-west of Castle Lough in what is now known as Bailieborough Demesne, on the north-western edge of the town. It was largely destroyed by fire in the early 20th century and is now totally demolished.
Castle Camps was a Norman Castle located in what is now the civil parish of Castle Camps, Cambridgeshire.
Gregans Castle is the name applied to both a 15th-century tower house and a Georgian-style house in the Burren region of County Clare, Ireland, near the village of Ballyvaughan. The latter dates from 1750 and is associated with the Martyn and O'Lochlainn families. The tower house is across the road from the modern house, which is now a hotel.
Castle Roche is a Norman castle located some 10 km north-west of Dundalk, County Louth, Ireland. It was the seat of the de Verdun family, who built the castle in 1236 AD.
Thoor Ballylee Castle is a fortified, 15th-century Anglo-Norman tower house built by the septs de Burgo, or Burke, near the town of Gort in County Galway, Ireland. It is also known as Yeats's Tower because it was once owned and inhabited by the poet William Butler Yeats.
Carrigogunnell Castle is a medieval Irish fortification near the village of Clarina, on the banks of the River Shannon in County Limerick.
Ardfinnan Castle, is the sister castle of Lismore Castle and was built circa 1185 to guard the river crossing at Ardfinnan in County Tipperary, Ireland. It is situated on the River Suir, seven miles west of Clonmel. The castle is currently privately owned and is not open for public viewing.
Portlick Castle is a late medieval tower house castle near the village of Glasson, County Westmeath, Ireland. It is located approximately 6 miles from Athlone on the shores of Lough Ree. It comprises a square late medieval 4-storey stone tower with an attached 2-storey Georgian wing and Victorian tower.
Abergeldie Castle is a four-floor tower house in Crathie and Braemar parish, SW Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It stands at an altitude of 840 feet (260 m), on the south bank of the River Dee, five miles (8 km) west of Ballater, and about two miles (3 km) east of the royal residence of Balmoral Castle. Behind it rises Creag nam Ban, a rounded granite hill about 527 metres (1,729 ft) high, and across the river to its front is the cairn-crowned Geallaig Hill, rising to 743 metres (2,438 ft).
Baggotrath Castle, or Baggotsrath Castle, was a castle situated at present-day Baggot Street in Dublin city centre. It was built in the late thirteenth century by the Bagod family, for whom it was named. For much of its history, it was owned by the Fitzwilliam family.
The fortifications of Kingston upon Hull consisted of three major constructions: the brick built Hull town walls, first established in the early 14th century, with four main gates, several posterngates, and up to thirty towers at its maximum extent; Hull Castle, on the east bank of the River Hull, protecting Hull's river harbour, constructed in the mid 16th century and consisting of two blockhouses and a castle connected by a curtain wall; and the later 17th century Citadel, an irregular triangular, bastioned, primitive star fort replacing the castle on the east river bank.
Menlo Castle or Menlough Castle, also called Blake's Castle, is a 16th-century castle situated on the bank of the River Corrib near Menlo village in County Galway, Ireland.