Gleninagh Castle

Gleninagh Castle is a four-storey L-shaped tower house built in the 16th century on the northwest edge of The Burren, County Clare, overlooking Galway Bay. The castle was a stronghold of the powerful O'Loughlin family, who controlled much of North Clare until the late 19th century, though lands were granted to various families including Richard Harding in 1544 and the Diocese of Kilfenora in 1629. The L-plan structure measures 8.7 metres east to west and features rounded corner bartizans fitted with five circular pistol loops for defence. Carefully conserved as a National Monument, the castle displays distinctive internal features including a barrel-vaulted ground floor, cupboards in walls, garderobes with chutes, and windows ranging from simple slits to two-light ogee-headed openings.