Caherminnaun Castle (in ruins)

On a low limestone platform on a S-facing slope in undulating landscape. Named ‘Caherminnaun Castle (in ruins)’ on the 1840 ed. of the OS 6-inch map and named ‘Caherminnaun Castle (Site of)’ on the 1916 ed. Listed as ‘Castle’ in the RMP (1996). Described by O’Curry in 1839 as ‘A heap of ruins and rubbish’ (Comber 1997, 90). Named ‘Caherminnaun Castle site Tadhg MacMurchadha Ó Briain’ with the date 1591 on Robinson’s map (1977) and named ‘Cathair na Mionnain - Fort of the Kidgoats’ by Ua Cróinín and Breen (1997). The following historical details are cited by Ua Cróinín and Breen (1997): The castle and manor of Caherminnaun was granted to Conor O’Brien, 3rd Earl of Thomond, by a grant from Queen Elizabeth in 1560. In 1574 it was held by Teige, son of Murrough O’Brien. In 1591 Morrough died at Caherminnaun and was buried at Kilfenora. In 1598 Turlough and Dermot Roe O’Brien, sons of Murrough, joined the war of the Irish. Turlough surrendered the castle when Theobald Dillon laid siege to it on the instructions of Sir Conyers Clifford, Governor of Connaught. The castle was probably dismantled in 1654 by the Cromwellian commissioners. An overgrown subrectangular platform (26m N-S; 16-25m E-W; H 3.5m) which likely comprised the former bawn, contains within it a mound of rubble with large chunks of masonry protruding including a piece of curved stairwell. Sections of wall visible to the E may be contemporary (Ua Cróinín and Breen 1995). Dressed limestone blocks from the tower house are stored in adjacent sheds. The following item has been uploaded: CL016-020003-_01.pdf Details from Risteárd Ua Cróinín and Martin Breen, The Castles and Tower-houses of Co. Clare (unpublished report). Uploaded courtesy of R. Ua Cróinín and M. Breen. Compiled by: Mary Tunney and Lynda McCormack Date of upload: 15 March 2022