What is recorded here

Tradition places the chief castle of Clan Tadhg Ilen Mc Carthy in Curragh, yet no wall, ditch or stone marker remains visible to confirm the claim. The castle may have been lost beneath soil, reused for farm buildings or never recorded at all. What survives is a name repeated in local writing, carrying the shape of a place that once commanded respect but now resists identification.

According to tradition, the chief castle of Clan Tadhg Ilen Mc Carthy was in Curragh townland (O'Donoghue 1986, 25; Healy 1988, 179). Its exact location is not known. The above description is derived from 'The Archaeological Inventory of County Cork. Volume 5' (Dublin: Stationery Office, 2009). Date of upload: 22 December 2009

Built by the Clan Tadhg Ilen McCarthy, a branch of the McCarthys of Carbery, during the medieval period. It is remembered as a traditional seat of power for the clan in west Cork, reflecting the regional influence of the McCarthy dynasty in the medieval Irish landscape.

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