Gragan Castle

In woodland near the N foot of Corkscrew Hill. Renovated and reoccupied in the late-1990s. Indicated and named ‘Gragan Castle (in ruins)’ on both the first edition (1842) and later, Cassini edition (1916) of the OS 6-inch map. According to O’Donovan (Comber 1997, 74), it was the chief residence of ‘O’Loughlin, Chief of Burren, in the reign of Queen Elizabeth and from it the Territory of the Burren was called the Barony of Gragans’. Ua Cróinín and Breen (2014, and see attached document) state that the O’Loughlins were often at odds with the English and in one of several pardons granted to them in the late 16th century, the land and castle is recorded as being regranted to them. In 1632-33, following rebellion, it was part of Owen More O’Loughlin’s property and disposed of to George Martyn, Mayor of Galway, but it was retained within the O’Loughlin family through marriage between Turlough O’Loughlin and Martyn’s daughter Alice. Their son George took the name Martyn and his descendants continued to live nearby until recently; the castle fell into ruin before 1837 and reconstruction commenced in the mid-1990s (ibid.). A rectangular (10m N-S; 7m E-W) three-story tower house incorporating the NW wall of an enclosing bawn (CL005-088003-), with the remains of a later, 16th/17th century house adjacent to NE, also on the bawn’s NW wall line. The towerhouse is built of uncoursed, limestone rubble masonry with a base batter and traces of surviving external render. There is a buttress against the S wall. The structure is dated on stylistic grounds (finely cut quoins and architectural features) by Ua Cróinín and Breen (ibid.) to the first half of the 16th century. Ground floor access is through a pointed-arched doorway towards the N-end of the E wall which is defended by a machicoulis above. Immediately inside to right (N) is a small porter’s chamber and opposite it (to S) an intramural stairs. The main ground floor beyond comprises two parallel, vaulted-ceiling chambers (each c. 3.4m N-S; 3.3m E-W). The N chamber contains traces of a fireplace in the W wall and a door in its S wall leads to a second, S chamber. This room is lit by a loop set in double-splayed embrasure in the W wall and a pointed arched doorway in the S wall opens into a very small (1.7m E-W; 1.3m N-S) secure chamber with a corbelled ceiling: an external bolt-hole indicates the chamber could be locked from outside. The straight intramural stairs in the E wall rises to become a spiral stairs in the SE angle which leads to first-floor level and continues on up thtough the building. The stairwell is lit by loops set in internally splaying embrasures. The first floor comprises a single chamber (9.1m N-S; 4.5m E-W) accessed off the spiral stair in the SE corner. There is a garderobe shaft opposite, in the NE corner, and the room is lit by mullioned windows in the S and E walls, one loop set in an inwardly splaying embrasure in the N wall and three more in the E wall. An aumbry and chimney flue flank a centrally placed fireplace in the W wall. Several external corbels, which would have supported a corner machicoulis, project from the SW angle. The second floor is lit by a double-mullioned window in the S wall and a narrow loop in the N wall. There is a mantled fireplace in the W wall which Ua Cróinín and Breen (ibid.) date to the 17th century. See attached document with 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.