Castle

The original house of the Crosbies was a long, low and thatched building which faced onto an enclosed bawn. There was a stone tower in the corner of the bawn which was part of an old castle built by the De Cantillons. A new house replaced the thatched building around 1758 and this was further remodelled into a castellated mansion designed by Richard and William Vitruvius Morrison around 1809 (Bence-Jones 1988, 22-3). Burnt during 1921, a wing was recently restored and now forms the centrepiece of a surrounding golf course. Compiled by: Matt Kelleher Date of upload: 19 December 2013

The castle at Ballyheige was originally built by the De Cantillon family, an early Norman family in Ireland, and later held by the Crosbie family. It is remembered for its historical association with these prominent families and as an example of early medieval defensive architecture in the region.