The Barberstown castle was built in 1288 on a land that was owned by the FitzGeralds, one of the most powerful Norman families.
The purpose of the castle was to protect the town from the invasions and the raids of the rebels led by the king Uí Faelain.
The walls of the castle slope inwards as they go up, in order to prevent the enemies from getting out of range as they were getting closer to the tower. Despite of this, the rooms on the upper floors are larger than those on the ground floor because the upper floors have thinner walls.
Since it was built, the castle has had 37 owners, the first one being Nicholas Barby. One of the last owners was the singer Eric Clapton who owned it from 1979 to 1987. The current owner is Ken Nealy.
Today the castle is a luxury hotel with 59 exclusive bedrooms.
We saw the castle only from the outside, for obvious reasons.
|