Kilbolan Castle was built in the 13th century by a Norman knight, and, along with Liscarroll Castle, was one of the many castles built to defend the Norman territory from the attacks by the Gaelic clans.
This castle was square in plan and had circual corner towers linked by long curtain walls. Today only two of these four towers, the south and west ones, and the southwest curtain wall survive.
The castle had different owners in the centuries, and alterations can be seen in the masonry, like the 15th century windows and the 17th century gun-loops. Among the families who owned the castle there were the de Cogans until the 15th century, the Earls of Desmond, who bought it in the 16th century. The castle was granted to H. Ughtrede in 1587, and to Sir W. Power in 1613. It was mostly destroyed in mid-17th century by Cromwell's army.
The castle is within a private property, behind a timber fence, which, in turn, is behind an electric fence. The access if forbidden, mainly for safety reasons because the building is dangerous.
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