Ireland

This is the major attraction of the town. The Castle is surprisingly well preserved and actually combines several styles and purpose driven types of architecture. The first castle was built around the late 1100s by Strongbow - a legendary Norman knight who married a native Irish princess. It was expanded a few years later to include four massive stone towers, solidifying the defensive fortification. Some three or four hundred years later, the south wall was destroyed during a seige by Oliver Cromwell's forces. The Duke that owned the castle returned after the British monarchy had been re-established and saw the damaged wall as an opportunty to rebuild a more Frech Chateau-like residence. After Irish independence, the property was finally given back to the people of Ireland and restored to the height of its spelndor.