Geograph - photograph every grid square

There is a slight air of menace about this castle that may relate to the fact that it was the scene in 1487 of the murder of James, 9th Earl of Desmond by his servants on the instigation of his brother. Other well known personalities have also occupied it, notable among them was Edmund Spenser and Walter Raleigh in 1580. It was subsequently granted to the Southwells who added a wing in 1610. It was captured by the Irish in 1641, but eventually taken by the Cromwellians in 1651. The second and fourth of the four storeys are vaulted, although there must at one time have been a fifth storey that incorporated the existing open bartizans. All the windows were widened in the C19, and the entrance moved from the east wall to the north. The castle was again renovated in 1970, and remains occupied.

R3541 : Castles of Munster: Castle Matrix, Limerick (2)