The structure features a circular tower at its northeast corner, with diagonally opposing bartizans; small turrets that project from the northwest and southeast angles at wall-walk level, creating effective defensive positions for the castle’s original inhabitants. Though much of what visitors see today reflects centuries of adaptation, the tower’s core dates to the late medieval period, when such fortifications were essential for controlling and protecting territory in Ireland.

The castle underwent significant transformation in the late 17th or early 18th century when a substantial two-storey house was built directly against its eastern facade. This gable-ended addition, which sits above a basement and features prominent chimney stacks, completely obscures the tower’s original entrance; a doorway that was once protected by a machicolation, a defensive stone projection from which defenders could drop objects on attackers below. The 19th century brought further changes, including the installation of large flat-headed windows with decorative hood mouldings and the reconstruction of the crenellated battlements in brick, replacing what would have been the original stone defensive features.

Despite these later additions, several original medieval features remain visible to keen observers. The northern wall reveals the practical necessities of castle life, with a garderobe chute at its base, part of the medieval toilet system that was housed within the oversailing structure supported by stone corbels from the second storey upward. This corbelled projection also contains mural passages, narrow walkways built within the thickness of the walls. On the southern wall, a single original window survives at ground level, its flat-headed design and finely punch-dressed stone jambs offering a glimpse of the tower’s medieval craftsmanship. A substantial rectangular chimney stack rises from the northern wall at wall-walk level, testament to the need for heating in this exposed upland location.