Built sometime between 1582 and 1611 by Sir Christopher Daniel Bellingham, who would later become Dublin’s first Lord Mayor in 1665, Dubber Castle was never meant to be a grand fortress. Historical records from the Civil Survey of 1654-6 describe it simply as a ‘small castle’, already accompanied by other ruined walls, suggesting that even in its heyday it was a relatively humble structure.

The castle’s decline was swift and thorough. By the time local historian Adams documented the site in 1881, all that remained of the original building was a solitary door-sill lying northwest of Dubber House. Today, even this last vestige has vanished; visitors to the field will find no visible trace of the castle that once stood here. The complete disappearance of Dubber Castle serves as a reminder of how quickly Ireland’s built heritage can fade when left unprotected, leaving only historical records and archaeological notes to mark where these structures once stood.

While the site itself offers nothing for the eye to see, it remains catalogued in Ireland’s archaeological inventory, compiled by Geraldine Stout and later updated by Christine Baker in 2015. For those interested in Dublin’s lesser-known historical sites, the empty field at Dubber represents one of many lost castles that once dotted the Irish landscape; modest defensive homes built by the Anglo-Irish gentry that have since returned entirely to the earth.