Walshestown House, built around 1700, incorporates elements of the earlier fortification into its structure; dressed quoins from the original castle can be spotted in the house’s walls, whilst fragments of a door arch and other cut stonework lie strewn about the grounds. The terrace in front of the house, supported by low walls reaching up to two metres in height with distinctive base batter on the eastern and southern sides, may well be the last standing remains of the castle’s original foundations.

This was once the stronghold of the MacJames Barrys, a family whose castle played a significant role in the tumultuous wars of the mid-17th century. The conflicts of this period, which included the Confederate Wars and Cromwell’s conquest of Ireland, saw many such fortifications besieged, damaged or destroyed. The MacJames Barrys’ involvement in these wars ultimately led to the castle’s downfall, and by the 18th century, the property had changed hands, purchased by the Percival family who likely dismantled what remained of the medieval structure to build their Georgian residence.

Today, visitors to Walshestown can trace the layers of history in this quietly evocative site. The blend of medieval masonry recycled into Georgian architecture tells a story common across Ireland, where practical landowners repurposed ancient stones for new buildings, inadvertently preserving fragments of earlier fortifications. The proximity to bogland adds to the atmospheric setting, offering a glimpse into the strategic considerations of medieval castle builders who chose this elevated position for defence whilst maintaining views across the surrounding wetlands.