This fortified courtyard, measuring 32.5 metres east to west and 28.5 metres north to south, once formed a protective enclosure around the tower house that still dominates the site. Today, visitors can trace the grassed-over wall footings that mark out the entire perimeter of this historic structure. The tower house itself juts into the northwest corner of the bawn, with the courtyard walls extending from its southwest corner and rejoining it just north of the southeast corner, creating an integrated defensive complex.

Archaeological surveys have revealed intriguing details about life within these walls. Two rectangular structures can be traced within the bawn’s interior; one in the northeast corner and another in the southern sector, though without excavation it remains unclear whether these buildings were contemporary with the main fortifications or added later. A gap at the western end of the south wall likely marks the original entrance to the courtyard. The site gained particular significance through recent research by FitzPatrick in 2019, who conducted a detailed survey examining its connection to the Uí hUiginn poets, a renowned literary family of medieval Ireland who were associated with this settlement.

The defensive nature of Kilcloony extends beyond the bawn itself, with a possible enclosure visible to the south of the main fortifications. Both features appear clearly in aerial photographs from 1967, offering a bird’s eye view of how these medieval structures relate to each other and the surrounding landscape. The site was most recently inspected in August 1980, when the full extent of the bawn’s foundations could still be traced, providing valuable insights into the layout and scale of this medieval stronghold.