The O’Mores were a powerful Gaelic clan who controlled much of County Laois during the medieval period, constructing fortifications throughout the region to maintain their territorial dominance. Though the original fortress has completely vanished from view, its ghostly presence lingers beneath the elegant 18th-century manor that replaced it.

Located in Rahanavannagh, County Laois, Blandsfort House represents a common pattern in Irish architectural history where newer structures quite literally rose from the ruins of older ones. The transition from medieval fortress to Georgian country house mirrors the broader transformation of Irish society following centuries of conflict and conquest. When the house was constructed in 1715, its builders likely salvaged stone and materials from the O’More stronghold, incorporating fragments of the older structure into the new foundation; a practical recycling that was commonplace during the period.

Today, visitors to the site will find no visible traces of the O’More fortress that once commanded this spot. The archaeological record, documented in the 1995 Archaeological Inventory of County Laois, confirms the complete absence of any observable medieval remains. What survives instead is Blandsfort House itself, a physical reminder of how Ireland’s built heritage often exists in layers, with each era of construction telling its own story whilst obscuring those that came before.