Built by Richard Bellew between 1472 and 1479, the castle now exists only as fragments, with portions of stone flooring and walls standing about 30 metres east of the current Bellewstown House. These weathered ruins mark the site of what was once a significant defensive structure in the region.

The castle’s history spans several turbulent centuries of Irish history. In 1598, John Bellew undertook repairs to the castle’s steps and door, an event commemorated by a curious set of inscribed stones. Two of these stones can be found on a building east of the castle known as the Lodge, whilst a third stone in nearby Sarsefieldstown completes the inscription. During the English Civil War, the castle played a strategic role when Cromwellian troops occupied it during the siege of Drogheda in 1649, one of the most brutal episodes of Cromwell’s Irish campaign.

By the 19th century, the castle had fallen into ruin, though its location remained significant enough to be marked on a Geological Survey map by George Victor Du Noyer in 1866. Today, visitors to the site can explore these modest remnants and contemplate the layers of history embedded in the surviving stonework, from its medieval origins through centuries of conflict and change in Irish society.