This Norman motte and bailey fortification consists of a large conical earthen mound, measuring 75 metres southwest to northeast and 70 metres northwest to southeast, with a flat summit spanning roughly 25 by 20 metres. The mound is enclosed by an earthen bank that rises to 7.5 metres externally and 6.5 metres internally. Whilst cattle have worn a path up the eastern side and soil slippage has created stepped terraces on the steep slopes, the earthwork remains an impressive example of early Anglo-Norman military architecture.

Attached to the northeast side of the motte is a trapezoidal bailey, an enclosed courtyard measuring 30 by 45 metres internally. This lower defensive area is surrounded by its own earthen bank, standing 4.5 metres high on the outside, with an external fosse (defensive ditch) and a counterscarp bank beyond. The interior of the bailey slopes dramatically towards the northeast with a fall of about 7.5 metres, though terraces at both the upper and lower ends provide some level ground. Atop the main mound stand the ruins of a shell keep, whilst a large ringfort, predating the Norman fortification, occupies the opposite end of the ridge some 60 metres to the southwest.

The castle’s history begins around 1198 when William de Burgh first occupied the site during the initial stages of the Norman conquest of Ireland. By the mid-13th century, ownership had passed to the Geraldines (the FitzGerald family), who maintained control of this strategic position until the late 16th century. The earthwork defences were likely constructed during de Burgh’s initial occupation, making them over 800 years old. Today, much of the bailey’s enclosing bank is overgrown with bushes, as is part of the bank surrounding the mound, though the remainder of the site is maintained under grass, allowing visitors to appreciate the scale and design of this important medieval fortification.