Castle - tower house, Cregga, Co. Roscommon
Castle - tower house, Cregga, Co. Roscommon
Marked on both the 1837 and 1914 Ordnance Survey six-inch maps, this castle tower house has been traditionally associated with the Mac Dermot Roe family, though historical evidence suggests it more likely belonged to the O’Conor Roe clan, as noted by Lewis in 1837. The building’s unusual construction, carved directly into the rock face, speaks to the ingenuity of medieval Irish castle builders who worked with the natural landscape rather than against it.
The structure itself is remarkably preserved, with its rectangular chamber measuring 8.3 metres north to south and 3.8 metres east to west, reaching a height of 2.6 metres. The western wall features the remains of a fireplace, 1.8 metres wide, complete with a flue built into the masonry. Along the northern wall, visitors can spot a blocked doorway near the eastern end, with what appears to be a built-in cupboard beside it; a practical touch that suggests this space was once used for storage. Above, a masonry vault soars to approximately 4 metres in height, with a window set into the eastern wall beneath it and a narrow doorway in the western wall that opens onto the outcrop’s summit.
The castle’s story took an interesting turn in later centuries when it was repurposed as a coach house, evidenced by the insertion of a large, flat-arched doorway into the eastern wall, measuring 2.15 metres wide and 3.15 metres high. This practical conversion shows how these ancient fortifications continued to serve local communities long after their defensive purposes had passed. About 100 metres to the east stands a related house structure, suggesting this site remained an important local landmark throughout its history. Today, the castle tower house at Cregga offers a fascinating glimpse into both medieval Irish architecture and the practical adaptations that allowed these structures to survive into the modern era.