Built in 1406 by O’Conor Rua, this stronghold barely lasted a year before Brian O’Conor and the Clann Donnchada burnt it down in 1407. The castle changed hands repeatedly throughout the 15th century, captured by Ruarai O’Conor in 1426, recaptured by O’Conor Rua in 1430, destroyed by Ulick Og Burke in 1485, and eventually falling to the Earl of Kildare in 1499 after O’Donnell failed to take it in 1490. The O’Conors and MacDermots continued to dispute ownership well into the 16th century, though by 1577 the castle was likely already in ruins.

Archaeological excavations beginning in 2004 revealed fascinating details about the castle’s construction. The rectangular tower house measured approximately 20 metres north to south and 10 metres east to west, with substantial walls nearly two metres thick resting on even wider foundations. The structure featured a rounded northeastern corner, a base batter, and was divided into multiple rooms including a garderobe chute in the eastern wall. Interestingly, the castle was built directly on top of an earlier rath or ringfort, with some of the original earthen bank preserved within the castle’s foundations. Later, an additional building was constructed to the east of the tower, built over the filled-in defensive ditch.

The excavations also uncovered evidence of much earlier occupation at the site. Beneath layers dating from the castle’s final destruction, archaeologists found 10th and 11th century artefacts including ring brooches, glass beads, and bone pins from the early medieval period. The site saw renewed activity in the 1590s when Bingham reused the location, leaving behind evidence of a small oval structure, possibly a house or shelter, at the northern edge of the mound. Today, visitors can see the castle remains alongside other historic features in the area, including another castle about 60 metres to the northwest, and a Dominican priory with the Bingham tower house roughly 110 metres to the southwest.