This square tower, measuring roughly 12.5 metres on each side, exemplifies the defensive architecture of its era with its pointed arch entrance, murder hole, and spiral staircase tucked into the northwest corner. The ground floor features a carefully designed defensive system; visitors entering through the western door would pass under a murder hole in the lobby ceiling, whilst a guard chamber to the south provided additional security. The main ground-floor chamber, spanning nearly 8 metres north to south, includes gun loops strategically positioned to cover the entrance, alongside windows with distinctive architectural features including ogee-headed and round-headed lights.

The upper floors reveal the castle’s dual purpose as both fortress and residence. The second and third floors contain the main living chambers, each lit by multiple windows with elaborately carved details. The third floor is particularly noteworthy for its decorative elements; the north window features triple ogee-headed lights crowned with an intricately carved hood moulding, adorned with spirals, florets, fern leaves, birds, and geometric patterns. A fireplace on this level bears a Latin inscription dated 10 July 1598, marking repairs by Brian Mac Sweeney and his wife Orona Fitzgerald after the castle was sacked by James Fitzgerald earlier that year. The tower’s defensive features extend to its rooftop, where a bartizan sits atop the northeast corner, supported by five tapering corbels, whilst box machicolations once protected the entrance below.

Originally built by the Mac Carthys, the castle had passed to the Mac Sweeneys by 1584, who maintained it through turbulent times. The structure underwent significant renovation in 1844 when the Earl of Bandon renewed the 87 stone steps and timber floors, ensuring the castle’s preservation. Today, whilst the battlements have fallen and half of the first-floor vault has collapsed, Clodagh Castle remains an impressive example of late medieval Irish tower house architecture, its walls still bearing witness to centuries of Cork’s complex history through its architectural details, from the practical gun loops and murder holes to the ornate window carvings that speak to the status and ambitions of its various inhabitants.