This impressive rectangular tower house, built from roughly coursed limestone rubble, rises four storeys high and measures 10.4 metres north to south and 13.2 metres east to west. Two distinctive angle towers project from the eastern face, flanking what was once the main entrance, whilst the walls, nearly two metres thick at the base, display the characteristic defensive batter typical of such fortifications.

The castle’s history traces back to at least 1591, when Moreghe O’Kennedy of Drumnamahane, chief of his nation, surrendered his claims to the Earl of Ormond, relinquishing rights to various territories including the castle and lands of Drumnamahane itself. By the time of the Civil Survey in 1654-56, the castle was already described as demolished, with only four cottages remaining on the lands without any improvements. The property had passed to the Countess of Ormond and Stephen McEgan of Lisleigh by 1640, both recorded as Irish Catholics in the historical records.

Despite centuries of neglect, the tower’s internal layout remains remarkably legible. The ground floor, accessed through the now destroyed eastern doorway, contained a lobby with mural stairs in the southeast angle and a guardroom in the northeast corner. Each of the small chambers within the angle towers features barrel vaulting, whilst the main chambers throughout the building showcase various defensive features including murder holes; one positioned over the entrance lobby and another protecting the southwest angle stairs. Particularly intriguing is a secret mural passage on the second floor, cleverly concealed within the window embrasure of the north window and running between the outer wall and the barrel vault below. Archaeological surveys suggest the tower once stood within a bawn, with possible remnants of this defensive wall projecting from the southwest angle and earthwork traces visible to the east, though dense vegetation now obscures much of this area.