Today, only the gatehouse survives intact, having been cleverly incorporated into farm buildings sometime after 1700, along with fragments of stone walls and a defensive tower. The castle was built to command a crucial crossing point over a nearby stream, where traffic between settlements had to pass; a position that made it both valuable and vulnerable throughout its turbulent history.

The lands of Carrickmines have a documented history stretching back to 1178, when Archbishop O’Toole confirmed the local church and its tithes to Christ Church Cathedral. By the late 13th century, the area was held by the Anglo-Norman family of Roger fitz David, who paid their dues to the English crown whilst maintaining this frontier outpost. Throughout the 14th century, Carrickmines found itself on the volatile border between English-controlled territory and the Irish lands beyond, frequently mentioned in royal records as a defensive ward against raids by Irish clans like the O’Byrnes and O’Tooles. The castle became a gathering point for armed forces and a refuge during times of conflict, with royal officials like John Colton, Treasurer of Ireland, using it as a base for military operations in 1374.

By the 15th century, the Walsh family had become lords of Carrickmines, holding the manor directly from the crown and maintaining their own court there. Their ownership continued until the catastrophic events of the 1641 Rebellion, when the castle was attacked and partially destroyed, leaving it in ruins. The Civil Survey of 1654-56 recorded only ‘the Walles of a Castle’ remaining on the property, valued at a mere ten pounds. What we see today, the converted gatehouse and scattered masonry, represents centuries of adaptation and survival; from medieval stronghold to farm building, the stones of Carrickmines have witnessed the ebb and flow of Irish history, from Anglo-Norman conquest through rebellion and beyond.