Haunted Places

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Kilbrittain Castle Ghosts

Kilbrittain Castle GHOSTS

Bawnea, Kilbrittain, Co. Cork, Ireland

Atmosphere

This is a unique experience! It is the oldest inhabited castle in Ireland, I’ve been told, & the couple that own & rent rooms are very knowlegable. Climb the narrow winding staircase to the 2nd or 3rd floors, know that your bathroom is in a turret! the rooms are huge!”

Review

4.5 on Trip Advisor

Price

€€

The oldest Inhabited Castle in Ireland?

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Kilbrittain Castle, was built by Mahon, king of Rathleann and a grandson of Brian Boru (from whom the O’Briens are descended) in 1035. It is located on the southern tip of Ireland in County Cork in a beautiful, quiet, serene setting. Kilbrittain Castle has been occupied by Irish chieftains, Norman invaders, Cromwellian troops and Anglo-Norman planters.

Kilbrittain Castle enjoys the status as one of the oldest inhabited castles in Ireland. Upon approaching this wonderful property, one sweeps down the drive, through the gates to the forbidding stone facade and external double staircase.

The steps into the castle were made uneven, to dissuade invaders. Irish wolfhounds, trained as attack dogs, shared space in the guard posts under the steps.

Kilbrittain has a murder hole and a large round roofed room downstairs, heated by one large fireplace, were the guards slept and ate. In the 1700s the second storey of the castle was taken off and two stories were added to the original structure (the first floor).

In the 1800’s a manor house was built onto the castle at a right angle by the Protestant owners, since at the time it was stylish to live in one of these and leave the castle empty.

In the 1920’s the IRA burned down the manor house. The original castle did not burn because the fire couldn’t burn through the thick stone connecting wall.