Carlow Castle is a 13th-century Anglo-Norman fortified castle in Carlow town center. Situated close to the Burren and Barrow rivers, all that remains of the castle are 2 fortified towers and its eastern perimeter wall. The sight of its ruins is most edifying, transporting us to another century, to the time of the Channel Invasions in the 12th century…
Carlow Castle was built between 1207 and 1213 by William the Marshal, an Anglo-Norman and Earl of Pembroke. The building site was located in the heart of Carlow town center, on a motte once erected by Hugues de Lway in 1180.
The style of the castle is profoundly Anglo-Norman, making it one of the first Norman fortified castles in Ireland. Its main room is a dark, damp dungeon, where William the Marshal used to lock up his prisoners… The rest of the rooms served as residences for the owner and his family.
As early as 1306, the castle fell into the hands of the English crown and remained as such until 1616, when it was finally acquired by the Earl of Thomond.
But this possession was short-lived, and the castle changed hands again during the Irish Confederate Wars (1641-1653). It now belongs to the Confederates. The latter took advantage of the situation to lock up a large number of prisoners in the dungeon of Carlow Castle.
In 1650, Henry Ireton reconquered the castle, returning it to the Earl of Thomond, who eventually sold it to the Hamilton family, and then to Dr. Philip Parry Price Middleton. The latter sees the castle as a wonderful opportunity to turn it into a psychiatric asylum. He then started work, but encountered countless difficulties: the château was in such a state that it was difficult for him to undertake anything. In February 1914, when he tried to dig an underground passage using explosives, most of the east wall collapsed, along with 2 of the 4 towers of Carlow Castle. The situation makes construction impossible, and the doctor’s plans are finally forgotten…
Only the west wall, a curtain wall and 2 watchtowers have stood the test of time. The rest is a succession of crumbling stone heaps that no longer resemble what the castle was when it was first occupied.
The château as built is rectangular in plan, with 4 crenellated corner towers. Built of limestone blocks, the château had 3 storeys (the third was added in the 15th century), each with windows and loopholes.
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