Leap Castle is a 15th-century fortress built on the outskirts of the town of Roscrea. It has a strange reputation as a castle haunted by ghosts who have lived here and died horrific deaths… What’s up? Do you dare venture into this dark castle?
Leap Castle was built in the 15th century by the O’Bannon family, a wealthy clan who acted as secondary chiefs in the Offaly territory (the O’Carrolls being the supreme chiefs of the region).
As early as 1513, the castle repelled a first assault: Gerald FitzGerald is said to have tried in vain to seize the fortified enclosure. Faced with failure, the man attacked again 3 years later, and managed to partially destroy the castle.
Nevertheless, the O’Carrolls retook Leap Castle in 1557. However, the clan is torn apart by a fratricidal conflict: 2 O’Carroll brothers enter a bitter struggle for power. So much so, that one of the brothers ends up murdering the other (a priest), plunging his sword into the latter’s belly. He died in front of his family, while holding mass in a castle chapel.
In 1659, Leap Castle passed into the hands of the Darby family. The latter took the opportunity to enlarge the castle, including the central keep. During this period, countless Irish were imprisoned and executed within the fortress (it’s this sad history that has earned the castle its reputation for being haunted).
Unfortunately, the château suffered a major fire in 1922, destroying most of the building.
Subsequent archaeological digs uncovered an oubliette, where people were locked up without being fed. It took more than 3 carts to bring up all the human bones found in the dungeon.
Since 1991, the château has been privately owned by Sean Ryan, who decided to undertake restoration work. Since then, the château has been closed to visitors…
Today, the fortress is in a poor state of repair, but ongoing restoration work is making the castle accessible to visitors… Admire the castle’s 15th-century architecture, with its remarkably well-preserved main tower, courtyard and staircases, as well as its keep and annex rooms.
A word of warning to the faint-hearted: paranormal manifestations have reportedly been observed within the castle, giving it its reputation as a haunted castle. Legend has it that people who were imprisoned in the dungeon haunt the building. The most terrifying of these ghosts is said to have appeared in the form of a small gray man, with a decomposing face and black holes for eyes. His arrival would be accompanied by the smell of rotting corpses and sulfur… Some would even call this apparition under the name “It!”
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closed to visitors
