Portumna is a fortified house built in 1618, in County Galway. Renowned for the finesse of its architecture and the beauty of its formal gardens, Portumna Castle is a much-visited tourist site for Irish Renaissance enthusiasts… Here’s what to expect on your visit…
Portumna castle – Keith Ewing – cc
The house was built especially for the family of Richard Burke (also pronounced “Richard Burgo”), 4th Earl of Clanricarde. A connoisseur of French architecture, he asked his builder to build a house in a purely French style, in the vein of the Château de Versailles. To this end, the house was not only endowed with typical architecture, but also with a superb garden of implacable geometry.
The Burgo family lived here for several generations until 1826, when the house was devastated by a devastating fire. After renovating the house, the Burgo family abandoned Portumna Castle, eventually donating it to Irish Tourism.
Only the first floor is open to visitors: you’ll have access to numerous rooms, including a salon and dining room decorated in the Franco-Irish Renaissance tradition. The furnishings are sumptuous and complement the period paintings beautifully. A guide will tell you the story of each room and hall, as well as the history of the Burgo family.
The Portumna Gardens are located to the north of the house. The gardens include a formal garden, magnificently planted with strictly symmetrical hedges, and a 17th-century kitchen garden. You can visit these 2 gardens by strolling along the hedges and trees, discovering numerous aromas in the kitchen garden, as well as fruit trees, vegetables and flowers that delight the sense of smell.
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