Cahir Castle

Cahir Castle (Irish: Caisleán na Cathrach), one of the largest castles in Ireland, is sited on an island in the river Suir. It was built in 1142 by Conor O'Brien, Prince of Thomond.

Cahir is a fine example of a late Medieval Castle that had been enlarged and greatly remodeled in the 15th to 17th centuries. When the main line of the Butler family died out in the late 1700's, the castle fell into ruin. It was partly restored in the 1840's by the Cahir Butlers and more heavily restored after it became a National Monument in 1964. Among the restorations was the faithfully reproduced portcullis, one of a number of defenses the castle possessed. The site includes an inner ward which contains the majority of the buildings and towers (great hall, gatehouse, etc.) and is where the earliest building was carried out on the site of the original dun and cathair. It is also where the majority of the restoration was carried out. The Middle Ward and the outer ward were later additions.

There was actually little space for attackers on the island itself so it was difficult to storm the castle with large forces in the early days. The castle was built to be impregnable, with layers of defenses and this was very effective until the arrival of heavy cannons on the battlefields.

In 1599 the forces of Queen Elizabeth attacked when the castle garrison refused to surrender to the Earl of Essex. The artillery of the Earl of Essex did considerable damage to the castle walls in three days of siege. One of the cannon balls from this battle is preserved in the wall of the northeat tower. With the earlier siege still within living memory, in 1647 the occupants surrendered to Lord Inchiquin and three years later they abandoned the castle to Oliver Cromwell without firing a shot. The Butlers, however, maintained possession following the signing of articles in the castle in 1652. The Butler family undertook major restoration work in the years between 1840 and 1846 and it was during this period that Cahir Cottage was built at the far end of the outer ward - a more comfortable residence than the castle.

In 1964 Cahir Castle was acquired by the Irish State following the death of the last heir. More restoration work was undertaken by the State and it is now one of the largest and best preserved castles in the country. It is most famous for it's use in the film "Excaliber".

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