Fiddaun Castle

Fiddaun Castle, near the village of Tubber on the Galway–Clare border, is a striking 16th-century tower house and a National Monument of Ireland. Built in 1574 by Sir Roger Gilla Dubh O’Shaughnessy, it was the largest of four castles guarding O’Shaughnessy lands, covering nearly twelve acres within its walls.

The six-storey tower house, complete with a vaulted basement, spiral staircase, and great hall, is enclosed by an impressively preserved bawn wall with corner towers, a gatehouse, and defensive features such as gun loops and machicolations. The castle endured sieges in the late 16th and 17th centuries, and after the Jacobite wars was forfeited when Sir William O’Shaughnessy fled to France, where he later became a Marshal. Abandoned in 1727, it fell into ruin but still commands attention today.

Though on private land, Fiddaun Castle is maintained by the Office of Public Works and can sometimes be visited with the landowner’s permission. Remote but rewarding, it remains one of Galway’s hidden historic treasures.

Address
Tubber, County Galway, Ireland

Established
1574