Parke's Castle

Parke's Castle

A castle by the lake

On the peaceful shore of Lough Gill, in County Leitrim, stands the handsome and beautifully restored Parke's Castle. With its sturdy walls, corner turrets and a courtyard enclosed by a defensive wall, or bawn, it reflects in the still waters of the lake and makes one of the prettiest scenes in the north-west of Ireland. But behind its charm lies a story of conquest and change.

From Gaelic stronghold to planter's home

Long before the present castle, this spot was home to a tower house of the O'Rourkes, a powerful Gaelic clan who ruled the kingdom of Breifne. The O'Rourkes' story took a tragic turn at the end of the 1500s: their chief, Brian O'Rourke, sheltered survivors of the wrecked Spanish Armada and resisted English rule, and for this he was eventually captured and executed.

After the O'Rourkes lost their lands, the area was granted to an English settler, Robert Parke, as part of the Plantation of Ulster — the great resettlement when English and Scottish colonists were given Irish land. Around 1610, Parke built the fortified manor house we see today, using stone from the old O'Rourke tower that had stood on the site.

A fortified manor

Parke's Castle is not a grim medieval fortress but a "fortified manor" — a comfortable house that still needed strong defences in uncertain times. Its bawn walls, gatehouse and turrets protected the family, while inside it offered more comfort and light than an old tower house. It shows how the new settlers built homes that were part castle, part country house.

The castle even had its own features for self-sufficiency, including a sweat-house (an early kind of sauna) and access to the lake, where a covered dock allowed boats to come and go safely.

A careful restoration

Over the centuries the castle fell into ruin, but in modern times it was the subject of a careful and award-winning restoration. Using traditional Irish materials and craftsmanship — including hand-cut timber and oak — the builders brought the castle back to life much as it would have looked in the 1600s. This makes Parke's Castle not only a historic monument but a showcase of traditional building skills.

A window into a changing Ireland

Parke's Castle tells, in one building, the story of a great turning point in Irish history: the fall of the old Gaelic order and the coming of the Plantation. Standing on the foundations of the O'Rourkes' stronghold, the planter's house speaks of conquest, settlement and the meeting of two worlds.

Visiting today

Visitors can tour the restored manor and bawn, see the traditional craftsmanship of its restoration, and learn the story of the O'Rourkes and the Plantation. The setting on the shore of Lough Gill — the lake that inspired the poet W. B. Yeats — is beautiful, with boat trips available on the water. Handsome, peaceful and rich in history, Parke's Castle is one of the loveliest historic sites in the north-west of Ireland.