Annaghdown Castle

The recently restored castle of Annaghdown can be found on the eastern shore of Lough Corrib.

The castle is said to date back to the 14th Century and is thought to have been built by the O'Flaherty clan, or depending where you read it may have been the Archbishop of Tuam in 1421.

When built the castle was used to control lake traffic to and from Galway city as roadways were not built until much later.

The original castle is said to have been five stories high with a murder hole.
What you see today looks to be four stories high.

Ray Cook of Galway bought the castle from Lady Cusack-Smith for £2.000 in the 1970's.
What can be seen today is the result of the restoration carried out by Ray and family in a later style than the original castle.

Access - The castle is a short drive from Corrandulla.
You will be able to see the site peeping above a line of tree's as you near the village of Annaghdown.
The castle is on private land, so please make sure to ask for permission to visit the site.  

    

Ballinduff Castle

Ballinduff Castle Co Galway can be found just off the main Galway Headford  N84 road in the parish of Kilcoona.
This 14th Century tower house is said to have been built by the DeBurgo family.
The Castle ruin is located very close to what remains of an earlier monastic settlement.

Ballinduff Castle is mentioned in the "Annals of the Four Masters" for a battle between The Clanricarde and Red Hugh O'Donnell who was aided by the Mayo Burke clan.  Red Hugh was victorious in the battle against The Clanricarde.

 The castle is recorded as being sold to the Skerrett family in the late 16th Century.

Access- you can see the castle from the N84 (on your left going towards Headford).
To get to the ruin turn left on a bad bend, drive for approx 1 km and take another left.  A few hundred metres just past a large house on the left you should see the castle through a field gate.