Dunsandle Castle facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Dunsandle Castle |
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Caisleán Dunsandle
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General information | |
Type | Tower house |
Location | County Galway, Ireland |
Coordinates | 53°14′43″N 8°38′43″W / 53.2454°N 8.6454°W |
Completed | c. 1460 |
Dunsandle Castle is an amazing old building from the 15th century. It is a type of castle called a tower house. You can find it near Athenry in County Galway, Ireland.
Contents
What is Dunsandle Castle?
Dunsandle Castle is a strong, tall stone building. It was built around the year 1460. This means it is over 560 years old! Castles like this were often homes and also used for defense.
History of Dunsandle Castle
This castle has a long and interesting past. In 1574, records show that a person named Villig Osebeg owned Dunsandle. These records are from a book about castles in Galway.
The De Burgo (also known as Burke) family first owned the castle. Later, it became the property of the Daly family. More recently, Dunsandle Castle has been carefully fixed up. An architect named David Newman Johnson helped with its restoration.
Special Features of the Castle
Dunsandle Castle has some very unique parts. Inside, there is a large room called a great hall. This hall has special wooden beams that hold up the roof. These "tie beams" are not often seen in Irish buildings from that time.
Another special feature is its "groin vault" construction. This is a fancy way to say how the stone ceilings are built. They have curved arches that meet in a criss-cross pattern. This makes the ceilings very strong and beautiful.
Around the castle, you can find other interesting things. There is an old ice house from the 1700s. This was used to store ice all year round! You can also see parts of a later addition to the castle. There is also a "Bawn," which is a strong outer wall. This wall has a defense tower with small openings called "gunloops." These were used for shooting at attackers.
The castle is surrounded by beautiful native Irish woodland. This means the trees and plants are natural to Ireland.
Exploring More
If you want to learn even more about Dunsandle Castle, you can visit its website. It has lots of information and pictures.
- Dunsandle Castle website (archived 2018)