The Annals of the Four Masters report that Brian Boru destroyed a Viking settlement in the area in 977.

[5] Richard de Clare was killed in 1311, and in 1314 the town of Bunratty was burned to the ground by the local people.

[4] The current Bunratty Castle was built by the MacNamara family in the early part of the 15th century.

In the early 18th century it came into the possession of the Studdert family, who built Bunratty House in 1804.

[7] Bunratty is the location of the death of the last British soldier to die in Clare during the Irish War of Independence.

Although Bunratty Castle thrived, becoming a major draw for early transatlantic tourists, the village population continued to decline.

[16] The company founder, Eoin Gavin, began as the operator of an eight-wheel tipper from the quarry.

[17] Prior to the construction of the N18 bypass, the main road from Limerick and Shannon Airport to Ennis passed through the village.