[3] The castle was built around 1450 by Sir Thomas Plunket,[4][5] Chief Justice of the Irish Common Pleas.

[6] The castle's main tower is four-storey's tall and has tapering (almost square) turrets at each corner, rising above the parapet.

[7][6] The roof, which is arch-braced with four oak principals, has served as a model for restorations at Bunratty Castle and Rothe House.

The rafters are laid flat rather than on edge as in modern roofs and the framework is covered with split laths.

[citation needed] There is a small chapel to the south bearing the year "1573" over the door,[8] the Instruments of the Passion and the initials of Sir John Plunket and his third wife Jenet Sarsfield.