Bunratty Castle in County Clare is one of Ireland’s finest surviving medieval tower houses. The present fortress was built around 1425 by the MacNamara clan on a site occupied by three earlier castles. It later passed to the O’Briens, Earls of Thomond, and endured siege during the Confederate Wars. After the family moved to Dromoland, Bunratty declined into ruin under later ownership. Lord Gort purchased the roofless structure in 1953 and directed its careful restoration, furnishing it with medieval tapestries, furniture and artworks. Opened to visitors in 1962, the castle and adjoining Folk Park remain major heritage attractions worldwide.
