Clare Castle

Clare Castle, General Ludlow's Base at Clarecastle

Clare on the banks of the Fergus River was once so imporant a town that in 1579 it gave its name to the entire county.......

Clare Castle | Co Clare
Photo: county-clare-i.com

........The castle was built in 1250 by Robert de Muscegros an English/Norman leader to protect the region and the Norman settlers living in the surrounding countryside.

But once Muscegros was re-called to England the castle seemingly was never quite literally out of the wars and in 1651 ended up in the hands of the Cromwellian forces under General Ludlow for a short time. While there Ludlow contracted a fever which he then fatally passed on to Oliver Cromwell's son-in-law Ireton who died from the illness in Limerick. (Ludlow recovered and eventually went into exile in Switzerland.)

Afterwards the castle was taken and re-taken several times in skirmish after skirmish until in 1712 the Earl of Thomond leased the castle, the town of Clare and some local townlands for an annual sum of 8 pounds to Robert Hickman after which the castle was used a barracks housing up to 320 men and some 20 officers, it continued in this capacity until 1921.

These are just loose snippets in the history of this once strategically important fortress and further reading can be accessed at the Clare Library website.

The image is a view of the building as seen from the bridge in what's now known as Clarecasle.....