Barryscourt Castle Barryscourt Castle ( " Caisleán Chúirt an Bharraigh " in Irish ) is a castle located in eastern County Cork in southern Ireland , close to the town of Carrigtwohill . History . The site on which Barryscourt castle now stands has been occupied for over a thousand years - there is evidence of a wooden watermill having been built next to a stream at the site sometime in the 7th century , long before any fortification existed there . Barryscourt fell into the hands of the Anglo - Norman de Barry family in the 12th century , and masonry from this period found at the site may be the remains of another watermill or possibly an early fortification built by the Barrys . While the de Barry ' s lands in various parts of County Cork were divided amongst various branches of the family , Barryscourt remained in the possession of the most powerful branch , the Barrymores ( " Barra mór " or " Great Barry " in Irish ) . The Barrymore line later went extinct , Barryscourt thus passing to a distant cousin , James FitzRichard of the Barryroes ( " Barra rua " , " Red Barry " ) , in 1556 . The present Tower house at Barryscourt was probably built late in the reign of the Barrymores , either in the 15th or 16th century , with a tentative date of about 1550 based on the architectural style , and became the family seat of the Barrys . The Barrys supported the Desmond Rebellions of 1569 and 1579 , and in 1581 they destroyed or severely damaged the family castles to prevent English forces from capturing them , including Barryscourt , which was threatened by an army led by Sir Walter Raleigh . After the suppression of the second rebellion , the Barrys were pardoned by Queen Elizabeth I and Barryscourt was repaired , with an outer wall or " bawn " surrounding an inner courtyard being added , including 3 corner towers . Barryscourt ceased to be main residence of the Barry family in 1617 , but was evidently still an important fortification for many years afterwards , as it was attacked and captured in 1645 , during the Irish Confederate War . The marks caused by the impact of cannon balls during this attack can still be seen on the castle walls . Barryscourt castle eventually fell into disuse , and a house was built by the Coppinger family ( who had taken over the property from the Barrys ) next to the castle in the early 18th century ; this house has long since disappeared . The Barryscourt Trust was set up in 1987 for the purpose of conserving and developing the potential of the castle as a heritage site . In the 1990s , the relatively intact shell of the tower house was repaired and reroofed by Dúchas , and is now a popular tourist heritage site run by the Office of Public Works . The interior is furnished as it would have been in the 16th century . Architecture . Barryscourt castle was built in a style fairly typical in Ireland in the 16th century , consisting of a main tower house building with smaller adjacent buildings arranged around a courtyard , which was protected by an outer " bawn " or curtain wall , with 3 smaller corner towers . A large building once stood next to the main tower inside the bawn , and was probably a dining hall , but only ruins remain . The main tower is situated at the south - west corner of the roughly rectangular curtain wall and the main entrance to the courtyard is right next to it , set into the south curtain wall ( there is also a smaller gate in the north curtain wall ) . The dungeon is a drop - prisoner - in - from - the - top type . Three smaller turrets project from the north - east , south - east and south - west corners of the main tower . These three turrets are 5 storeys high , while the main block of the tower is only 3 storeys high . References . Medieval Ireland : The Barryscourt Lectures I - X . Published by the Barryscourt Trust in association with Cork County Council and Gandon Editions , Kinsale , 2004 . Editors : John Ludlow and Noel Jameson .