Built by the O'Sullivan Beare clan to command Berehaven harbour and control sea fisheries, Dunboy was the site of a brutal two-week siege in 1602 by English forces under Sir George Carew during the Nine Years' War, after which the 58 surviving defenders were executed. The atmospheric ruins remain on the Beara Peninsula overlooking the harbour.
Visiting Dunboy Castle
Yes — ruins freely accessible on the Beara Peninsula.
"Built by the O'Sullivan Beare clan to command Berehaven harbour and control sea fisheries, Dunboy was the site of a brutal two-week siege in 1602 by English forces under Sir George Carew during the Nine Years' War, after which the 58 surviving defenders were executed."
Where to stay nearby
The closest castle hotel is Ballyseede Castle, 72.62 km away in Tralee — 15th-century castle, chief garrison of the Fitzgerald Earls of Desmond; the current structure dates to 1721 after the earlier castle passed to the Blennerhassett family, and it became a hotel in 1965.
