Killeen Castle

For over eight hundred years, Killeen Castle has stood as a silent sentinel in the heart of Royal Meath, ancient home to the High Kings of Ireland. The history of Killeen Castle dates back over eight hundred years to 1181, when it was built by Hugh de Lacy as part of the strategic castle defence system for north Leinster. From 1403 until the 1950's, the castle acted as the seat of the Plunkett family, Earls of Fingall, amongst the oldest of the great Anglo-Irish families. From the late seventeenth to the late eighteenth centuries, Killeen Castle became dilapidated, due to the enforced absence of the Earls following the various uprisings and natural unrest. In the early nineteenth century the 8th and 9th Earls engaged renowned architects, Francis Johnson and then James Sheil to modernise the castle creating the design for the building which stands today. The 12th and last Earl of Fingall sold the Castle in 1951 and the estate was then run by its owners as a stud farm. In 1981 Killeen Castle fell victim to fire, and lay dormant and in ruins until 1997 when Snowbury Ltd purchased the castle and its grounds, with a vision to create the magnificent estate that exists today. Access to the castle and it's surrounds is not available at present.