Castles built over the centuries, in a variety of architectural styles, dominate the Irish landscape. Situated on slight rises, dramatic plugs of rock, on lake shores or islands, some are visible for several miles in the distance from all directions; brooding ruins etched against the sky.
Aughnanure Castle, a fine tower house, less than a mile-and-a-half south of Oughterard, Co Galway, is special for many reasons, not least its romantic location.
Set well off the main Galway-Clifden road, this secluded castle on a rocky peninsula is approached by a winding path running alongside a stream, the Drimneen river. Water has played its part in the castle's history. At the south-west corner of the site, scant traces of the 16th-century banqueting hall remain. The rest of what would have been a large room collapsed long ago into the underground river which once flowed below it and has since been redirected. Another dry bed comes to an abrupt end on the east side of the site, near the front entrance of the castle building.
Trees bordering the narrow banks on both sides prevent a clear view of the castle and add to, particularly in summer, the prevailing sense of mystery.
Cattle lounge in the field. Their tails move just enough to scatter persistent flies. The path winds into a bend, at the end of which a simple, natural, rock bridge leads to the entrance of the castle grounds.
Should you pause before passing through the gate, however, you will notice an ancient, slightly bowed yew tree appearing to rise up from the stones beneath the path. Its presence is both symbolic, Aughnanure comes from the Irish Achadh na n-lubhar meaning the field of the yews - and also rather sad. Although yew trees are long-living, this survivor is the last of what must have been a substantial enough number to have given the place its name.
Politically, the castle enjoyed much importance as a stronghold of the O'Flaherty clan, maverick rulers of the entire area of west Connacht from the west bank of the Corrib to the sea for some 300 years from the 14th century.
By the mid-16th century, an even more explosive element was added through the marriage of the then 16-year-old Grace O'Malley, later known as the defiant pirate queen, Granuaile , to Donal an Chogaidh O' Flaherty. Few natives willingly crossed either an O'Flaherty or an O'Malley.
Aughnanure as it appears today in a careful state of restoration with a modern roof, is preserved without indulging in forced pastiche. It is a six-storey tower topped by crenellated parapets. The two corner bartizans or square towers on the third floor, at mid-height, were defence features.
On passing through the front gates, the initial view is of the rear of the tower; the front entrance is reached by walking around the west-wall side of the tower. Immediately noticeable is not one but two bawns or wards. The inner one, which runs along the riverside, has a rounded turret, or watch tower, with a corbelled roof, while the outer bawn, which encloses the collapsed banqueting hall, also includes a circular turret. The castle seems to be set within its own small park, the scale of which makes it possible to imagine that this was once a busy household with a number of retainers.
Security was a preoccupation, judging by the layout, as well as by its description once, as "by far the finest fortified dwelling upon any part of the shores of Lough Corrib".
The first castle on the site may have been built by Walter de Burgo in the mid-13th century. In 1256, de Burgo defeated the O'Flaherty clan, taking the Corrib as well as its islands and castles. The family reasserted itself. Aughnanure as we know it dates from 1500. It was then the O'Flaherty clan established it as a stronghold that was to endure through many generations.
Towards the end of the 16th century, with the English increasingly interested in Connacht, the clan was ever on the alert to the threat of invasion and began making its own forays onto territory by then in English hands. Morogh na d-tuath O'Flaherty, also known more colourfully as Murrough of the Battle Axes, a member of a minor branch of the dynasty, made a career of pre-empting English expansionism. Still, his loyalty was considered valuable.
Having defeated an English expedition sent out against him in 1564, a victory which he followed with further aggression, he was nevertheless offered a full pardon by Elizabeth I who was anxious to have him on her side. She appointed him chieftain of west Connacht. In return, he agreed to keep the Queen's peace. None of this pleased the rest of the O'Flaherty clan, and the then legitimate chieftain was outraged at Morogh's blatant bowing to Elizabeth. Clan members vowed as one to deal with Morogh as a traitor and on securing the support of the Earl of Clanrickard's sons, decided to rebel against the crown.
Morogh, who appears to have had more luck than honour, was informed of these plans and passed on his information to the English. A force laid siege to Aughnanure then held by the family of the rightful O'Flaherty chief.
Elizabeth's men, under Sir Edward Fitton, took the castle. In 1572, it was presented to none other than Morogh, who consolidated its defences and made Aughnanure his home.
A later descendant, also named Morogh, would rehabilitate his branch of the family in the following century by serving Ireland well. The Crown would eventually grant the castle along with several other properties to the Earl of Clanrickard, but he in turn handed Aughnanure over to Bryan O'Flaherty in 1687 for a yearly rent. This rent became a mortgage in 1719 and the family was back in possession. In 1952, Peter O'Flaherty gave the castle to the State for preservation as a national monument.
The castle's often stormy history seems at variance with its peaceful, pastoral setting. A close inspection of the windows in the remaining wall of the banqueting hall reveals some unusual vine leaf-like decorative motifs. These are simple and rather plain, but then so is Aughnanure.
Looking at the dry, trough-like channel beneath the platform running along the surviving banqueting hall wall, it takes some imagining to conjure up the grand room that fell into the river that once flowed here. Yet, a glance at the fine fireplace dominating the vast general living room with wide mullioned windows on the third floor evokes traces of the intimate domestic life formerly lived here.
Back at the small jetty near the castle's front door it becomes possible to imagine the boats of friends and enemies that once made their way up the river to the castle. Standing as a great, solid rectangle, Aughnanure consists of whitewashed rooms stacked each on top of the one beneath, all accessed via the ingeniously constructed stone spiral stairs common to such buildings and designed with defence in mind. There is a secret chamber entered through the floor of the garderobe or lavatory dressing room. Views of the surrounding countryside and the Corrib as seen from the battlements - closed to the public - give an idea of the strategic position the castle enjoyed.
According to D·chas, the Heritage Service, about 23,000 visitors a year walk the charming path to Aughnanure. But there is also a select and fascinating group of local residents. The castle is home to at least three of Ireland's nine species of bats; the water-loving Daubenton's, the soprano pipistrelle and the brown long-eared bat. Bat presence is obvious; not from any sound or disturbance - merely from sightings at dawn and dusk, encouraged by clear evidence - bat droppings pepper the floors and in particular, those white-washed walls.
Kate McAney, of the British-based Vincent Wildlife Trust, has been researching bats since 1983 and has written extensively on them. Her work brought her to Aughnanure, an ideal habitat for bats. It is an old stone building near woodland and water, perfect for Ireland's insect-eating bats.
Galway Bat Group celebrated European Bat Day 2000 at the castle. To mark this year's National Heritage Week, an evening bat walk took place in the grounds.
Recalling a survey carried out in July 1996, McAney describes the experience of watching the bats leaving the castle at dusk and returning near dawn "like so many commuters". Their small, dry mouse-like droppings create extra maintenance work for D·chas staff and the castle's interior walls are regularly in need of more white-wash. But bats are welcome, as well as being protected, under Irish and international law. D·chas wildlife ranger Raymond Stevens is concerned with increasing public awareness "and appreciation" of bats.
Aughnanure is a beautiful place, not only an exciting and atmospheric introduction to the history of Connemara, but the castle is also a symbol of a once feared family's lengthy participation in Ireland's confusing history. Nor have the yews of the castle's name been forgotten. This year's Heritage Week also saw the planting of a young female yew, not far from the shade of the venerable lone survivor.
Aughnanure Castle is open on Saturdays and Sundays (10 a.m. to 6 p.m.) until the end of October. For more information, tel: 091-552214