1864 – New Castle, Portumna, Co. Galway

Architect: Thomas Newenham Deane

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Built in a French Gothic style for the Marquess of Clanricarde. It was two-storeys with a high pitched roof and an attic of steep gables and dormer-gables. There were small towers with pointed roofs and elaborate windows. It was rarely lived in. The last Marquis of Clanricarde, who succeeded in 1874, was a notorious miser and eccentric who dressed like a tramp and spent his life in London. He died in 1916, leaving Portumna Castle and estate to his great-nephew Henry, Viscount Lascelles, afterwards 6th Earl of Harewood.

Burned in 1921 and later demolished. Cut stone from the ruin was used to build the new Church at Portumna, which began in 1958 and was completed in 1961.

Published March 13, 2022 | Last Updated June 21, 2024