Smarmore Castle is an Irish Medieval castle located south of Ardee in County Louth.

History

A view of Smarmore Castle
Smarmore Castle, County of Louth, Ireland. First mention in 1320. Was the seat of the Taaffe family for centuries. Since 2016, the castle is an addiction treatment centre.

Smarmore Castle was first officially mentioned[1] in 1320 as the seat of the Taaffe family.[2]

The Taaffe family, originating from Britain, lived in Smarmore Castle up to the 1980s. While the tower house was built in around 1320, other buildings of the castles have been established in 1730 to 1750. After the Taaffe family sold the castle it was converted into a guest house. In 2015, Castle Craig, a British Addiction Treatment Center, acquired Smarmore Castle. The Smarmore Castle Private Clinic, a drug and alcohol treatment centre, opened in 2016.[3]

Origin of Name

The name Smarmore is seen to have its origin in an Irish language legend known as Táin Bó Cúailnge (The Cattle Raid of Cooley).

References

  1. ↑ Taaffe, Rudolph (1958). "Taaffe of County Louth". Journal of the County Louth Archaeological Society. 14 (2): 55–67. doi:10.2307/27728944. JSTOR 27728944.
  2. ↑ Barry Landy (16 October 2015). "Taaffe's Smarmore items up for auction". thisisardee.ie. Retrieved 31 August 2018.
  3. ↑ Kelvin Farrell (6 July 2016). "Smarmore Castle Private Clinic holds official opening". thisisardee.ie. Retrieved 31 August 2018.

53°48′52″N 6°33′56″W / 53.81437905°N 6.56561111°W / 53.81437905; -6.56561111

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