The Rock of Dunamase, Co Laois
Stunning views of the surrounding countryside make the towering Rock of Dunamase a strategic place to build a fortress.
Dunamase Castle was said to have been founded in the late 12th century on the site of a 9th century fort. It passed into Anglo – Norman possession on the marriage of Aoife, daughter of Dermot MacMurrough to Strongbow. Their daughter Isabel married William Marshal. The Earl of Pembroke and the Marshal Family held Dunamase until the mid 13th century.
It was the center of military and administrative power in this part of Leinster under Marshal. It was passed through marriage to Mortimer who held it into the mid – 14th century.
Records indicate that it changed hands several times after Roger Mortimer was executed for treason by order of Edward III. It possibly ended in possession of the Irish O’Mores, who are credited with its destruction. It fell into disuse shortly thereafter.
The Castle is said to have been rendered harmless during the Cromwellian period. The hall was partially restored as a residence at the end of the 18th century, by Sir John Parnell, speaker of the Irish Parliament and grandfather of Charles Stewart Parnell; after his death, his son let it fall into its final decay.
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