Gemma Grant continues her series on the castles of Ireland
Described as ‘stunning, luxurious and steeped in a long and bloody history’, Ballyseede castle reaches back to the original owners, the Fitzgerald family, the earls of Desmond and builders of numerous castles.
Actively involved in the Desmond Rebellion, that sought to halt the encroachment of further English advancement over Ireland, the Fitzgerald lords were to the forefront of the uprising.
During the second wave of rebellion, the Rebel Earl, Gerard Fitzgerald, 15th Earl of Desmond, was decapitated in 1583 by the soldier, Daniel O’Kelly. O’Kelly was rewarded by Elizabeth l for his services “in consideration of his having slain the traitor Desmond.”