The tower house, rising four storeys with distinctive gables springing directly from its outer walls and circular bartizans at opposite corners, was originally part of a fortified complex that included a bawn, or defensive wall, with a circular flanker tower still visible today. The second floor features pointed arch vaulting, whilst the windows display carved limestone hood mouldings and decorative mullions, showcasing the craftsmanship of its era.

The castle's turbulent history reflects the broader political upheavals of Ireland. Originally held by the Fitzgerald family, including Sir Edmund Fitz Gerrald who owned it in 1640 with its "Castle and Bawne and open quarie", the site witnessed significant military action in 1579 when the Earl of Desmond's brother John defeated an English force nearby. Following Sir John Fitzgerald's flight to France after the Treaty of Limerick in 1691, the property passed to the FitzMaurices and later to the Deanes, Lords Muskerry. The 1840 Ordnance Survey noted the castle measured approximately 10.3 metres by 6.5 metres, with walls about 13.7 metres high and 1.5 metres thick, built of mixed stone sizes with cut limestone window frames.

The present complex evolved significantly over time, with Lord and Lady Muskerry's ancestors establishing an 18th-century mansion within the original bawn area around 1740. After this house burned during the Civil War in 1923, it was rebuilt circa 1925 as a Gothic Revival country house featuring octagonal corner turrets with pinnacles, an eight-bay two-storey main block, and an entrance tower. The site now operates as holiday accommodation, preserving both its medieval defensive architecture and its later residential additions, whilst the ruins of the original bawn wall have been incorporated into decorative follies, creating a unique blend of authentic medieval fortification and romantic Gothic revival architecture.