It was late morning when Francois, Helene and I, after visiting two other historical places around Dublin, stopped to take a look at the rundown Puck’s Castle.

There is not much left of the original sixteenth-century building and its poor condition means there is little to look at too. There are numerous legends intertwined with its lavish history which was why it was on my list.

But first, the name.

“Puck” comes from the Gaelic word “Pooka” which is a word for “spirit”. In Celtic folklore these spirits were always associated with animals. The general idea is that these spirits are shape shifters which change form depending on their whim. They weren’t harmful spirits but a few legends do talk of malevolent pookas.

Over the years, the word “puck” died out in English. Perhaps the most famous use of it is in Shakespeare’s “Midsummer’s Night Dream”.

We drove down Puck’s Castle lane, a narrow sliver of a road south of Dublin. We had to keep our eyes peeled to spot it; the high hedges on either side of the road conceal most of the views in the fields. We parked by the gate to the field, vaulted over and approached the castle.

This is not far from Dublin’s neolithic grave.

The building is a solitary one in the middle of a large field. Vegetation grips the outer walls like slow-moving hands reaching out for it from the earth. As we got closer, we could see how thick the walls are. Clearly, someone wanted a sturdy building that could withstand attack.

Some legends associate this place with Ireland’s Battle of the Boyne. This was a war between the Catholic King James II and the Protestant Dutch Prince William of Orange. James allegedly sought refuge in this castle as he retreated from battle¹. Given the sturdiness of the place, I think it’s likely that many people found this place a good one to stop in.

Inside, the remains of a staircase beckoned and I crept up, gingerly stepping from one support to another. There are two stories apart from the ground floor, but there is no way to easily get to the top floor. On the ground floor, you can see sections where doors were widened and what’s left of a chimney is a clue to what that part of the place was used for.

There also is one reference to a curious disappearance of a young lady around the castle. In June 1867, Jane Eleanor Sherrard was out picking flowers when she disappeared and was never seen again. Police found a witness who placed her around Puck’s Castle but never managed to solve the case².

We strode the 1 minute walk back to our car with the castle solemnly staring at our retreating backs. If only those walls could talk …

Have you been castle hunting recently? Leave a comment and tell us about it!

1. Puck’s Castle; Atlas Obscura; (Retrieved 2018-02-19) [↩]
2. The Pooka, a spooky disappearance and King James II; Curious Ireland; (Retrieved 2018-02-19) [↩]