Between the 15th and 17th centuries the custom of building castles
gave way to the building of structures whose main function was as a residence,
rather than a solely defensive site. These buildings were called tower
houses. There are c.80 tower houses surviving in County Clare, many of
them in a very good state of preservation.
Photos
of tower houses in Clare Map
of the tower houses of Clare (based on the Sites and Monuments Record
created by the OPW overlaid on the 1842 Ordnance Survey index map).