Dunguaire Castle, Kinvara, Co Galway

Oil on Canvas

Dunguaire Castle is a 16th century tower house located in Kinvara on the shores of Galway Bay.  The castle was built in 1520 by the O’Hynes clan and passed into the hands of the Martyn’s of Galway in the early 17th century.  Richard Martyn, Mayor of Galway lived here until 1642 and the Martyn’s of Tulira Castle, owned the castle until this century.

In 1924 Dunguaire was bought and repaired by Oliver St. John Gogarty, the famous surgeon and literary figure. This was the time of the great Celtic revival in Irish literature exemplified by the works of writers such as Synge, Yeats Shaw and O'Casey. It became the venue for meetings of the literary revivalists such as W.B. Yeats, his patron Lady Gregory, George Bernard Shaw, Edward Martin and J.M. Synge. Yeats in particular believed strongly in the Celtic Bardic tradition and set about reviving the ancient oral customs incorporating them into his plays and poetry.  

In 1954 the castle was acquired by Christobel Lady Amptill who completed the restoration started by Oliver St. John Gogarty.