Castle Otway, Ruined country house near Templederry, Ireland
Castle Otway is a stone structure near Templederry in Ireland, rising from a hilltop with a seven-section front facade. The ruins display a blend of medieval fortress design and 18th-century manor house features combined into a single building.
The estate was granted to John Otway in 1685 and became a significant residence for the family over the following centuries. Fire destroyed the structure during the Irish Civil War in 1922, leaving only the ruins visible today.
Castle Otway once held the Otway Harp, an ornate late 16th-century instrument. It is now owned by Trinity College Dublin. The harp is a wire-strung instrument played with the fingernails, not a bowed one, and its association with the house recalls the Otway family's place in Irish musical collecting.
The ruin stands on a hill on the outskirts of Templederry, near Nenagh in County Tipperary; the surrounding gardens and estate land are farmed, so expect no marked paths or facilities. The building is a roofless, derelict shell, so view it from the farmland edge rather than entering.
The Otway Harp, an ornate late 16th-century instrument, was kept at Castle Otway before passing to Trinity College Dublin. The house itself was built in stone against the ruins of Cloghane Castle, and in the 19th century a tower house was added at the rear on the remains of the castle keep.
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