Bright Castle

Bright Castle lies in a rural area south of the town of Downpatrick, in County Down, in Northern Ireland.

Bright Castle was built probably built in the late 15th century or early 16th century as a 3-storey tower house. But by who I don't know. Less than half of the original structure survives. The east wall, about 6 meters long externally, and adjoining fragments of the north and south walls stand to roof level but the western portion of the castle has completely disappeared. There are some indications that there may have been a vault above the ground floor.

The tower is built out of split-stone rubble. The walls are slightly battered throughout their height and there was an oversailing parapet with some rain-water outlets at the base. The ground floor was lit by double-splayed loops and there are splays on the inside of the loops at the first floor.

At present the remains of Bright Castle are situated at the border of the Bright Castle Golf Club. The terrain of this club is not freely accessible but the ruin can easily be seen from the small road that runs next to it.

I had some difficulty finding Bright Castle and there isn't much left. So, I liked it but it isn't worth the detour.

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