Though built in 1818 for Henry Agar, second viscount Clifden, what is known today as Gowran Castle dates from 1385, when James Butler, third earl of Ormond, erected a castle on rolling hills in the townland of Gowran in Co Kilkenny.
The building’s entry in the National Built Heritage website states that it has “deliberate alignment maximising on scenic views” with “St Mary’s Church, Gowran, as an eye-catcher in the near distance”.
The little church, a national monument visible from Gowran Castle, is somewhat like a veritable history book for the area. A Christianised Ogham stone, believed to date from the third or fourth century, on display there indicates that the scenic spot has been a place of residence and prayer dating back 2,000 years.




Besides housing what is believed to be the oldest burial monument in Ireland (dating from 1218), it is also home to burial plots of many of the Butler of Ormond family, who had originally built the castle 800 years ago. According to local history, Oliver Cromwell attacked and badly destroy the castle in 1650 before it was extensively rebuilt by the Agar family – who are also buried at St Mary’s Church.
The 733sq m (7,890sq ft) pile, still known today as Gowran Castle despite its form as a gem of a Georgian country house, changed hands quite a few times over the past century. It went on the market in 2010 and later had a planning application to change its use to a hotel and residential units refused, eventually ending up in Nama’s portfolio and offered for sale in 2012.



There’s an entry from 2013 on the Property Price Register stating that Gowran Castle sold for €90,000 in 2013, though this entry would not have included the 68-acre estate. And back then the property was in a sorry state, having suffered years of neglect.
Its current owners engaged local conservation consultant James Powell to advise on restoration, such was the state of disrepair. “It was derelict and had been for more than 15 years. We had to take out all the floors, repair all the plasterwork and get rid of all the dampness so it was really starting over from scratch,” says the owner.
Thanks to the work of local tradesmen and input from Kilkenny County Council, “who came regularly and gave lots of advice”, what now stands on this beautiful site is a fully restored home of significant historical importance. It took the guts of three years to renovate.


Many of the original fireplaces had disappeared over the course of its dereliction, so the owners engaged Jim Harding of Harding Stoneyard to create replica limestone/marble fireplaces to match those that would have originally graced the halls and reception rooms.
The fact that all floors had to be removed meant insulation could be sunk under new flooring, most of which now has underfloor heating, vastly improving its energy rating, though due to its historical importance it is Ber exempt. A transformed walk-in period pile with contemporary comforts is now on offer, seeking €3.75 million along with the 68-acre estate through Savills. It is also available to purchase in two separate lots: with Gowran Castle on 14 acres guiding at €2.25 million; and 54 acres of land and equestrian facilities guiding at €1.5 million.



Behind an imposing bell-mouth entrance with limestone pier and castellated gates, a long driveway flanked by lime trees leads to the impressive three-bay, two-storey-over-basement pile.
Inside its Doric portico entrance are three superb reception rooms, and the front hall is spacious enough to be considered a fourth. There are also five bedrooms on the first floor.
Downstairs, at garden level, which would historically have been where the property was run from, now has a billiards room complete with a bar, a wine cellar, a gym and storage rooms.
Notable finishes in formal rooms include wooden sash windows complete with shutters, tall ceilings with superb cornicing, ceiling roses and architraves.
Room layouts have been chosen to mark the path of the sun: the kitchen by local company Sinnott Kitchens has a south-facing aspect, while a morning sittingroom benefits from an easterly aspect with the formal drawingroom lying to the west.
Besides restoration of the main house, owners also converted a one-bedroom cut-stone gate cottage and a three-bedroom apartment on the first floor of an American-style barn.
A huge selling point is the superb equestrian facilities on site. These are in excellent order, and accessed by a separate, oak-lined avenue. They include the six-bay American barn and adjoining four-bay general-purpose shed. There’s also a veterinary practice with an office, lab, reception and examination room in situ. Outside a lunging ring, a horse walker, wintering pens and sheds have facilitated raising showjumpers here.
A river and woods to the south of the stable block offer an idyllic hacking trail for new owners, in addition to a floodlit all-weather sand and fibre arena.
Owners love the fact that their home has an entrance to the main street in the village, so they can walk for a pint and indeed to the local golf course for a round on the green.
While Gowran Castle may not retain its original castellated form – as a result of Oliver Cromwell’s actions some 500 years ago – there’s little doubt this historical Kilkenny pile is suitably fit for royalty.