ARKIN CASTLE

Arkin Castle, also known as Caisleáin Aircín in Irish, is a 16th-century fortification that overlooks the Atlantic Ocean and the village of Cill Éinne on the island of Inis Mór of the Aran Islands. It’s believed that Arkin Castle was probably built upon the site of an earlier stronghold of the O’Brien clan.

In 1574, James Lynch was in possession of the castle which later passed hands to John Rawson in 1594 and Teige na Buille O’Flaherty in 1607. However, in the 1650’s the castle became occupied by troops of Oliver Cromwell and was eventually demolished to make way for a Cromwellian Fort. Stones from the nearby round tower and churches would have been used to fortify the castle.

Today, unfortunately none of the original castle survived. A plan of the fort showed a rectangular structure with two square towers on the seaward side and two circular towers to landward. The remains of the fort consist of a large portion of the north wall, a small tower in the south east corner and the remains of the water gate to the north.