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Temple House today

Ireland · Ruin

Temple House

Templehouse Castle is the medieval stone castle whose lakeside ruins lie beside the later Temple House estate in County Sligo. Built in the late 12th century for the Knights Templar, its rectangular plan survives only as low curtain walls and two tall rectangular tower blocks today.

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Photograph via Wikimedia Commons

Its prime

1627

Today

Ruin

As it stood in 1627

What Temple House looked like in its prime.

A low-lying rectangular stone castle sited beside a lake, with two tall, roughly rectangular tower-blocks set in the curtain wall and a large arched entrance through the wall. The masonry is pale to mid-grey rubble stone; the surviving wall line is broken by gaps and a central opening that frames the water beyond. At its prime the walls and towers would have stood to full height around an open central courtyard, forming a compact, rectangular enclosure.

Its story

The story of Temple House.

Templehouse Castle was built in 1181 near Ballinacarrow in south County Sligo, a rectangular, keepless castle of the Knights Templar. The Temple House lands were granted to the Templars in 1216 and passed to the Knights Hospitaller when the order was disbanded in 1311. The castle was converted to a domestic residence in 1627, then besieged and badly damaged in 1641.

The Perceval family has lived on the lands since 1665, George Perceval having acquired the property by marriage to an heiress of the Crofton family of Longford House. It descended through generations of Percevals, several of them High Sheriffs of Sligo, to Colonel Alexander Perceval, MP for County Sligo and Sergeant-at-Arms in the House of Lords, whose extravagance forced the sale of the house at his death in 1858; his third son Alexander bought it back with a fortune made in China.

The lakeside castle ruins, low curtain walls and two tall rectangular tower blocks, now stand below the Georgian mansion of about 1825, substantially extended around 1864, which remains a Perceval family home filled with heirlooms and providing tourist accommodation.

Step inside

5 places to explore in 1627.

The record describes 5 distinct spots at Temple House, including 1 interior: ground-level chamber in the east tower. Create your own photoreal reconstruction and explore every one, more scenes means more rooms, more angles, and more of the place to stand in.

Approach from the lawn toward the lakeside ruinsArched entrance through the curtain wallCentral open courtyard looking toward the lakeGround-level chamber in the east towerView through the central gap to the lake

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Recreate Temple House with AI to explore it.

The artist rebuilds it as it stood in 1627, a photoreal reconstruction that belongs to you alone. Pay with coins, no subscription needed.

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Whose castle

Clans who held Temple House.

The families that held Temple House for a decade or more across its history, follow a name to its clan.

  • Perceval

    The Perceval family has held Temple House since 1665.

Questions about Temple House

What is the history of Temple House?

Temple House was built in 1181 for the Knights Templar. The rectangular, keepless castle stood near Ballinacarrow in south County Sligo. Its lands were granted to the Templars in 1216, passed to the Knights Hospitaller in 1311, and the castle became a domestic residence in 1627 before being badly damaged in a siege in 1641.

What is inside Temple House?

Inside Temple House, the documented surviving interior is a ground-level chamber in the east tower. The castle also retains the line of a central open courtyard, although the surviving structure is now in ruin. The entrance is a large arch through the curtain wall, with a view through the central gap towards the lake.

Why was Temple House built, and what was it used for?

Temple House was built for the Knights Templar. It was a rectangular, keepless castle, and its purpose later changed when it was converted to a domestic residence in 1627. The castle’s lands had been granted to the Templars in 1216 and passed to the Knights Hospitaller when the order was disbanded in 1311.

Where is Temple House?

Temple House is near Ballinacarrow in south County Sligo, on the outskirts of Ballymote. The ruins overlook a lake and stand beside the later Temple House estate. The castle is located in County Sligo.

When was Temple House built?

Temple House was built in 1181, in the 12th century. It was a rectangular, keepless castle of the Knights Templar. The surviving structure is associated with the lakeside ruins beside the later Temple House estate.

Was Temple House ever attacked or besieged?

Temple House was besieged in 1641 and badly damaged. The supplied history does not identify who carried out the siege or state whether the castle held or fell. The attack forms part of the castle’s transition from a fortified Templar building to the ruined remains visible today.

Which family or clan held Temple House?

The Perceval family has held Temple House since 1665. George Perceval acquired the property by marriage to an heiress of the Crofton family of Longford House. The property descended through generations of Percevals, several of whom were High Sheriffs of Sligo.

What did Temple House look like in its prime?

In its prime, Temple House was a low-lying rectangular stone castle beside a lake. Two tall, roughly rectangular tower blocks were set into the curtain wall, with a large arched entrance through the wall. Pale to mid-grey rubble-stone masonry enclosed an open central courtyard, and the wall line framed the water beyond.

Is Temple House still standing or is it a ruin?

Temple House is a ruin today. Only low curtain walls and two tall rectangular tower blocks survive from the rectangular castle. Gaps break the surviving wall line, while the central opening frames the lake beyond.

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