Ballyseede Castle - History

Originally home to the Blennerhassett family, Ballyseede was bought by hoteliers Marnie and Rory O’Sullivan in 2005 and has since undergone an immense but steady restoration.

In 1721, the first "Ballyseedy House" was built among ruins of the Geraldine Ballyseedy Castle at the west end of Ballyseedy Woods. The adjoining townlands of Ballycarty and Ballyseedy were the focal point of the Blennerhassett estate in County Kerry and the principal seat of the Blennerhassett family from 1590 to 1967.

Ballycarty and Ballyseedy each contained small but ancient Geraldine forts or castles belonging to the family of FitzGerald, Earl of Desmond, before the Fitzgeralds were dispossessed for rebelling against Elizabeth I.

Ballyseede Castle was rebuilt and enlarged twice, firstly in 1821. During this first remodelling (completed in 1821) the north wing was added.

Hilda Blennerhassett (1884-1965) was the last Blennerhassett to live in Ballyseede Castle (leaving it to her cousin Sir Adrian Blennerhassett who sold it in 1967). It has been said her ghost haunts the castle, and she’s mostly seen "roaming around" the upper floor bedrooms and the main staircase. People have said they get a very strong smell of roses preceding Hilda’s appearance.