According to legend, blood was mixed with the mortar used to construct the original thirteenth century Granagh (Granny) Castle, now standing in ruin overlooking the River Suir. Whether this is true or not, the castle has endured its share of historical turbulence, and one former inhabitant is also believed by some to have been particularly vicious towards those who displeased her.

Grannagh Castle is just one of the properties associated with Lady Margaret FitzGerald (late fifteenth / early sixteenth century). A wise, forceful and courageous woman in her time, she tended to her family’s legal affairs, assisted her husband, Piers Butler (eighth Earl of Ormond), with the rebuilding and development of estates (including Grannagh and Kilkenny Castle), and oversaw the establishment of the Grammar School in Kilkenny. But it is also claimed in some quarters that, on occasion, she could be vindictive and ruthless. One story recounts how seven bishops were robbed and murdered at her bequest. Local villagers were hanged for her amusement, and her enemies were sealed in tunnels beneath the castle and left to perish. Other stories allude to witchcraft with an alleged fondness for placing curses on those who did not accede to her wishes. But was any of this true or was it simply a fabrication given her dynamic character and the perceived threat of a strong woman in those times?

The property was later captured by Cromwell’s armies and fell into a ruinous state.

Visitors to the castle have seen ghostly figures walking through the grounds and strange lights flickering in the ruins, while others have reported the sounds of ethereal voices and laughter when the site has been deserted.