Located in north-east County Cork, the village of Glanworth takes its name from the Irish Gleannúir (meaning Valley of the Yews). It was evidently the site of an ancient settlement that included a monastery, since it is believed that in the ninth century this was subjected to attacks by the Vikings, who sailed up the river Funcheon (a tributary of the Blackwater). One of Glanworth’s most distinctive features is its 13-arch limestone bridge crossing the Funcheon. Dating from the first quarter of the 17th century, it is said to be among the oldest and narrowest bridges still in daily use in Ireland. A now-abandoned mill built c.1780 lies beside the bridge, and on a high ridge above both of them are the remains of what was once a mighty castle.

Glanworth Castle was originally built by the Condon family in the late 12th century but by 1300 it had passed into the possession of the Roches, who were styled Lords of Fermoy. The castle remained in their hands until the Confederate Wars of the mid-17th century when it seems to have been badly damaged and likely abandoned. It has stood a ruin ever since. The remains seen today date from four different periods, with the earliest section being the rectangular hall-keep, surrounded by a protective wall nearly six feet thick, with round towers at each corner and a gatehouse on the western side. Not long afterwards, the gatehouse was enlarged and converted into a domestic residence (which the hall-keep had originally been). Then in the 15th century the gatehouse grew up to become a typical tower house. Finally, a separate kitchen building was constructed inside the old walls.

To the immediate north of Glanworth Castle stand two ruined churches, one being the former place of worship of the Church of Ireland which dates from c.1810 and the other being the only surviving remains of a Dominican Friary dedicated to the Holy Cross. It was founded in 1475 by the Roche family who lived adjacent in the castle, but the Dominicans can hardly have been there for very long, since the friary was closed down (as part of the Dissolution of the Monasteries) in 1541. At that time the site included a cloister, dormitory, hall ‘and other buildings’ but none of these remain. The church’s finest feature is the east window; in the 19th century this had been moved to the Church of Ireland church but has since been restored to its original location.