Crom Castle, strategically located on Upper Lough Erne, controlling the Erne waterway between Enniskillen and Belturbet, was built in 1611 for Michael Balfour, the Laird of Mountwhinney, a Scottish Planter. It was sold to Sir Stephen Butler in 1619. A contemporary report of the Castle tells us it: ‘stands so close to the shore that in winter the waves dash violently against it. Walls are strong, but it has no outer walls, nor can it hold out along against a well-appointed force.’

In 1624, it was leased to James Spottiswood, Bishop of Clogher. In 1654, when his daughter married Abraham Creighton, the Castle passed into the Crichton family, later the Earls of Erne. On the Estate, are traces of a late 17th century formal garden and bowling green. Within this enclosure stands a giant yew tree, said to be the oldest in Ireland. Tradition reports that O’Neill, at the time of the Flight of the Earls, took leave of his ladylove under the ‘old yew tree’ of Crom.

In 1764, when the Crichtons were attending a party at nearby Florencecourt, the Castle at Crom went on fire. In 1838, the family built a new Castle, which, after another accidental fire, was rebuilt in 1841. The home of Ernes, Crom Estate now has two castles: the old Plantation Castle and the neo-Tudor house designed by the architect Edward Blore in 1879.

Infra-red image of Crom Castle ruins by David Robertson