ABSTRACT
The most obvious feature of the tower-houses of Ireland is that (like every castle, of course) they are not uniform. Between the general uniformity of the type and the individuality of each lie regional groupings. Again, in discussing this, as with the discussion of the distributions and of the use, it must be stressed that the basic work of survey of the castles has not been carried out. We can only sketch out likely lines for further research, not present systematic evidence and conclusions. The regional differences may be identified, or not, in individual areas, but their boundaries cannot be defined. The differences can be expressed in terms of their overall plan or in details of construction.
