It was originally built in the 13th century, It was sold in 1611 to
Lord William Howard (1563–1640), the third son of
Thomas Howard, 4th Duke of Norfolk, who added a two-storied L-shaped house onto the
peel tower.
Henry Howard (1757–1842) inherited the estate from Sir Francis Howard, Lord William Howard's second son. The present façade was built for Henry by
Peter Nicholson between April 1812 and September 1817. In 1981 the castle was used as a location for the filming of a five-part BBC dramatisation of
Wilkie Collins'
The Woman in White. Robert Martin and Ian Yeates started a glassworks in the grounds of Corby Castle in 1986. Corby Castle was sold by Sir
John Howard-Lawson Bt. and Lady Howard-Lawson in 1994 to
Edward Haughey, Baron Ballyedmond, a businessman and
Ulster Unionist Party life peer. The principal contents of the castle were sold in 1994 through Phillips of Scotland. Lord Ballyedmond carried out a total refurbishment of the castle, using it for both family and corporate entertainment. After his death in a helicopter crash in 2014 the castle was put up for sale by his estate in 2024, with an asking price of £15 million. ==Historic listing designations==