Tuesday 29 March 2022

Ballyedmond Castle

THE LORD BALLYEDMOND OBE AND THREE OTHERS PERISHED IN A HELICOPTER CRASH ON THURSDAY, 13TH MARCH, 2014, CLOSE TO HIS NORFOLK RESIDENCE, GILLINGHAM HALL 

Ballyedmond Castle, near Rostrevor, is the County Down residence of the Lady Ballyedmond.

The demesne lies within the Mourne Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

An earlier house is shown on the site on Taylor and Skinner’s map of 1777.

This house was built by a Mr Pollock and was owned in 1806 by Mrs Hamilton when her niece, Maria Edgeworth, visited it.

It was described in an 1836 Ordnance Survey Memoir as a “good plain two storey house with additions and in good order”, the residence of Alexander Stewart.


Ballyedmond Castle Hotel

It is believed by Major Reside that this house was demolished in 1848 and that Stewart built the current house the following year.

The architect was reputedly Sir Charles Lanyon, although no documentary evidence has been found to substantiate this claim.

However some of the details, e.g. tower, turret, corbel heads and window openings, are very similar to those of the Lanyon building at Queen’s University, Belfast, which is contemporary.

It is shown in its present form (without ballroom wing) on an 1859 map.

Ballyedmond House was sold to Mr Kelly Patterson ca 1880, who subsequently sold it to a Mr Douglas.

It was raided in the 1920s by Irish republicans searching for concealed UVF guns.

It is said that the garden terraces were constructed with compensation money the family was awarded for damage incurred to floors during the IRA raid.

The house was occupied during the 2nd World War by the United States Air Force, who constructed a camp (now gone) in the demesne.

In 1966 it was sold to Harris Hotels Ltd and converted into a ten-bedroom hotel at a cost of about £100,000 (£1.6 million in today's money).

The hotel was fire-bombed in a terrorist attack in 1979.

It remained a gutted shell until it was purchased by Dr Edward Haughey in the mid-80s.

Dr Haughey was created a life peer in 2004, as BARON BALLYEDMOND, of Mourne, County Down.

Restoration on the present mansion began about 1987.

In the past (before the construction of the present Killowen Road), the demesne extended further north than it does today and was bounded by the Killowen Old Road.

The original drive still remains between the Killowen Road (opposite the present front gates) and the Killowen Old Road entrance.

No architect was employed in the 1987 refurbishment; the most recent plans were executed by local craftsmen.

The grand staircase from Robinson & Cleaver’s Belfast department store dates from 1886-8 and was built by Robinson & Son of York Street, Belfast, to designs by Young and Mackenzie.


The original house (above) was a ca 1855 Victorian Tudor-Baronial mansion, with pointed gables, mullioned windows; a battlemented tower and conical-roofed turret.

Two gate lodges, since demolished, pre-dated the house and were built for Alexander Stewart.

In the 1870s the demesne extended to 347 acres.

One advertisement boasted of the former hotel as being

set amid acres of private parkland and terraced gardens with magnificent views over Carlingford Lough ... is one of the most luxurious in Northern Ireland; beautifully appointed apartments all with private bathroom, telephone, television and radio offer a high standard of comfort to the most discerning guest. Finest cuisine and wines.
The much altered mid-19th century mansion was in a splendid position between the Mourne Mountains and Carlingford Lough.

An even earlier house, Fort Hamilton, was visited and commented on by Maria Edgeworth in 1806.

According to the report in the Ordnance Survey Memoirs of 1836, the garden was "neat".

The surrounding 200 acre demesne had mature deciduous shelter and parkland trees and later conifer additions, included when the park was extended to the west.

The site is exposed to winds coming across the lough but otherwise the climate is mild.


The gardens today have undergone extensive landscaping since 1988, on a 19th century framework.


Terraces on the south side of the house are linked by steps that lead to features at a lower level, where the lay-out is arranged in compartments on a circular theme.

The Lord and Lady Ballyedmond at Ballyedmond Castle

The north side of the present residence has balustrading at the carriage drive and ornamental planting since the 1980s.


The three-sided walled garden is cultivated, with a glasshouse.

The two aforesaid pre-1834 gate lodges, which belonged to the earlier house, have gone.

First published in July, 2011.

Monday 28 March 2022

Newcastle House

THE KING-HARMANS WERE THE LARGEST LANDOWNERS IN COUNTY LONGFORD, WITH 28,779 ACRES

NICHOLAS HARMAN, of Carlow, settled in Ireland during the reign of JAMES I.

He was one of the first burgesses of Carlow, named in the charter granted to that borough by JAMES I in 1614, and was High Sheriff of County Carlow in 1619.

By Mary his wife he was father of 

HENRY HARMAN, of Dublin, who had by Marie his wife, five sons and as many daughters, viz.
Edward;
Anthony, dsp before 1684;
THOMAS, of whom hereafter;
William;
Henry;
Anne; Mary; Jane; Margaret; Mabel.
Mr Harman died before 1649, and was succeeded by his third son, 

MAJOR SIR THOMAS HARMAN, Knight, of Athy, knighted by the Lord Deputy of Ireland, Thomas, Earl of Ossory, 1664, MP for Carlow, 1659, Kildare Borough, 1661.

Sir Thomas obtained a grant of considerable estates in County Longford, under the Act of Settlement, dated 1607.

He married Anne Jones, who also obtained a grant of lands in County Carlow, 1668.

Sir Thomas died in 1667, and they were both buried in Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin, having had issue, with a daughter, Mary, a son,

WENTWORTH HARMAN, of Castle Roe, County Carlow, Captain of the Battle-Axe Guards, 1683, who wedded firstly, in 1679, Margaret, daughter of Garrett Wellesley, of Dangan, and had issue, with one daughter, two sons, namely,
Thomas, b 1681, dsp;
WENTWORTH, of whom hereafter.
Mr Harman married secondly, in 1691, Frances, sister and heir of Anthony Sheppard, of Newcastle, County Longford, and had further issue,
ROBERT, successor to his nephew;
Francis, died 1714;
Anthony;
William;
CUTTS (Very Rev), successor to his brother;
ANNE, m Sir Anthony Parsons Bt, of Birr Castle.
Mr Harman died in 1714, and was succeeded by his eldest son,

WENTWORTH HARMAN, of Moyne, County Carlow, who espoused, in 1714, Lucy, daughter of Audley Mervyn, of Trillick, County Tyrone, and sister and heir of Henry Mervyn, of the same place, and had issue,
WESLEY, his heir;
Thomas.
Mr Harman died in 1757, and was succeeded by his eldest son,

WESLEY HARMAN, of Moyle, who wedded Mary, daughter of the Rev Dr Nicholas Milley, Prebendary of Ullard, Diocese of Leighlin, by whom he had an only son,
Wentworth, who dsp in his father's lifetime.
Mr Harman died in 1758, and was succeeded by his uncle,

ROBERT HARMAN (1699-1765), of Newcastle, County Longford, and Millicent, County Kildare, MP for Kildare County, 1755, County Longford, 1761, who married Ann, daughter of John Warburton, third son of George Warburton, of Garryhinch, King's County, and dsp 1765, when he was succeeded by his only surviving brother,

THE VERY REV CUTTS HARMAN (1706-84), of Newcastle, Dean of Waterford, who espoused, in 1751, Bridget, daughter of George Gore, of Tenelick, County Longford, Justice of the Court of Common Pleas in Ireland, and sister of John, Lord Annaly, by whom he had no issue.

The Dean presented to his cathedral the very fine organ which it possesses.

He bequeathed his estates to his nephew, the son of his sister ANNE, who espoused, as above, Sir Lawrence Parsons.

LAWRENCE PARSONS-HARMAN (1749-1807), of Newcastle, MP for County Longford, 1775-92, assumed the additional surname of HARMAN in 1792, on succeeding to his uncle's estates, who wedded, in 1772, the Lady Jane King, daughter of Edward, 1st Earl of Kingston, and had an only daughter,
FRANCES, of whom hereafter.
Mr Parsons-Harman was created, in 1792, Lord Oxmantown; and, in 1806, advanced to the dignity of an earldom, as EARL OF ROSSE, with special remainder, in default of male issue, to his nephew, Sir Lawrence Parsons, 5th Baronet, of Birr Castle.

His lordship died in 1807, when his peerage passed, according to the limitation, and his Harman estates devolved upon his only daughter and heir,

THE LADY FRANCES PARSONS-HARMAN, of Newcastle, who married, in 1799, Robert Edward, 1st Viscount Lorton, and had issue,
ROBERT, 2nd Viscount, succeeded as 6th Earl of Kingston;
LAWRENCE HARMAN, succeeded to the Harman estates;
Jane; Caroline; Frances; Louisa.
Her ladyship died in 1841, and was succeeded in her estates by her second son,

THE HON LAWRENCE KING-HARMAN (1816-75), of Newcastle, and Rockingham, County Roscommon, who assumed the additional surname of HARMAN.

Mr King-Harman wedded, in 1837, Mary Cecilia (d 1904), seventh daughter of James Raymond Johnstone, of Alloa, Clackmannanshire, and had, with other issue, a second son,

WENTWORTH HENRY KING-HARMAN JP DL (1840-1919), of Newcastle, High Sheriff of County Longford, 1896, Colonel, Royal Artillery, who wedded, in 1863, Annie Kate, daughter of D J Smith, of Kingston, Canada, and had issue,
WENTWORTH ALEXANDER;
Beatrice Caroline; Lilian Mary; Annette Maude.
Colonel King-Harman was succeeded by his only son,

WENTWORTH ALEXANDER KING-HARMAN DSO (1869-1949), of Newcastle, County Longford, and Mitchelstown, County Cork, Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel, Royal Irish Rifles, who died unmarried.


NEWCASTLE HOUSE, near Ballymahon, County Longford, is a large, three-storey, seven-bay, early 18th century, gable-ended house, with lower asymmetrical wings.

There is a small, central curvilinear gable on the entrance front, possibly original, which is repeated on the 19th century projecting porch.

The House has a high-pitched roof.

The drawing-room ceiling boasts painted plasterwork in low relief, with musical emblems at the corners.


Newcastle House was originally the residence of the Sheppard family, whose heiress married Wentworth Harman in 1691.

It was inherited, in 1784, by Lawrence Parsons-Harman, later 1st Earl of Rosse; and subsequently by his grandson, the Hon Lawrence King-Harman.

Newcastle House was sold ca 1950 by Captain Robert Douglas King-Harman DSO DSC RN, grandson of the Hon Lawrence King-Harman.

For several years it was a convent.

First published in April, 2013.

Saintfield House

THE PERCEVAL-PRICES OWNED 6,807 ACRES OF LAND IN COUNTY DOWN

NICHOLAS PRICE, of HOLLYMOUNT, near Downpatrick, County Down, wedded Catherine, daughter of James Hamilton, MP for County Down, 1692-5, Bangor, 1695-98, and widow of Vere Essex Cromwell, 4th EARL OF ARDGLASS, and had a son,

MAJOR-GENERAL NICHOLAS PRICE (c1665-1734), of Hollymount, MP for Downpatrick, 1692-3, Down, 1695-1714, who married Dorcas, fourth daughter of Roger West, of The Rock, County Wicklow, and had issue,
JAMES, his heir;
Cromwell, of Hollymount; MP for Downpatrick, 1727-60;
NICHOLAS, succeeded his brother;
Sophia; Margaret; Anne
This distinguished soldier was a senior officer in CHARLES I's army, defended Londonderry ca 1692; changed the place-name from Tawnaghneeve to Saintfield; was half-brother of the Lady Elizabeth Cromwell; and leased Hollymount Demesne, 1695.

His eldest son,

JAMES PRICE, wedded Frances, natural daughter of the 1st Baron Herbert of Cherbury, and had issue, two daughters,
Catherine, m 1st J Savage, of Portaferry; and 2ndly, Very Rev E Baillie;
Dorcas, m Dr Whittle, of Lisburn.
Mr Price died without male issue, when the family estates devolved upon his brother,

NICHOLAS PRICE (c1700-42), of Saintfield, MP for Lisburn, 1736-42, who married firstly, Mary, daughter of Francis, 1st Baron Conway of Ragley, Warwickshire, and had issue, a son,
FRANCIS, his heir.
Mr Price espoused secondly, in 1732, Maria, daughter of Colonel the Hon Alexander Mackenzie, second son of 4th Earl of Seaforth, and had further issue.

He was succeeded by his son, 

FRANCIS PRICE (1728-91), of Saintfield, MP for Lisburn, 1759-76, High Sheriff of County Down, 1753, who espoused, in 1752, Charity, daughter of Mathew Forde, of Seaforde, County Down, and had issue,
NICHOLAS, his heir;
Christian Arabella; Harriet Jane; Mary.
Mr Price was succeeded by his son,

NICHOLAS PRICE JP DL (1754-1847), of Saintfield House, who married, in 1779, the Lady Sarah Pratt, daughter of Charles, 1st Earl Camden, and had issue, an only daughter,

MISS ELIZABETH ANNE PRICE (1780-1867), who wedded, in 1804, James Blackwood, of Strangford, County Down (a descendant of BLACKWOOD of Clandeboye), who assumed, 1847, the name and arms of PRICE,  and had issue,
Nicholas, 1805-19;
JAMES CHARLES, of whom presently;
William Robert Arthur;
Richard;
Sarah; Mary Georgiana; Sarah Elizabeth; Elizabeth Catherine.
The grandson of Nicholas Price,

JAMES CHARLES PRICE JP DL (1807-94), of Saintfield House, High Sheriff of County Down, 1859, married, in 1840, Anne Margaret, eldest daughter of Patrick Savage, of Portaferry, and had issue,
Nicholas, 1842-89;
JAMES NUGENT, of whom hereafter;
William Charles, died in infancy;
Francis William;
Harriet Anna; Elizabeth Dorcas; Catherine Anne.
Mr Price was succeeded by his eldest surviving son,

JAMES NUGENT BLACKWOOD-PRICE JP DL (1844-1927), of Saintfield House, High Sheriff of County Down, 1902, who wedded, in 1869, Alice Louisa, daughter of William Robert Ward, and had issue,
Conway William, b 1872;
Edward Hyde (Rev), b 1875;
ETHELWYN MARY, of whom hereafter.
Mr Blackwood-Price's only daughter,

MISS ETHELWYN MARY BLACKWOOD-PRICE (1871-1933), married, in 1901, Richard Douglas Perceval, of Downpatrick, and had issue,
Richard John Perceval-Price, b 1902;
Michael Charles Perceval-Price, Lt-Col, MC JP DL (1907-2002); High Sheriff, 1951.

SAINTFIELD HOUSE, near Saintfield, County Down, was built ca 1750 by Francis Price.

It is a double gable-ended house of three storeys over a basement.

It has a five-bay front and a three-bay rear.

The house had single storey three-bay wings which ended in two-storey two-bay pavilions with high pyramidal roofs and central chimneys.

One of these has been demolished.

To the west of the house is a large stable-block.

It has been greatly modified but retains a small bell-cot, with bell, over the gateway.

Beside it is a tall cylindrical brick water-tower which is now in need of repair.

This largely walled demesne in drumlin country, approximately one mile north of Saintfield, dates from 1709, when the property was purchased by Nicholas Price of Hollymount.

The site of the original house has not been established, but it most probably lay close to the present stables & farmyard, parts of which belong to this period.


After Francis Price, MP for Lisburn, succeeded his father to the property in 1742, he built the present mansion, a tall five-bay gable-ended double pile house of three storeys over a basement.

The flanking wings, which incorporated high pyramidal roofs, were added by his son Nicholas, former Black Rod in the Irish Parliament, after he sold the family's Dublin residence ca 1800.

The interior has been altered at various times, with the hall being given a ceiling of Adamesque plasterwork ca 1900.

Little trace of the early and mid-18th century formal landscape survives, though some of the woodland planting doubtless has its origin in this period.

The core of the present informal landscape park was created by Nicholas Price from the 1760s, with most of the work probably taking place in the years after his marriage to the Lady Sarah Pratt in 1779.

This landscape process involved building an extensive demesne wall, closing public roads, putting down new winding carriage drives, building a ha-ha in front of the house and making a small lake with island in a glen to the south.

Once used as a fish-pond, this lake was created by damming a stream where it emerged from a marshy hollow.

New woodland blocks were planted, including perimeter belts and screens, and many of the original stone-faced banks built to protect these survive.

To the south, beyond the glen, an oval hillock was specially adapted for training and racing horses.

The large walled garden, located south of yard, was probably built ca 1760-80, but assumed its present form, being divided into three parts, in the 1840s.

The glasshouses, no longer extant, lay against the south facing north wall (by the yard) and overlooked an ornamental garden with curved southern stone wall (lined with brick on south side).

The two enclosed, walled areas to the south were devoted to kitchen and cold frames (in the south- east corner).

The parkland area immediately around the house had largely assumed its present appearance by the time "insurgents" occupied the place for three days in June, 1798.
After the Union, possibly around 1810, gate lodges were built at the town gate and the west gate, the latter being placed opposite the entrance; both lodges, which have been sold, are in a Regency-Gothic style with hipped roofs, distinctive canted bays and naive, Y-tracery lancet windows; both may be the work of George Dance, the Younger.
In 1847, a new Saintfield-Belfast road was laid down on the east side of the demesne and this work was followed by additional landscaping on the east side of the park.

This included the planting of a large woodland block, laying down a new main avenue approach though this wood and building a highly ornate Tudor-Picturesque-style gate lodge, possibly designed by James Sands, since demolished.

A more modest gate lodge, now sold, was also built facing the new road on the north side of the demesne, giving access to the kennels and yard.

Venerable trees were lost and damage caused to the woods by the Big Wind of January, 1839.

During later Victorian times, exotics were planted in the pleasure grounds to the south of the house and some of these survive.

The demesne woodlands are managed, rhododendron ponticum is being cleared and trees planted.

First published in July, 2010.

Saturday 26 March 2022

The Belvoir Shoot

Belvoir House: eastern elevation

I haven't paid Belvoir forest park a visit for awhile.

This is the nearest forest park to the city of Belfast.

In fact it used to have a touring caravan park, adjacent to the stable block, though the forestry service closed it down 20 or 30 years ago.

Belvoir was once a superb demesne, originally the seat of the 1ST VISCOUNT DUNGANNON (second creation) though Lord Dungannon sold it to Sir Robert Bateson, 1st Baronet, less than a century later.

I have a large, A4-sized paperback book entitled A Treasured Landscape: the Heritage of Belvoir Park, edited by Ben Simon.

If you are are interested in Belvoir park, seek it out.

Shortly after Sir Thomas Bateson, 2nd Baronet (later 1st Baron Deramore) died in 1890, the family decided to lease the estate, which in those days comprised no less than 6,348 acres of land.

The Former Demesne with the Motte in the Background

The first lessee was Walter Wilson, a director of the Belfast shipbuilders Harland & Wolff, who lived there with his family from 1900 till about 1918.

Sir James Johnson, Lord Mayor of Belfast, was the final resident of Belvoir House.

He and his family lived there from 1919 until 1925.

I have already written about the ultimate fate of the great mansion and its shameful demolition in 1961, though the house was considered as the official residence of the new Governor of Northern Ireland.

Hillsborough Castle was chosen instead.

The estate was also a contender as the seat of the new Parliament of Northern Ireland, though Stormont was selected.

Belvoir House from the east with parkland

BELVOIR was a renowned shooting estate in its day: A shooting party stayed there for the weekend in 1904, and it is recorded that 431 pheasants, 32 hares, 2 rabbits, 2 woodcocks, and 17 ducks were bagged.

There was a pheasantry at the Big Meadow near the river Lagan.

Three years prior to this, the household comprised seventeen members of staff, including a governess, a housekeeper, under-butler, 1st footman, 2nd footman, page, lady's maid, cook, children's maid, stillroom maid, four housemaids, kitchen maid, scullery maid, and dairy maid.

In those days the estate comprised over 6,000 acres; today that acreage has shrunk to 185.

First published in February, 2016.

Friday 25 March 2022

The Argory Acquisition

SELECTIVE ACQUISITIONS IN NORTHERN IRELAND


PROPERTY: The Argory, Moy, County Armagh

DATE: 1979

EXTENT: 280.92 acres

DONOR: Hoare Trustees and Walter MacGeough-Bond

*****

PROPERTY: Derrygally Farm

DATE: 1979

EXTENT: 77.1 acres

DONOR: Hoare Trustees and Walter MacGeough-Bond

First published in December, 2014

Thursday 24 March 2022

Mount Trenchard House

THE SPRING-RICES, BARONS MONTEAGLE OF BRANDON, WERE MAJOR LANDOWNERS IN COUNTY LIMERICK, WITH 6,445 ACRES

EDWARD RICE, of Dingle, County Kerry, during the reign of HENRY VIII, married Anne, daughter of John Wall, of County Limerick, and was father of

ROBERT RICE, of Dingle, who wedded Julia, daughter of Sir James Whyte, Knight, of Cashel, County Tipperary, and was father of

STEPHEN RICE, of Dingle, MP for Kerry, 1613, who made a deed of settlement of his estates, 1619, and died in 1623.

He espoused Helena, daughter of Thomas Trant, of Cahirtrant, County Kerry, and had two sons, JAMES, MP for Dingle, 1635, from whom descended the RT HON THOMAS SPRING-RICE MP, of Mount Trenchard, 1st Baron Monteagle of Brandon; and

DOMINICK RICE, MP for Dingle, 1635, who married Alice, daughter of James Hussey, Baron of Galtrim, from which marriage descended

THE RT HON SIR STEPHEN RICE (1637-1715), Chief Baron of the Irish Exchequer, and a supporter of JAMES II, who wedded Mary, daughter of Thomas FitzGerald, of County Limerick, and had issue,
THOMAS;
EDWARD, of whom we treat.
Sir Stephen's elder son,

THOMAS RICE, of Mount Trenchard, wedded Mary, daughter of Maurice FitzGerald, 14th Knight of Kerry, and had issue, a son,

STEPHEN EDWARD RICE, of Mount Trenchard, who married, in 1785, Catherine, only child and heir of Thomas Spring, of Castlemaine, County Kerry, and had issue,
THOMAS, his heir;
Mary; Catherine Ann.
Mr Rice died in 1831, and was succeeded by his son,

THOMAS SPRING-RICE (1790-1866), of Brandon, County Kerry, Chancellor of the Exchequer, 1835-39, who wedded firstly, in 1811, the Lady Theodosia Pery, second daughter of Edmund, 1st Earl of Limerick, and had issue,
STEPHEN EDMUND, his successor;
Charles William Thomas, father of SIR CECIL SPRING-RICE GCMG GCVO;
Edmund Henry;
Aubrey Richard;
William Cecil;
Mary Alicia Pery; Theodosia Alicia Ellen F Charlotte; Catherine Anne Lucy.
Mr Spring Rice was elevated to the peerage, in 1839, in the dignity of BARON MONTEAGLE OF BRANDON, of Brandon, County Kerry.

My his first wife he had issue,
STEPHEN EDMOND, his successor;
Charles William Thomas;
Edmond Henry Francis Louis;
Aubrey Richard;
William Cecil;
Theodosia Alicia Ellen F Charlotte; Mary Alicia Pery; Catherine Anne Lucy.
His lordship's eldest son,

THE HON STEPHEN EDMOND SPRING-RICE (1814-65), of Mount Trenchard, espoused, in 1839, Ellen Mary, daughter of William Frere, and had issue,
THOMAS, 2nd Baron;
FRANCIS, 4th Baron;
Aileen; Lucy; Theodosia; Mary; Alice; Frederica; Catherine Ellen; Amy.
The Hon Stephen Edmond Spring-Rice predeceased his father, and was succeeded by his elder son,

THOMAS, 2nd Baron (1849-1926), of Mount Trenchard, who married, in 1875, Elizabeth, eldest daughter of the Most Rev and Rt Hon Samuel Butcher, Lord Bishop of Meath, and had issue,
Stephen Edmond (1877-1900);
THOMAS AUBREY, 3rd Baron;
Mary Ellen (1880-1924), of Mount Trenchard.
***** 
Thomas Spring Rice, 2nd Baron (1849–1926);
Thomas Aubrey Spring Rice, 3rd Baron (1883–1934);
Francis Spring Rice, 4th Baron (1852–1937);
Charles Spring Rice, 5th Baron (1887–1946);
Gerald Spring Rice, 6th Baron (1926–2013);
Charles James Spring Rice, 7th Baron (b 1953).
The heir presumptive is the present holder's uncle, the Hon Michael Spring Rice (b 1935).
The heir presumptive's heir apparent is his son, Jonathan Spring Rice (b 1964).
The heir presumptive's heir apparent's heir apparent is his son, Jamie Alexander Spring Rice (b 2003).

MOUNT TRENCHARD HOUSE, near Foynes, County Limerick, is a late-Georgian house of three storeys over a basement, with two curved bows on its entrance front, which overlooks the River Shannon estuary.


There is a wide curved bow in the centre of its garden front, too.

One side of the house has a two-storey Victorian wing, which is almost as high as the main block; while the other side has a one bay, three storey addition and a lower two-storey wing.


Mount Trenchard was occupied by the Irish Army in 1944.

When the 5th Baron Monteagle of Brandon died in 1946, the estate was sold.

Lady Holland lived there for several years.

In 1954, the Sisters of Mercy acquired the estate and ran it as a private school for girls.

They extended the complex to include inter alia a large 1960s dormitory block, classrooms and a church.

Mount Trenchard House became the preserve of the nuns and continued in use as a dwelling.

Subsequent owners acquired the estate in 1996 and began restoring Mount Trenchard House for use as a centre for holistic medicine.

One aspect of the conservation plan was to restore the historic approach to the house which was originally from the south side (in the second half of the 19th century the house had been re-oriented to the north).

This involved changes to the present grounds and paths and woodlands, on the recommendation of the architects leading the project, the owners appointed me to advise them on the forestry and arboriculture aspects of the woodland, heritage, veteran/ancient and champion trees on the estate.

Mount Trenchard is currently used by an agency of the Irish government as an accommodation centre for asylum seekers.

First published in January, 2013.

Wednesday 23 March 2022

Kinlough House: II

THE BIG HOUSE AT KINLOUGH, COUNTY LEITRIM

From Chapter Eight of A Man May Fish by T C Kingsmill Moore, first edition published 1960, copyright Estate of T C Kingsmill Moore 1979. 



"… My son tells me that you are an ardent fisherman. We have a house on the shore of Lough Melvin which fishes well in April, and there will be some salmon in the Bundrowse. If you could spare a week or a fortnight of your Easter vacation to stay with us my wife and I would be very pleased.”

This letter, the first of many phrased with the same careful courtesy, introduced me to the big lakes of the west and to a feature of Irish country life then rapidly passing away.

At Bundoran a wizened coachman met me with an outside car which soon covered the hilly miles to where the Big House stood, surrounded on three sides by woodland and open on the fourth, where lawns and fields sloped to the water’s edge.

In spring, the daffodils spread themselves in golden drifts down to the lake, in autumn the scarlet lobelia blazed a flare of colour between house and shrubberies.

The house itself, built when the Georgian style was yielding to the Victorian, was large but architecturally undistinguished.

Originally the walls of all the main rooms had been covered with French cartoons in grisaille, illustrating scenes from classical mythology.

The many life-sized nudes were a little too explicit for Victorian taste, and pictures and furniture had been arranged to hide the more compromising details.

When a later generation, bracing itself to acknowledge the facts of anatomy, removed the obstructions, it was too late.

The discolouration was permanent.

Already the house was an anachronism, a manor house without an estate.

For nearly a century, when Irish country life had been built on a structure of landlord and tenant, it had been the centre of interest for a barony, its stables full of carriages and horses, its garden a model, its owners men of learning and public spirit.

Politics and literature have dealt harshly with the Irish landlord.

Sad and mad they may have been; too often they were absentees.

But many of them were men of culture, bravery, and a high sense of public duty.

Their libraries were good and sometimes remarkable.

They planted world-famous gardens.

They organised and endowed innumerable Irish charities, relieved distress, and helped and advised such tenants as were willing to accept their advice.

Much of their time was spent in hunting and field sports, but these provided employment of the type that the Irish countryman likes, and made the big house a centre of interest and society.

Above all, they supplied a personal relationship which made up for many abuses.

A good landlord was united to his tenantry by bonds part patriarchal, part feudal, and entirely human, which formed a not unsatisfactory pattern of life.

Now all of this has been changed, shattered irretrievably by a great reform which had enabled the tenants to become freeholders.

The landlords lived on, financially not much worse off, still doing their duty on bench and synod, and spending much of their leisure in sport; but the ties which bound them and their families to the countryside were snapped.

Old retainers still remained.

The coachman who had met me was serving his fourth generation, the parlour maid had been nurse to my host, the gardener had been trained by his grandfather.

But the dust was settling; the Big House was dying at its roots.

My host, who had for some years been living a life of use and wont in which sport had ceased to play a part, his guns licensed but unfired, his rods idle in their cases, now roused himself to put his son and myself on the road to true orthodoxy.

He was orthodox to a fault, his fishing methods not so much dated as out-dated, but I owe him a grounding in caution, in boat-craft, and in etiquette which was to help me in difficult times and places...

For four years my fishing centred around the Big House, ten days in spring and the same in August.

The old retainers were dropping away.

“I’ve seen what I’ve seen and I’ll not see much more,” said the coachman, now nearly ninety on the last occasion that he drove me to the station.

On my next visit he was gone.

Kate, the parlour maid, found her rheumatism too crippling, and the gardener retired on a pension to a cottage.

The squire had ceased to come to the lake with us, and he was intellectually less alert.

Over the port he had been eager to cross-question me on all the vexed problems of the day, with his unvaried courtesy treating my undergraduate opinions as if they were worth listening to.

Now he avoided discussion.

When things puzzled him he no longer sought an answer.

He lived more and more in the past.

A weary, slightly despairing look often came over his kindly face.

I was too young to recognise the significance of these changes, signs that the organism could no longer adapt itself to its environment, the first, faint, far-borne notes of the trumpet of Azrael.

Then at one stride came disaster.

Father and mother were dead; the son, always delicate, became incurably ill.

The Big House had fallen.

Another old Irish family had come to an end.

Of the Big House itself only a few ruins now remain.’ 

T.C. Kingsmill Moore was born in Dublin in March 1893 and he died there in February, 1979, at the age of 85. He went to school in Marlborough, England, and returned to Dublin to take a degree at Trinity College. 
During the First World War, from 1917-18, he was in the Royal Flying Corps in France and Flanders. He became a barrister on his return to Dublin and during the Civil War from 1922-23 was also the War Correspondent for the Irish Times. 
In 1947 he was appointed a judge of the High Court and in 1961 a judge of the Supreme Court, retiring in 1965. His visits to the Big House at Kinlough took place between 1914 and 1917 when he was an undergraduate in Trinity. 

First published in March, 2019. 

Tuesday 22 March 2022

Royal Visit

The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall have begun a two-day visit to Northern Ireland.

Their Royal Highnesses, having been received by Her Majesty's Lord-Lieutenant of the County Borough of Belfast (Mrs Fionnuala Jay-O'Boyle CBE), this afternoon visited Cookstown, County Tyrone, and were received by Her Majesty's Lord-Lieutenant of County Tyrone (Mr Robert Scott OBE).

TRH subsequently visited Superstars Café, 13 Oldtown Street, Cookstown, and were received by Mrs Frances Nolan (Deputy Lieutenant of County Tyrone).

The Prince of Wales afterwards attended a Reception at Lissan House, County Tyrone, and was received by Mrs Meta Bell (Deputy Lieutenant of County Tyrone).

His Royal Highness, Patron, The Prince's Countryside Fund, subsequently visited the College of Agriculture Food and Rural Enterprise Greenmount Campus, 45 Tirgracy Road, Muckamore, Antrim, and was received by Mr Christopher Kerr (Deputy Lieutenant of County Tyrone).

The Duchess of Cornwall later visited a Women's Aid Refuge.


The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall visited Belfast on Wednesday, 23rd March.

Their Royal Highnesses visited C.S. Lewis Square, 402 Newtownards Road, to mark the Twenty Fifth Anniversary of the EastSide Partnership and were received by Her Majesty's Lord-Lieutenant of the County Borough of Belfast (Mrs. Fionnuala Jay-O'Boyle CBE).

The Prince of Wales afterwards officially re-opened Belfast's Grand Opera House, 2-4 Great Victoria Street.

His Royal Highness, Patron, visited Marie Curie, 1A Kensington Road, and was received by Dr. Philip McGarry OBE DL (a Deputy Lieutenant of Belfast).

The Prince of Wales this afternoon attended a Reception for those who supported the refugee community in Northern Ireland, at Titanic Belfast, 1 Olympic Way, Queen's Road.

HRH, Patron, Royal Ulster Constabulary George Cross Foundation, subsequently attended a Reception at Titanic Belfast.

The Duchess of Cornwall this morning visited Holywood Arches Library, 12 Holywood Road, and was received by the Very Rev Dr. F. Sellar DL(a Deputy Lieutenant of Belfast).

Her Royal Highness this afternoon visited BBC Northern Ireland, Broadcasting House, 25 Ormeau Avenue, and was received by Mrs. Michele Marken DL (Deputy Lieutenant of Belfast).


HRH afterwards visited Titanic Belfast and was received by Mr. N. Price DL (Deputy Lieutenant of Belfast).

Monday 21 March 2022

Brittas Castle

THE DUNNES WERE MAJOR LANDOWNERS IN THE QUEEN'S COUNTY, WITH 9,215 ACRES

The estate of Brittas was time immemorial in the ancient family of DUNNE, anciently O'Doinn, chief of the name, and a sept of historic note. The O'Doinns occur frequently in the works of James MacGeoghegan, in the Annals of the Four Masters, and the other Irish authorities. 

RORY O'DOINN, Chief of I-Regan, died, according to the Annals of the Four Masters, in 1427, and was father of

LENAGH O'DOINN, Chief of I-Regan, who built Castlebrack, in the Queen's County.

He married a daughter of O'Neill of Ulster and had issue,
TEIG, of whom hereafter;
Falie.
The elder son,

TEIG O'DOINN, Chief of Iregan, wedded firstly, Ellen, daughter of "Lord Power", and had issue,
TEIG (OGE), of whom presently;
Rory;
Edmundboy;
Shane;
Cahir.
 eldest son,

TEIG (Oge) O'DOINN, Chief of Iregan, espoused firstly, Gormla, daughter of O'Connor Faile, and had issue,
Brien, dsp;
TEIGH (REOGH), of whom we treat;
Edmund, of Park;
Dermot.
He married secondly, Giles, daughter of MacGillepatrick, of Upper Ossory, and had further issue,
Donogh;
Cormac;
Cahir;
Dermot.
The second son,

TEIGH (REOGH) or THADY O'DOINN, of Iregan, had a grant of English liberty for himself and his issue, in 1551.

He wedded a daughter of McMorrish, and had issue,
THADY or TEIG (OGE), his successor;
TORLOGH or TERENCE, of whom presently;
Donagh, of Gurtin and Balliglass, living 1570;
Phelim;
Finola.
The eldest son,

THADY (or TEIG OGE) O'DOINN, of Tenchinch and Castlebrack, appointed Captain of Iregan, 1558, made settlements of his estates in 1590, 1591, and 1593, and was living in 1601.

He wedded Elizabeth, daughter of James FitzGerald, of Ballysonan, County Kildare, and had issue,
TEIG (LOGHA) or TEIG OGE, or THADY, his heir;
Cormac;
Brian or Barnaby;
CAHIR or CHARLES, of whom presently;
Murtogh;
Grany;
Two daughters.
The eldest son,

TEIGH (LOGHA) or THADY O'DOYNE (-1637), of Castlebrack, surrendered his estate, 1611, and had a regrant of the greater portion in 1611.

He espoused firstly, Margaret, daughter of Shane O'Neill, who left him and married Cuconaght Maguire, and had by her a son, Teige reogh or Thady, dsp before 1635.

He married secondly, Ellis, daughter of Redmond FitzGerald, of Clonbolg, County Kildare, and had seven sons who survived infancy,
Edmund or Edward, dsp before 1635;
John, dsp before 1635;
William, of Park;
Richard, in holy orders; Vicar-General of Kildare;
James;
Rory or Roger;
Torlogh.
We now return to

CAHIR O'DOINN, alias CHARLES DUNN, LL.Dfourth son of Thady O'Doinn, Captain of Iregan, Fellow of Trinity College Dublin, 1593, Master in Chancery, 1602, MP, 1613, Vice-Chancellor, 1614.

He petitioned against the regrant of Iregan to his brother and got a grant to himself of Brittas and portion of the Iregan estates, which he bequeathed by his will, dated 1617, to his nephew,

BARNABY or BRIAN OGE DUNN (1590-1661), of Brittas, High Sheriff of Queen's County in 1623.

He obtained from CHARLES I a patent for a large estate in the barony of Tinnahinch, to hold to him and his heirs for ever in soccage, provided that he did not take the name, style, or title of O'DOINN, and that he should drop that same and call himself BRIAN DUNN.

He married Sybella, daughter of Sir Robert Piggott, Knight, of Dysart, and widow of Richard Cosby, of Stradbally, both in the Queen's County, and was succeeded by his son,

CAHIR or CHARLES DUNNE, of Brittas, who wedded Margaret, sister of John Coghlan, of Birr, and had issue,
TERENCE, his heir;
Edward;
John;
Charles;
Daniel;
Mary; Peggy; Polly; Clare.
Mr Dunne died in 1680, and was succeeded by his eldest son,

TERENCE DUNNE, of Brittas, a captain in Moore's Regiment of Infantry, who fought for JAMES II and fell at Aughrim in 1691.

He espoused, in 1676, Margaret, daughter of Daniel Byrne, and sister of Sir Gregory Byrne, 1st Baronet, MP for Ballinakill, and had issue,
DANIEL, of Brittas;
Charles, dsp;
Barnaby;
EDWARD, of whom presently;
Dorothy.
The fourth son,

EDWARD DUNNE, of Brittas, married, in 1730, Margaret, daughter of Francis Wyse, of the Manor of St John, County Waterford, and had issue,
FRANCIS, his heir;
Barnaby, dsp;
Anastasia; Juliana; Margaret; Mary.
Mr Dunne died in 1765, and was succeeded by his elder son,

FRANCIS DUNNE, who wedded, in 1760, his cousin, Margaret, daughter and co-heir of Nicholas Plunkett, of Dunsoghly Castle, County Dublin, by Alice his wife, daughter and co-heir of Daniel Dunne (see above), and had issue,
EDWARD, his heir;
Francis;
Nicholas;
Alice; Frances; Katherine; Margaret.
Mr Dunne died in 1771, and was succeeded by his eldest son,

EDWARD DUNNE JP (1767-1844), of Brittas, a general in the army,  Deputy Governor and High Sheriff of Queen's County, 1790, MP for Maryborough, 1800.

He took an active part in suppressing the Irish Rebellion of 1798, at which time he commanded the Pembrokeshire Fencible Cavalry.

General Dunne wedded, in 1801, Frances, daughter of Simon White, of Bantry House, sister to Richard, 1st Earl of Bantry, and had issue,
FRANCIS PLUNKETT, his heir;
EDWARD MEADOWS, successor to his brother;
Robert Hedges (Rev);
Richard;
Charles;
Frances Jane.
General Dunne was succeeded by his eldest son,

THE RT HON FRANCIS PLUNKETT DUNNE JP DL (1802-74), of Brittas and Dunsoghly Castle, County Dublin, Privy Counsellor, a major-general in the army, Lieutenant-Colonel, Queen's County Militia, MP for Portarlington, 1847-57, Queen's County, 1859-68, Clerk of the Ordnance, 1852, Private Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, 1858-9, who died unmarried, and was succeeded by his brother,

EDWARD MEADOWS DUNNE JP (1803-75), of Brittas, Barrister, who married, in 1835, Marianne, daughter of Langford Rowley Heyland, of Glendarragh, County Antrim, and Tamlaght, Lieutenant-Colonel, Londonderry Militia, and had issue,
Edward Eyre, 1836-48;
Alexander Dupré, 1838-55;
FRANCIS PLUNKETT, his heir.
Mr Dunne was succeeded by his only surviving son,

FRANCIS PLUNKETT DUNNE JP (1844-78), of Brittas, High Sheriff of the Queen's County, 1878, who wedded, in 1873, his cousin, Frances Jane, daughter of the Rev Robert Hedges Dunne, and had issue,
Francis Plunkett, died young;
ALICE MAUDE, of Brittas;
KATHLEEN PLUNKETT, of Brittas.
Mr Dunne, leaving his estates to be equally divided between his two surviving daughters, ALICE MAUDE and KATHLEEN PLUNKETT, who sold the estate of Brittas in 1898 to their uncle, Robert Hedges Plunkett Dunne, on whose death, in 1901, these ladies succeeded, again, to Brittas and Dunsoghly Castle.

Francis Plunkett Dunne was succeeded in the male representation of his family by his cousin, Charles Henry Plunkett Dunne.


BRITTAS CASTLE, near Clonaslee, County Laois, was a castellated house of sandstone with limestone dressings, built in 1869 by Major-General Francis Dunne, to the design of John McCurdy.


The Dunnes were influential in the form and history of Clonaslee, as evidenced in its planned form and also from a number of ruins in the area.

The former residence of a branch of the family remains in ruins one mile from the village at Clara Hill.

Also, near the east bank of the Clodiagh River, stand the ruins of Ballinakill Castle, built in 1680 by Colonel Dunne.

Throughout the 18th century, Clonaslee prospered due to its location on an important highway across Laois leading onto Munster.


The proximity of Brittas - the seat of the Dunnes - was also influential as the power of this family had by now grown beyond that of a native Irish chieftain.

In 1771, Francis Dunne, then head of the Dunne Family, became a Roman Catholic and built a thatched parish chapel in the village.

This was located close to the site of the present church.

The Dunne family continued to finance the construction of landmark buildings in the village:
The parish Church was erected in 1814 under General Edward Dunne (known locally as 'shun-battle Ned' because of his rumoured refusal to fight at the 1815 battle of Waterloo).
When the main residence in Tinnahinch was blown up in 1653, the Dunne chief had to build anew.

At this time there was a low thatched lodge located at Brittas.

Major-General Francis Plunkett Dunne built a Neo-Gothic mansion at Brittas in 1869.

It was extended ten years later by Millar & Symes.

It is claimed that General Dunne obtained loans from Germany to build the castle, and rental income from his tenants was used to repay the lenders.

The gate piers of the grand house still remain on the western edge of the Green.

The walls and windows give an idea of the house's architecture.

It was three storeys high and the roof was originally thatched.

On the wall over the main entrance, the family crest is still visible, depicting an eagle and a drawn sword.

The last of the family to reside in Brittas House were the Misses Dunne.

The house had extensive gardens, shrubberies and out-offices.

The links with Clonaslee village, and the remains of the Brittas estate are strong.
The expansive demesne grounds contain many splendid trees – remnants of the larger plantations. Lawson's cypress, copper beech, yew, sycamore, cut-leaved beech, and oak that covered much of the townland of Brittas over a century ago.
Brittas Lake – which has recently been restored – was originally constructed as a reservoir for the house.

Its banks are stone lined and water was pumped from the Clodiagh River.

Brittas Castle suffered a fire fire in 1942 and, despite the best efforts of the Tullamore fire brigade, it was destroyed.

First published in September, 2012.

Sunday 20 March 2022

Alan Clark: Diaries

I have been re-reading the immensely enjoyable Diaries Into Politics, by the late Alan Clark.

The Hon Alan Clark, elder son of the Lord Clark, was MP for Plymouth (Sutton), 1974-92, Kensington and Chelsea, 1997-99.

He was appointed a Privy Counsellor when he became Defence Minister.

If you haven’t already dipped into his Diaries, or indeed his other publications (including the splendid Back Fire: A Passion For Motoring, I urge you so to do.

Alan was an insufferable snob.

He once said that Michael Heseltine - “odious Heseltine” - had to buy his own furniture.

In July, 1981, the Clarks gave a grand dinner party for Aspinall’s Ball at Port Lympne: Edward and Fiona Montagu, Jonathan Aitken, Jonathan Guinness and his wife, and two of his sons.

The food “was delicious and the table almost overloaded with Meissen, solid silver, Venetian glass etc.” 

Boy Scouts lined the driveway holding torches of pitch, girl guides doing the same thing from the car park.

As Simon Heffer has said, Diaries show all sides of a man who was, within his complex personality, arrogant, sensitive, loyal, unfaithful, patriotic, selfish, selfless, and - at all times - completely technicolour.

Friday 18 March 2022

Knocktopher Abbey

THE LANGRISHE BARONETS OWNED 2,615 ACRES OF LAND IN COUNTY KILKENNY

This family is descended from Sir Nicholas Langrish, Knight, who was seized of the Manor of Langrish, Hampshire, in 1273. The Irish branch is descended from Rafe, or Ralph, third son of Nicholas Langrishe, of Langrishe.

Ralph Langrishe, of Bordon, died between 1542-59; the third in descent from him was Major Hercules Langrishe (1594-1659), Carver in Ordinary to Queen Henrietta Maria, who prevented the arrest of the "Five Members" by CHARLES I.

JOHN LANGRISHE (1660-1735), son of Hercules Langrishe (the first member of the family who settled in Ireland), became proprietor of the borough of Knocktopher, County Kilkenny.

Mr Langrishe, High Sheriff of County Kilkenny, 1696, married firstly, Alicia, second daughter of Harry, 2nd Baron Blayney, and widow of Thomas Sandford, of Sandford Court; and secondly, Miss Sandford, daughter of Colonel Sandford; but had issue by neither of those ladies.

He wedded thirdly, Mary, daughter of Robert Grace, feudal baron of Courtstown, and had an only son, his successor,

ROBERT LANGRISHE (c1696-1769), of Knocktopher, High Sheriff of County Kilkenny, 1740, Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod in Ireland, 1745-9, who espoused Anne, daughter of Jonathan Whitby, and had issue,
HERCULES, his heir;
Olympia.
Mr Langrishe was succeeded by his son and heir,

THE RT HON HERCULES LANGRISHE (1731-1811), of Knocktopher, MP for Knocktopher, 1761-1800, who was created a baronet in 1777, designated of Knocktopher Abbey, County Kilkenny.
Sir Hercules, who was a member of the Privy Council, represented the borough of Knocktopher in the Irish parliament for forty years, during which period he ranked amongst the most distinguished of its members, and was the first who advocated and obtained a partial relaxation of the most atrocious code of laws which oppressed the Roman Catholics of Ireland, a code that consigned 80% of the population to unmitigated and grinding slavery, and reduced the whole of the state to semi-barbarism.
He married, in 1755, Hannah, daughter and co-heir of Robert Myhill, of Killarney, County Kilkenny, and sister of Jane, wife of Charles, 1st Marquess of Ely, and had issue,
ROBERT, his successor;
John;
James (Very Rev), Dean of Achonry;
Elizabeth; Mary Jane; Hannah.
Sir Hercules was succeeded by his eldest son,

SIR ROBERT LANGRISHE, 2nd Baronet (1756-1835), who wedded, in 1782, Anne, daugher of Bellingham Boyle, and granddaughter of the Most Rev Dr John Hoadly, Lord Archbishop of Armagh, and had issue,
HERCULES RICHARD, his successor;
Anne; Henrietta Maria; Elizabeth.
Sir Robert as succeeded by his only son,

THE REV SIR HERCULES RICHARD LANGRISHE, 3rd Baronet (1782-1862), who espoused, in 1817, Maria, daughter of James Henry Cottingham, and had issue,
JAMES, his successor;
Richard;
Anne Maria; Rose Isabella.
Sir Hercules was succeeded by his eldest son,

SIR JAMES LANGRISHE, 4th Baronet (1823-1910), JP DL, High Sheriff of County Kilkenny, 1866, Lieutenant-Colonel, 5th Battalion, Royal Irish Regiment, who married firstly, in 1857, Adela de Blois Eccles; and secondly, in 1906, Algitha Maud, daughter of Sir Henry Daniel Gooch Bt, and had issue,
HERCULES ROBERT, his successor;
Adela Constance; Maria Cecilia; Mary Isabella; Frances Alice; Norah Elizabeth.
Sir James was succeeded by his only son,

SIR HERCULES ROBERT LANGRISHE, 5th Baronet (1859-1943), JP DL, High Sheriff of County Kilkenny, 1891, Honorary Major, Oxfordshire Light Infantry, Temporary Commander RNVR, who wedded, in 1887, Helen Amelrosa Hume, daughter of the Rt Hon William Wentworth Fitzwilliam Dick, and had issue,
TERENCE HUME, his successor;
Hercules Ralph, Lieutenant.
Sir Hercules was succeeded by his elder son,

SIR TERENCE HUME LANGRISHE, 6th Baronet (1895-1973), Captain, the Intelligence Corps, who married, in 1926, Joan Stuart, daughter of Major Ralph Stuart Grigg, and had issue,
HERCULES RALPH HUME, his successor;
Patrick Nicholas;
Robert Gore.
Sir Terence was succeeded by his eldest son,

SIR HERCULES RALPH HUME LANGRISHE, 7th Baronet (1927-1998), who married, in 1955, Grania Sybil Enid, daughter of Mervyn Patrick, 9th Viscount Powerscourt, and had issue,
JAMES HERCULES, his successor;
Miranda Grania; Georgina Emma; Atalanta Sue.
Sir Hercules was succeeded by his only son,

SIR JAMES HERCULES LANGRISHE, 8th and present Baronet (1957-), of Arlonstown, Dunsany, County Meath, who married, in 1985, Gemma Mary Philomena, daughter of Patrick O'Daly, and has issue,
RICHARD JAMES HERCULES, b 1988;
Victoria Anna Jean, b 1986.

KNOCKTOPHER ABBEY, Knocktopher, County Kilkenny, is a house which incorporates the remains of the first Carmelite friary in Ireland.

It was rebuilt ca 1866 in the High-Victorian-Gothic style, following a fire.


The house has trefoil-headed, mullioned windows and several gables; high roofs; and a pyramidal-roofed porch tower.

The Abbey remained in the family until 1981.

First published in July, 2018.

Thursday 17 March 2022

1st Viscount Bangor

THE VISCOUNTS BANGOR WERE MAJOR LANDOWNERS IN COUNTY DOWN, WITH 9,861 ACRES 


The family of WARD is of Norman origin, and was seated at Capesthorne, in Cheshire, which Daniel King, in his book Vale Royal, calls "a great lordship and demesne, giving name to the ancient seat of the Wards."

WE FIND in the roll of Battle Abbey, that the family of WARD attended WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR into England, where, after some centuries, it appeared in three respectable branches; of which the Wards of Capesthorne, Cheshire.

For several centuries, having possessed many extensive lordships, descended the family of WARD, of Bangor, in the person of

BERNARD WARDwho married a daughter of the ancient family of Leigh, of High Leigh, Cheshire, and settled in Ulster about 1570.

Mr Ward acquired the lands known as Carrickshannagh from the Earl of Kildare, and renamed it CASTLE WARD.

His son and heir,

NICHOLAS WARD, born ca 1580, High Sheriff of County Down, 1620 and 1624, married Joan, daughter of Ralph Leycester, of Toft Hall, Cheshire, and had issue (with several daughters, one of whom, Eleanor, wedded Thomas Russell, of Lecale),
BERNARD, his heir;
Robert (Sir), created a Baronet, designated of Killough;
Thomas, colonel in the army, died at the battle of Worcester, 1651;
Nicholas.
The eldest son,

BERNARD WARD, born in 1606, High Sheriff of County Down, 1656, who married Anne, daughter of Richard West, and had issue,

NICHOLAS WARD, born in 1630, High Sheriff of County Down, 1662, MP for Downpatrick, 1661-66, who married Sarah, daughter of the Rt Rev Theophilius Buckworth, and had issue,
Charles (Rev);
BERNARD, of whom hereafter.
The younger son,

BERNARD WARD (1654-90), wedded Mary, sister of Michael Ward, Provost of Trinity College, Dublin, and afterwards Lord Bishop of Derry, by whom he had four sons and three daughters.

Mr Ward was killed in a duel, 1690, whilst Sheriff of Down, by Jocelyn Hamilton, of the Clanbrassil family (who was mortally wounded at the same time), and was succeeded by his second, but eldest surviving son,

MICHAEL WARD (1683-1759), MP for County Down, 1713-27, who espoused, in 1709, Anne Catherine, daughter and co-heir of James Hamilton, of Bangor, County Down, and had issue,
BERNARD, his heir;
Anne; Sophia.
Judge Ward, Photo Credit: The National Trust

Judge Ward was succeeded by his only son,

BERNARD WARD (1719-81), MP for County Down, 1745-70, who married, in 1747, Anne, daughter of John, 1st Earl of Darnley, and relict of Robert Hawkins Magill, of Gill Hall, County Down, and had issue,
NICHOLAS, his successor;
John, died young;
Edward, father of EDWARD SOUTHWELL WARD;
Robert (Rt Hon);
Anne Catharine; Sophia; Amelia; Harriet.
Colonel Ward was elevated to the peerage, in 1770, in the dignity of Baron Bangor, of Castle Ward, County Down.

His lordship was advanced to a viscountcy, in 1781, as VISCOUNT BANGOR, of Castle Ward, County Down.

He was succeeded by his eldest son,

NICHOLAS, 2nd Viscount (1750-1827), who died unmarried, in 1827, when the family honours reverted to his nephew,

EDWARD SOUTHWELL, 3rd Viscount (1790-1837), who wedded, in 1826, Harriet Margaret, daughter of Henry, 6th Baron Farnham, and had issue,
EDWARD, his successor;
Henry William Crosbie;
William John;
Bernard Matthew, Lieutenant-General;
Somerset;
Crosbie Richard Maxwell.
His lordship was succeeded by his eldest son,

EDWARD, 4th Viscount (1827-81), who died unmarried, when the family honours devolved upon his brother,

HENRY WILLIAM, 5th Viscount (1828-1911), JP DL, who espoused firstly, in 1854, Mary, daughter of the Rev Henry King, and had issue,
Henry Somerset Andrew (1857-60);
Edward William Henry (1863-87);
MAXWELL RICHARD CROSBIE, of whom hereafter;
Harriette Mary; Kathleen Annette Norah; Bertha Jane; Henrietta; Emily Georgiana.
Following his first wife's untimely death in 1869, his lordship married secondly, in 1874, Elizabeth, only daughter of Major Hugh Eccles, of Cronroe, County Wicklow.

He was succeeded by his youngest and only surviving son,

MAXWELL RICHARD CROSBIE, 6th Viscount (1868-1950), OBE PC, who married, in 1905, Agnes Elizabeth, daughter of Dacre Mervyn Archdale Hamilton, and had issue,
EDWARD HENRY HAROLD, his successor;
Mary Helen Kathleen; Helen Elizabeth; Margaret Bertha.
The heir presumptive is the present holder's half-brother, the Hon Edward Nicholas Ward.
The 8th and present Viscount lives in London with his wife, the celebrated royal biographer Sarah Bradford, the Viscountess Bangor.

Lord Bangor is thought to be an antiquarian book-seller.

His family's ancestral seat is CASTLE WARD, near Downpatrick, County Down.


When the 6th Viscount died in 1950, Castle Ward was accepted by the Northern Ireland Government in part payment of death duties, and presented by the Government with an endowment to the National Trust.



There is an apartment at Castle Ward House for the use of Lord and Lady Bangor which, it is thought, is used by them mostly during the summer.
About twenty years ago, when we stayed on the Estate, we were in the local butcher's shop in Strangford for some fillet steak. Young Duffy grimaced and told us that he was sold out; not surprising since the previous customers who had been right in front of us and had literally just left the shop, the then Hon William and Mrs Ward, who had collected a whole fillet of beef!

A former estate worker who is now, sadly, deceased, Ernest Swail, once told us that he was the last boatman to Lord Bangor. 
First published October, 2009.   Bangor arms courtesy of European Heraldry.