Ennistymon House

THE MACNAMARAS WERE MAJOR LANDOWNERS IN COUNTY CLARE, WITH 15,246 ACRES

This is a branch of the ancient Milesian family of MACNAMARA, of County Clare, which was resident at Ballynacraggy.

BARTHOLOMEW MACNAMARA (1685-1761), of Murraghlin, The Burren, County Clare, sixth son of Teige Macnamara, of Ballynacraggy, wedded Dorothy, daughter of William Brock, Mayor of Galway, and had issue,

WILLIAM, his heir;
Michael, dsp;
Teige, dsp;
John;
Mary; Margaret; Ann.

The eldest son,

WILLIAM MACNAMARA (1714-62), of Doolen, County Clare, married Catherine, daughter and heir of Francis Sarsfield, of Doolen, County Clare, and had issue,

FRANCIS, his heir;
William, dsp;
Mary; Catherine; Anne; Dorothy.

The elder son,

FRANCIS MACNAMARA (1750-1821), of Doolen, espoused Jane, daughter of George Stamer, of Carnelly, County Clare, by Honor his wife, daughter of Christopher O'Brien, of Ennistymon, and Mary, his second wife, daughter of Sir Randal MacDonnell Bt, and had issue,

WILLIAM NUGENT, his heir;
Richard;
George;
Francis;
John;
Burton (Sir), KCB, Admiral;
Honoria; Dora.

The eldest son,

WILLIAM NUGENT MACNAMARA (1775-1856), of Doolen, High Sheriff of County Clare, 1798, MP for County Clare, 1830-52, married, in 1798, Susannah, daughter and eventually co-heir of the Hon Mathias Finucane, Justice of the Common Pleas in Ireland (by Anne his wife, daughter of Edward O'Brien, of Ennistymon), and had issue,

FRANCIS, his heir;
Jane; Susan; Honor; Matilda; Louisa.

The only son,

FRANCIS MACNAMARA JP DL (1802-73), of Doolen and Ennistymon House, Lieutenant-Colonel, Clare Militia, MP for Ennis, 1832, was succeeded by his son,

HENRY VALENTINE MACNAMARA JP DL (1861-1925), of Doolen and Ennistymon, High Sheriff of County Clare, 1885, who wedded, in 1883, Elizabeth Edith, daughter of Sir Daniel Cooper Bt GCMG, and had issue,

FRANCIS, his heir;
Valentine;
George;
Violet Elizabeth; Edith Eileen; Doreen Finola; Honor Nesta.

The eldest son,

FRANCIS MACNAMARA (1884-1945), married, in 1911, Mary, eldest daughter of Eduard Majolier, of France, and had issue,

JOHN, his heir;
Caitlin, m Dylan Thomas;
Nicolette, 1911-87.

The only son,

JOHN MACNAMARA (1908-), wedded Henriette Buffard, of France, though the marriage was without issue.

Michael MacMahon has written an article about the Macnamaras of Doolin and Ennistymon.

ENNISTYMON HOUSE, now The Falls Hotel, Ennistymon, County Clare, is a two-storey, seven-bay, gable-ended 18th century house.

It has a single-storey, 19th century, gable-ended wing.

Interior plasterwork includes a frieze incorporating an arm embowed, brandishing a sword (the O'Brien crest) in the hall.

The conservatory has art nouveau metalwork.

Ennistymon became The Falls Hotel ca 1936.

Francis Macnamara was reputedly a notable bohemian figure and the father-in-law of Dylan Thomas; who married (as his second wife) the sister of Augustus John's Dorelia.

Macnamara and John are the Two Flamboyant Fathers in the book of that name by his daughter, Nicolette Shephard.

First published in March, 2016.

Ballyhaise House

THE HUMPHRYS' OWNED 5,146 ACRES OF LAND IN COUNTY CAVAN

WILLIAM HUMPHRYS, of Ballyhaise, County Cavan, younger brother of Christopher Humphrys, of Dromard, married Letitia Kennedy, and had issue,

Christopher, b 1786;
WILLIAM, of whom we treat;
John, 1809-18;
Anne; Matilda; Letitia; Amelia; Caroline; Sophia.

Mr Humphrys, High Sheriff of County Cavan, 1822, was succeeded by his second son,

WILLIAM HUMPHRYS JP DL (1798-1872), of Ballyhaise House, High Sheriff of County Cavan, 1832, who wedded firstly, in 1826, Anna Maria, daughter of John Pratt Winter, of Agher, County Meath, and had issue,

WILLIAM, his heir;
JOHN WINTER, succeeded his brother;
Mervyn Archdall;
Anne Elizabeth.

He espoused secondly, in 1838, Maria Clarissa, daughter of Hugh Moore, of Eglantine House, County Down, and had further issue,

Hugh (Rev);
Armitage Eglantine;
Cecilia Letitia; Clara; Sylvia Priscilla.

Mr Humphrys was succeeded by his eldest son,

WILLIAM HUMPHRYS (1827-77), High Sheriff of County Cavan, 1877, who died unmarried, and was succeeded by his brother,

JOHN WINTER HUMPHRYS (1829-84), of Ballyhaise House, High Sheriff of County Cavan, 1879, who married, in 1854, Priscilla Cecilia, daughter of the Rev J P Garrett, of Killgaron, County Carlow, and had issue,

WILLIAM, his heir;
John Mervyn;
James Winter;
Charles Vesey;
Mervyn Archdall;
Francis Edward;
Arthur Armitage;
Llewellyn Winter;
Percy Raymond;
Caroline Elizabeth; Priscilla Cecilia; Clara Christina; Anna Maria; Emily May.

Mr Humphrys was succeeded by his eldest son,

WILLIAM HUMPHRYS JP (1855-97), of Ballyhaise House, Lieutenant RN, who wedded, in 1879, Alice, daughter of James Stannard JP, of Bricketstown House, County Wexford, and had issue,

WILLIAM, his heir;
NUGENT WINTER, succeeded his brother;
Ethel Elizabeth; Evelyn Alice.

Mr Humphrys was succeeded by his eldest son,

WILLIAM HUMPHRYS (1883-1906), of Ballyhaise House, Lieutenant, 17th Lancers, who died unmarried, and was succeeded by his brother,

NUGENT WINTER HUMPHRYS (1885-1931), of Ballyhaise House, Lieutenant, Manchester Regiment, who espoused, in 1911, Blanche Ada de Vivefay, daughter of William Edward Wilson, of Daramona.

BALLYHAISE HOUSE, Ballyhaise, County Cavan, is one of the greatest mansions in County Cavan.

It was built about 1733 for Colonel Brockhill Newburgh.

The house comprises two storeys over a basement, with seven bays; with ashlar dressings, faced in brick.

The entrance front has a pedimented feature with four Ionic pilasters.

The garden front has a central carved bow with round-headed windows.

The bow contains an oval saloon, which has been considered one of the earliest of its kind in the British Isles.

Ballyhaise was sold in 1800 to William Humphrys, who enlarged the house considerably by adding two storey wings of the same height as the original block.

The estate was sold by the Humprys family in 1906 and now serves as an agricultural college.

First published in July, 2018.

Oak Park

THE BRUENS WERE THE LARGEST LANDOWNERS IN COUNTY CARLOW, WITH 16,477 ACRES 

JAMES BRUEN, said to have been of Tarvin, Cheshire, went to Ireland in Cromwell's Army and settled at Abbeyboyle, County Roscommon. He was administrator to his brother, Henry Bruen, of Dublin, in 1700.

James Bruen’s son,

MOSES BRUEN, of Boyle, County Roscommon, purchased land and property in counties Carlow and Wexford from the Beaucamp, Grogan and Whaley families.

Thereafter, the family settled at Oak Park, County Carlow, and Coolbawn, County Wexford.

This Moses, who died in 1757, left issue,

Moses;
HENRY, of Oak Park;
Bridget; Mary; Elinor Catherine; Margaret; Elizabeth.

The second son,

COLONEL HENRY BRUEN (1741-95), of Oak Park, High Sheriff of County Carlow, 1785, MP for Jamestown, 1783-90, County Carlow, 1790-95, removed, ca 1775, to estates which he purchased in County Carlow.

He married, in 1787, Harriette Dorothea, daughter of Francis Knox, of Rappa Castle, County Mayo, and had issue,

HENRY, his heir;
John, of Coolbawn;
Francis, of Coolbawn;
Maria; Margaret; Harriett.

The son and heir,

COLONEL HENRY BRUEN (1789-1852), of Oak Park, and Coolbawn, County Wexford, married, in 1822, Anne Wandesforde, daughter of Thomas Kavanagh MP, of Borris House, County Carlow, by Lady Elizabeth his wife, daughter of John, 17th Earl of Ormonde, and had issue,

HENRY, of Oak Park;
Elizabeth; Harriet; Anne.

Colonel Bruen was succeeded by his only son,

THE RT HON HENRY BRUEN JP DL (1828-1912), of Oak Park and Coolbawn, MP for Carlow, 1857-80, High Sheriff of County Carlow, 1855, Privy Counsellor, who married, in 1854, Mary Margaret, third daughter of Colonel Edward M Conolly MP, of Castletown, County Kildare, and had issue,

HENRY, his heir;
Edward Francis, Captain RN;
John Richard;
Arthur Thomas;
Charles;
Katherine Anne; Mary Susan; Elizabeth; Eleanor; Helen; Grace.

Mr Bruen was succeeded by his eldest son,

HENRY BRUEN (1856-1927), of Oak Park, and Coolbawn, Lieutenant, Royal Artillery, High Sheriff of County Carlow, 1886, Wexford, 1909, who wedded, in 1886, Agnes Mary, youngest daughter of the Rt Hon Arthur M Kavanagh, of Borris, County Carlow, and had issue,

HENRY ARTHUR BRUEN (1887-1954), of Oak Park, Captain, 15th Hussars, who wedded, in 1913, Jane Catherine Gladys, daughter of Arthur George Florence McClintock, and had issue,

GLADYS PATRICIA BREUN (1914-), of Oak Park, who married, in 1939, Mervyn Anthony Arthur Rudyerd Boyse, son of Major Henry Thomas Arthur Shapland Hunt Boyse. They had four sons.

She lived in 1976 at Maryvale, Church Road, Ballybrack, County Dublin.

OAK PARK, near Carlow town, is a large Victorian classical house by W V Morrison.

It has two storeys, the entrance front having a five-bay central block with a pedimented portico of four huge Ionic columns.

The main block is prolonged by wings of the same height, initially set back though returning forwards with Wyatt windows at their ends.

The garden front of thirteen bays is duller in appearance.

The interior has splendid plasterwork in the style of Morrison; while the Hall boasts giant, free-standing Ionic columns.

Part of the former Oak Park estate, once the home of the Bruen Family, from 1775 to 1957, is now the 127 acre Oak Park Forest Park.

The Oak Park demesne was bought by Colonel Henry Bruen in 1775, after making his fortune in the American Army.

He was the grandson of James Bruen, of Tarvin, Cheshire, who came to Ireland with Oliver Cromwell and received land at Abbeyboyle, County Roscommon.

The Bruens intermarried with the County Mayo families, Knox of Rappa and Ruttledge of Bloomfield.

HMS Drake, the wreck of which lies at Church Bay, Rathlin Island, was torpedoed in 1917. One of her Captains was Edward Bruen, son of the MP. He was Captain when the ship was flagship on the Australian station circa 1912/13.

The Senior Naval Officer in Australia at the time was Admiral King-Hall (Admiral Sir George Fowler King-Hall KCB CVO) who had a very strong Ulster connection. Captain Edward Bruen RN was married to Olga Ker, one of the Montalto and Portavo family.

Captain Bruen later went on to command HMS Bellerophon at the Battle of Jutland.

The Bruen estate was mainly in the counties of Carlow and Wexford where they had houses at Oakpark in Carlow and at Coolbawn, Enniscorthy.

Francis Bruen was married to Catherine Anne Nugent, daughter of the Earl of Westmeath.

Three townlands in the barony of Athenry were offered for sale in the Landed Estates court in 1866.

All this land gave the Bruen family political power and, in 1790, Henry Bruen was returned to Parliament, winning the seat of a neighbouring family, the Butlers.

However, the Butlers reclaimed their seat five years later with the sudden death of the Colonel in December, 1795.

This allowed his son, also called Henry, to assume control of the estate.

The Bruen estate in County Galway amounted to over 700 acres in the 1870s but was part of an estate of almost 25,000 acres in total.

Manuscripts in the Irish Genealogical Office would suggest that the family held lands at Boyle, County Roscommon, in the 18th century.

These lands seem to have been at the centre of a legal case between the Bruen family and Richard St George.

Henry Bruen attended Harrow School alongside the poet Lord Byron and Robert Peel, with whom he would later serve as a Conservative MP.

Peel was Home Secretary at the time of Catholic Emancipation, a Bill which Henry Bruen supported.

Bruen quickly amassed the land surrounding Oak Park.

In 1841, a survey of every Bruen farm revealed that the family's estates in County Carlow covered 20,089 acres.

In the 1841 election, Henry defeated the Liberal candidate, Daniel O'Connell, Jnr., son of “The Liberator”.

However, the Bruen hold on the seat lapsed with the death of Henry in 1852; but his son, also confusingly called Henry, returned to the House of Commons in 1857 and held his seat until 1880, which marked the end of the family's 90-year history of political involvement over three generations.

The current mansion house at Oak Park is the result of four periods of expansion and remodelling carried out between 1797 and 1902.

Twenty-two years after he arrived, Henry employed Michael Boylan to redecorate the house.

In 1832, the second Henry Bruen commissioned William Morrison to re-model the house and in 1876 Samuel Bolton, a builder, signed a contract for a major extension, which took three years to complete.

However, on 22nd February, 1902, the house was gutted by fire.

After eight hours of fighting the blaze, all that remained was the north wing. Fortunately, a large number of paintings, furniture and books were saved by the workers.

The house was rebuilt under the supervision of William Mitchell.

The last male Bruen, the fifth Henry, died in 1954.

By then, the estate had reduced in size to a relatively small 1,500 acres.

He left nothing to his estranged daughter Gladys, who had several years earlier married Prince Milo of Montenegro.

The remainder of the estate was bequeathed to a cousin in England, minus a weekly income for life of £6 to his daughter, Patricia.

In 1957, the estate was purchased at auction for £50,555 by Brownes Hill Estates, who already owned the nearby estate in which a Norfolk farmer was principal partner.

However, within three years the property was back on the market after fierce protest from smaller farmers in opposition to the purchase by the Norfolk farmer.

The estate was bought by the Irish Land Commission for £68,000, and seven hundred acres were divided up among small holders, while the house and the remaining land were taken over as a research centre for the Irish Agricultural Institute (Teagasc).

The last member of the Bruen family to be buried in the family's private burial ground at the Mausoleum was Gladys, the estranged wife of Henry (d 1969). 

First published in April, 2011.

I am grateful to Henry Woods and Robert Power for most of the information; further reading about the Bruens and Oak Park can be read here.

Altidore Castle

THE DOPPING-HEPENSTALS OWNED 1,568 ACRES OF LAND IN COUNTY WICKLOW

JOHN DOPPING, of Frampton, Gloucestershire, and of Dopping Court, Dublin, married Joan, daughter of John Elliott, of Shropshire, and had an only son,

ANTHONY DOPPING, of Dopping Court, Dublin, Clerk of the Privy Council in Ireland, Feodary of the Province of Leinster, and Examiner of the Court of Wards, who wedded Margaret, daughter of Gilbert Domvile, MP for County Kildare, by Margaret his wife, daughter of the Most Rev Dr Thomas Jones, Lord Archbishop of Dublin and Lord Chancellor of Ireland, sister of the 1st Viscount Ranelagh.

Mr Dopping died in 1649, having had issue (with a daughter), a son,

THE MOST REV DR ANTHONY DOPPING (1643-97), Lord Bishop of Meath, of Dopping Court, Dublin, who espoused, in 1670, Jane, daughter of Samuel Molyneux, of Castle Dillon, County Armagh, and had issue,

Samuel, MP for Armagh;
ANTHONY, of whom hereafter;
Margaret; Lucy; Mary; Jane.

His lordship died in 1697, and was buried in St Andrew's Church, Dublin.

His second, and eventually eldest surviving son,

THE RT REV ANTHONY DOPPING (1675-1743), of Dopping Court, Lord Bishop of Ossory, who espoused Dorothea, daughter of Ralph Howard MP, of Shelton Abbey, County Wicklow, ancestor of the Earls of Wicklow, and had issue,

ANTHONY, his heir;
Jane Lucy; Alice; Margaret; Frances; Katherine.

His lordship died in 1743, and was buried in St Andrew's Church, Dublin.

He was succeeded by his only son,

ANTHONY DOPPING, of Lowtown, County Westmeath, who married, in 1756, Alice, daughter of James D'Arcy, of Hyde Park, County Westmeath, and of Derrycassan, County Longford, and had issue (with two daughters),

Samuel (1760-1822), dspm;
RALPH, who carried on the line.

Mr Dopping was succeeded by his elder son, who died as above, while the family was carried on by the younger son,

RALPH DOPPING (1766-1818), of Erne Head and Derrycassan, who wedded, in 1798, Catherine, daughter of Philip Smyth, of Grouse Hall, County Cavan, and had issue,

JOHN, his heir;
Henry, of Erne Head;
Mary; Frances.

Mr Dopping was succeeded by his eldest son,

JOHN DOPPING JP (1800-55), of Derrycassan, High Sheriff of County Longford, 1823, who wedded, in 1822, Frances, daughter of James Henry Cottingham, of Somerville, County Cavan, and had issue,

RALPH ANTHONY, his heir;
John Francis;
James Henry;
Charlotte Henrietta; Sarah Rose.

Mr Dopping, who was drowned in 1855, was succeeded by his eldest son,

RALPH ANTHONY DOPPING-HEPENSTAL JP DL (1823-87), of Derrycassan, High Sheriff of County Longford, 1859, Honorary Colonel, Longford Rifles, who espoused firstly, in 1858, DIANA DALRYMPLE, daughter of the Rev Lambert Watson Hepenstal, of Altadore, County Wicklow, and had issue,

LAMBERT JOHN, his heir;
Susannah Elizabeth Louisa Mary Caroline; Haidee Emily Rose; Diana Charlotte.

He married secondly, in 1867, Anne, third daughter of Richard Maxwell Fox DL MP, of Foxhall, County Longford, and had further issue,

Ralph Francis Byron;
Maxwell Edward;
Juanita Rose.

Colonel Dopping assumed, in 1859, the additional surname and arms of HEPENSTAL, in compliance with the testamentary injunction of his father-in-law, the Rev Lambert Watson Hepenstal, of Altidore, County Wicklow.

He was succeeded by his eldest son,

LAMBERT JOHN DOPPING-HEPENSTAL OBE JP DL (1859-1928), of Derrycassan, County Longford, and Altidore Castle, County Wicklow, High Sheriff of County Wicklow, 1909, County Longford, 1910, Major, Royal Engineers, who wedded, in 1920, Amy Maude, daughter of Major Charles Robert Worsley Tottenham, though the marriage was without issue.

FAMILY OF HEPENSTAL

The Rev John Hepenstal, of Newcastle, County Wicklow, born in 1699, married, in 1726, Miss Adair, of Hollybrook, County Wicklow, and had issue,

William, who had two daughters;
EDWARD, of whom we treat.

The younger son,

EDWARD HEPENSTAL, of Newcastle, wedded, in 1759, Jane, daughter of John Lambert, of Kilcrony, and sister of Colonel Oliver Richard Lambert, and had issue,

John, dsp;
GEORGE, of whom presently;
Edward;
William.

The second son,

GEORGE HEPENSTAL, of Sandymount, espoused, in 1787, Hester Watson, and had (with other issue), a son,

THE REV LAMBERT WATSON HEPENSTAL (1788-1859), of Altadore, County Wicklow, who married firstly, in 1809, Elizabeth, daughter of William Ball, and had issue,

GEORGE RICHARD, his heir;
William;
Jane Anne; Esther Charlotte; Louisa Diana; Elizabeth Martha; Susanna Rebecca;
Selina Dalrymple; Emily Mary; DIANA DALRYMPLE (as above); Hester Maria.

Mr Hepenstal wedded secondly, in 1858, Cecilia, daughter of John Berkeley Deane, of Berkeley, County Wexford, without further issue.

ALTIDORE CASTLE, County Wicklow, described as a “Georgian toy fort“, was built near the ruins of a medieval castle of the O’Toole family in the eastern slopes of the Wicklow Mountains, west of Newtownmountkennedy.

From its elevated position it looks out over woods to the coastal plain and the Irish Sea beyond.

Altidore was built as a residence for General Thomas Pearce, uncle of the eminent architect, Sir Edward Lovett Pearce, ca 1730.

Sir Edward designed some of Ireland’s finest early Palladian buildings and architectural historians speculate that he may well have been responsible for the plans of Altidore.

It is clearly in the same vein as the early 18th century ‘sham’ forts and castles designed by Pearce and his cousin, the playright-turned-architect Sir John Vanbrugh.

Altidore was enlarged and modified for a subsequent owner, Major Henry Brownrigg, and by 1773 was owned by Rev William Blachford, Librarian of Marsh’s Library and father of the early Romantic poetess Mary Tighe, authoress of “Psyche, or the Legend of Love”, who lived at Altadore as a child.

Subsequently her brother, the noted agriculturalist John Blanchford, lived here with his wife Mary Anne, the daughter of Henry Grattan, the famous parliamentarian from nearby Tinnehinch.

Altidore comprises two stories over a basement, with crenellated towers at each corner and two formal fronts of five bays.

The façade, which faces the mountains, has a three-bay breakfront with a central Venetian window above a heavily blocked door case and a later pillared porch.

The basement appears as the ground floor at the rear, on account of the steeply sloping ground.

The interior has good early 18th century joinery and a panelled dining-room with plaster plaques.

From 1834 till 1918 the Dopping-Hepenstal family, of Derrycassan House (demolished in the 1930s) extensive landowners in County Wicklow, owned the estate.

They rarely lived in the castle and leased it out for long periods, on one occasion for use as a tuberculosis sanatorium. 

In the early 20th century Altidore changed hands more frequently and was owned by two different banks on separate occasions.

Finally, in 1945, James Albert Garland Emmet purchased the house and 300 acres of land from Percy Burton, an eccentric bachelor who had allowed it to become very dilapidated.

The Emmets carried out an extensive restoration and created a large new garden, centred on a pair of canals from the early 18th century garden layout.

The present owners, their grandson Philip and his wife, have farmed the estate organically for nearly 20 years.

The Emmets are descended from Thomas Addis Emmet, a leader of the United Irishmen and brother of the Irish nationalist and republican leader, Robert Emmet.

Altadore contains a small Robert Emmet museum, with a number of interesting original items.

Select bibliography ~ Irish Historic Houses Association. First published in February, 2018.

The Davis-Goff Baronets

THE DAVIS-GOFFS OWNED 2,576 ACRES OF LAND IN COUNTY WEXFORD

THE REV STEPHEN GOFFE or GOUGH, Rector of Bramber, West Sussex, 1603-5, and St Botolph's, 1605-6, married Deborah West, and had issue,

WILLIAM, his heir;
James;
Timothy;
Stephen (Rev);
John (Rev).

The eldest son,

LIEUTENANT-GENERAL WILLIAM GOFFE (c1605-c1679), wedded Frances, daughter of Major-General Edward Whalley, and had issue,

RICHARD, his heir;
Anne; Elizabeth; Frances.

The only son,

RICHARD GOFFE, of Waterford, County Waterford, espoused, in 1681, Hannah, daughter of Jonas Chamberlain, and had issue,

William;
Richard;
Jonas;
JACOB, of whom hereafter;
Mary; Hannah; Elizabeth.

The youngest son,

JACOB GOFF (1695-c1751), of Dublin, married, in 1721, Mary, daughter of John Fade, and had issue,

Joseph;
Fade;
JACOB, of whom we treat;
Hannah; Mary; Sarah; Elizabeth.

The third son,

JACOB GOFF (c1736-c1799), married Elizabeth, daughter of Benjamin Wilson, and had issue,

Joseph Fade;
WILLIAM;
Anne; Dinah; Elizabeth.

The younger son,

WILLIAM GOFF (1762-1840), of Horetown House, County Wexford, High Sheriff of County Wexford, 1807 and 1811, wedded, in 1784, Rebecca, daughter of Edward Deaves, and had issue,

Jacob William, dsp;
REBECCA, of whom hereafter;
Mary; Sally; Lucy Anne; Arabella; Elizabeth.

Mr Goff's eldest daughter,

MISS REBECCA GOFF, espoused, in 1809, Francis Davis, of Waterford, and had issue,

STRANGMAN;
Henry (1825-63).

Mrs Davis died in 1859, and was succeeded by her elder son,

STRANGMAN DAVIS JP (1810-72), of Horetown House, County Wexford, who married, in 1835, Susan Maxwell, daughter of Arthur Ussher, and had issue,

WILLIAM, his heir;
Ussher;
Charles Edward;
Francis;
Margaretta Ussher; Julia Anna; Rebecca; Lucy Ussher.

Mr Davis added the additional surname of GOFF in 1845, under the terms of his uncle's will.

He was succeeded by his eldest son,

WILLIAM DAVIS-GOFF JP DL (1838-1918), of Glenville, County Waterford, High Sheriff of Waterford City, 1869, County Waterford, 1892, who wedded, in 1866, Anna Maria, daughter of Michael Dobbyn Hassard, and had issue,

HERBERT WILLIAM, his heir;
William Ernest.

Mr Davis-Goff was created a baronet in 1905, designated of Glenville, County Waterford.

He was succeeded by his elder son,

SIR HERBERT WILLIAM DAVIS-GOFF, 2nd Baronet (1870-1923), DL, High Sheriff of County Waterford, 1914, Captain, RASC, who espoused, in 1903, Margaret Aimée, daughter of the Rt Hon Sir Charles Stewart Scott GCB GCMG, and had issue,

ERNEST WILLIAM, his successor;
Charles Herbert;
Terence Richard;
Doreen Christian.

Sir Herbert was succeeded by his eldest son,

SIR ERNEST WILLIAM GOFF-DAVIS, 3rd Baronet (1904-80), who married, in 1941, Alice Cynthia Sainthill, daughter of Robert Woodhouse, and had issue,

ROBERT WILLIAM, his successor;
Annabel Claire; Julia Christian; Alice Maria.

Sir Ernest was succeeded by his only son,

SIR ROBERT WILLIAM DAVIS-GOFF, 4th and present Baronet (1955-), of Ballinacor, County Wicklow, and Lissen Hall, County Dublin, who wedded, in 1978, Nathalie Sheelagh, daughter of Terence Chadwick, of Lissen Hall, County Dublin, and has issue,

WILLIAM NATHANIEL (b 1980);
Henry Terence Chadwick;
James Sammy Chadwick;
Sarah Chadwick.

Residences ~ Ballinacor Estate, County Wicklow; Lissen Hall, Donabate, County Dublin; Eairy Moar Farm, Glen Helen, Isle of Man.

Sir Norman Stronge Bt

DEDICATED TO THE ESTEEMED AND ILLUSTRIOUS MEMORY OF THE RIGHT HONOURABLE SIR CHARLES NORMAN LOCKHART STRONGE, BARONET, MC, JP,  AND HIS ONLY SON, JAMES MATTHEW STRONGE, BRUTALLY MURDERED ON THIS DAY IN 1981

I first had the great honour of meeting Sir Norman Stronge (1894-1981) after a concert in the late seventies, when I was still a teenager.

I was at the Northern Ireland Area British Legion Festival of Remembrance, taking place at the County Hall near Ballymena, County Antrim.

It was usually held at the Ulster Hall in Belfast but, due to "the Troubles," took place at the County Hall for several years. 

Sir Norman was Area President of the Royal British Legion.

He was an old man by then, tall and distinguished with a good head of grey hair; upright with a benign smile; distinguished-looking and wearing a double-breasted chalk-stripe suit.

He always wore a neatly clipped moustache.

Sir Norman struck me as being a true gentleman from a previous era, seldom encountered today.

Sir Norman had had an illustrious life and career.

The baronetcy was first created in 1803, and Sir Norman was the 8th Baronet.

He served as Lord Lieutenant of County Armagh from 1939 till his death in 1981 under two successive monarchs, including GEORGE VI; and sat as a member of the NI House of Commons from 1938-69, including a spell as Speaker from 1945-69.

The late Douglas Deane OBE recalled Sir Norman's passion for wildlife at Tynan Abbey:

He went to live and farm at Tynan Abbey in 1928 and always his interest was in wild things; often he told me about the wildfowl which visited the lake in winter; the groups of Bewick swans; the flocks of white-fronted geese... 

he showed me an incubating woodcock, hidden in a pool of brown leaves by the edge of the main drive at Tynan and told me that his gamekeeper had seen a woodcock carry one of its young, held between its legs, from an open patch in the woods in to cover; and many times had watched a woodcock feed its young in the same fashion as pigeons.

Every year Sir Norman would invite me to Tynan to see the azaleas in colour and the seas of bluebells in the woods and always there was talk of butterflies, painted ladies, peacock and the rest.

Mr Deane continued:

Sir Norman was the envy of his friends, being an excellent shot. He would often finish a day's shooting with close to 200 pigeons...his cousin, Sir Basil Brooke [1st Viscount Brookeborough], had the edge on him and always seemed to finish the day with more.

TYNAN ABBEY, County Armagh, was built in 1750 and enlarged in the Tudor-Gothic style around 1820-30.

It had an imposing two-storey entrance front, battlemented and pinnacled; a battlemented central tower and doorway too, with pointed Gothic windows.

Much has already been written about the Abbey by authors more knowledgeable than myself.

Originally, the estate extended to some 8,000 acres.

One quiet Wednesday evening at around nine o'clock, 21st January, 1981, Sir Norman - by now in his 87th year - and his son, James (48), were having a quiet drink in the library of Tynan Abbey following their dinner, when they heard a loud explosion in close proximity.

Unknown to them, a gang of heavily-armed men had been stalking out the Abbey and its grounds earlier and the explosion had been caused by a hand-grenade thrown at the heavy, wooden front door.

The Stronges would have had a reasonable idea, by this stage, that they were being attacked.

He kept a flare nearby, and opened the window to fire it in an attempt to alert others to the grave situation.

As it happened, a police patrol did notice the flare but, by that stage, it was too late.

The gang quickly located Sir Norman and his son in the library and opened fire on them, at point blank range, killing them instantaneously.

The gang then placed fire-bombs throughout Tynan Abbey and made their escape in a southerly direction into the relatively safe jurisdiction of the Irish Republic.

The great mansion, and its priceless contents, was utterly destroyed; indeed, its ruinous shell had to be demolished later because it was unsafe.

Although there ensued a ferocious gun-battle with the police, the gang fled.

I'd only wish to conclude by quoting from a small article by Turtle Bunbury:

We stopped first in the village of Tynan to view the High Cross, a replica of which now surmounts Bourke and Anne Cochrane's grave in New York.

We could just make out some images - perhaps Shadrach and his brothers hot-stepping it on fire-coals, maybe Adam and Eve contemplating a serpent. The Church where the Stronges are buried stands close by. 

The last baronet, Sir Norman Stronge, and his son, James, were murdered by the Provisional IRA in 1981. Sir Jack, who knew them both, says father and son were quietly watching TV when a hand grenade blew their front door of its hinges.

Sir Norman managed to let off a flare but the police got there too late. The two men were machine gunned to death and the house burned down. The perpetrators all met unhappy ends - either shot by their own comrades or captured and incarcerated.

My father and I attended their funeral at Tynan parish church.

I remember the Duke of Abercorn wearing a heavy, tweed, raglan overcoat.

Notwithstanding the passing of so many years, this vile act has continued to stick in my memory.

The mere thought of such a heinous atrocity still deeply saddens me to this very day.

First published in January, 2014.

James Ussher DD

A voluminous pedigree of this family, and all the various branches, compiled by Sir William Betham, Ulster King-of-Arms, commences with ARLAND USSHER, Bailiff of Dublin, 1460-2, Mayor of Dublin, 1469-71, who married firstly, Alsone Taylor, by whom he had a daughter, Margaret, and an only son, Thomas.

Arland Ussher wedded secondly, Anne Berford, and had further issue,

JOHN, of whom we treat;
Robert, dsp;
Philip, dsp;
Christopher, ancestor of USSHER OF EASTWELL.

The eldest son of his second marriage,

JOHN USSHER, Sheriff of Dublin, 1524, espoused, in 1485, Johanna, daughter of William Foster, of Killeigh, and had issue,

Arland;
THOMAS, of whom hereafter.

The younger son,

THOMAS USSHER, married Margery, daughter of Henry Geydon, and had issue,

John;
Henry (Most Rev), Lord Archbishop of Armagh;
ARLAND, of whom hereafter;
Christopher;
Rose; Ales; Katherine.

The third son,

ARLAND USSHER (c1552-98), wedded Margaret, daughter of James Stanihurst, and had issue,

JAMES, his heir;
Ambrose;
Sarah; Ellinor; Margaret; Mabel; Anne.

The eldest son,

THE MOST REV AND RT HON DR JAMES USSHER (1581-1656), Lord Archbishop of Armagh, Primate of All Ireland, espoused, in 1614, Phœbe, daughter of the Rev Luke Challoner, and had issue, an only child, ELIZABETH (1620-93).

At the age of 13 James Ussher entered the newly founded Trinity College in Dublin and had a distinguished academic career.

He was ordained by his uncle, Dr Henry Ussher (Archbishop of Armagh), in 1602.

Dr James Ussher,  Photo Credit: The National Trust

During the Irish rebellion of 1641 most of Archbishop Ussher's property was destroyed.

His Grace later lived in London and Oxford, and with his only daughter Elizabeth (wife of Sir Timothy Tyrrell) in Wales.

For a short time, while the Dean of Westminster was imprisoned in the Tower of London, Dr Ussher used the Deanery at Westminster.

He attended the funeral of CHARLES I at Oxford, but later also found favour with Cromwell.

Oliver Cromwell, in fact, ordered his burial in the Chapel of St Paul in Westminster Abbey, and paid the funeral expenses.

It is thought that this was the only occasion at which the Anglican funeral service was read in the Abbey during the Commonwealth period.

The present Irish marble gravestone in the Abbey, with brass lettering, was erected until 1904, and the Latin inscription was written by Dr Gwynn (Regius Professor at Trinity College) and others.

It can be translated thus:

In pious memory of JAMES USSHER who was born in Dublin in 1581, entered among the first students of Trinity College, promoted to the archiepiscopal see of Armagh, 

Primate of all Ireland, the hundredth heir of St Patrick the apostle of Ireland, historian, critic, theologian, most learned among the holy, most holy among the learned, 

Exiled from his own in this city of Westminster, he fell asleep in Christ in 1656. 

He was expelled from his sacred see and country by those same seditions which went on to grant him burial in this church among the most honoured. 

This stone was placed by George Salmon, Provost of the same college, 1904.

Ussher's coat-of-arms appears at the base of the stone, surmounted by a mitre.

This shows the arms of the See of Armagh impaling Ussher (azure, a chevron ermine between three batons, or).

First published in December, 2019.

Isle O'Valla: 2013

Garden Front, facing Strangford Lough (Timothy Ferres, 2013)

I took these photographs of ISLE O'VALLA HOUSE in June, 2013.

The house lies between the village of Strangford, County Down, to the north, and Cloghy Rocks to the south.

South Elevation (Timothy Ferres, 2013)

This historic house has, to my mind, considerable potential as holiday apartments, a guest-house or even a private home.

East Elevation (Timothy Ferres, 2013)

There are old outbuildings, including terraced cottages, to the west and north of the house.

First published in June, 2013.

Baronston House

THE MALONES WERE MAJOR LANDOWNERS IN COUNTY WESTMEATH, WITH 13,715 ACRES 

EDMOND MALONE, of Ballynahown, married, in 1569, Margaret, daughter of Richard Dalton, of Milltown, by whom he had issue, one son,

EDMOND MALONE, of Ballynahown, who wedded firstly, in 1599, Rose, daughter of John Coghlan (The Maw); and secondly, Catherine Pettyt.

By the latter he had a son, John, who was settled at Cartrons, County Westmeath, in the neighbourhood of his father, and a daughter, Mary; and by the former he was father of a son and heir,

EDMOND MALONE, of Ballynahown, who espoused, in 1617, a daughter of Garrett Byrne, and left a son and successor,

EDMOND MALONE, of Ballynahown, who married, in 1644, Mary, daughter of Brazel Fox, of Kilcoursy, and had two sons,

EDMOND, his heir;
ANTHONY, ancestor of BARON SUNDERLIN.

The younger son,

ANTHONY MALONE, of Baronston, married, in 1673, Mary, daughter of John Reilly, of Lismore, County Cavan, and granddaughter of the Earl of Roscommon, and was father of

RICHARD MALONE (1674-), of Baronston, the celebrated lawyer and orator, who wedded, in 1698, Marcella, daughter of Richard Molady, by Mary his wife, daughter of John Malone, of Cartrons, and had issue,

ANTHONY (Rt Hon), MP;
Edmond, MP; father of RICHARD, 1st BARON SUNDERLIN;
Richard, MP;
Anne Jane Frances; Mary; Margaret; Marcella.

The elder son of Edmond Malone and Mary Fox his wife,

EDMOND MALONE, of Ballynahown, High Sheriff of County Westmeath, 1756-7, wedded, in 1674, Anne, daughter of Henry L'Estrange, of Moystown, King's County, and had (with a daughter) three sons,

RICHARD, of Ballynahown;
Henry;
Anthony (1700-76).

The eldest son,

RICHARD MALONE (1706-59), of Ballynahown, espoused, in 1717, Anne, daughter of Sir Thomas Crosbie, of Ballyheigue, County Kerry, and had issue,

Edmond, MP for Ardfert; dsp 1759;
HENRY, his heir;
Anthony (Rev);
Elizabeth.

The second son,

HENRY MALONE, of Ballynahown, married Anne, daughter of Henry Morres Jones, of Moneyglass, County Antrim, and had a son,

EDMOND MALONE, of Ballynahown, who wedded, in 1774, his cousin Mary, eldest daughter of John O'Connor, of Mount Pleasant, King's County, and had issue,

EDMOND, of whom presently;
John;
Henry;
Maria; Anne.

His eldest son,

EDMOND MALONE, of Ballynahown, Captain, Black Horse Regiment, espoused, in 1813, Henrietta, daughter of John Chomley, of Belcamp, County Dublin.

He died in 1818, and left issue,

Edmond, died unmarried, 1836;
JOHN RICHARD, of whom hereafter;
Harriette.

The only surviving son,

JOHN RICHARD MALONE JP DL (1817-94), of Baronston, High Sheriff of County Westmeath, 1852, married firstly, in 1844, Elizabeth, daughter of Colonel Henry Peisley L'Estrange, of Moystown, King's County, and by her had issue,

JOHN RICHARD, his successor;
Henry L'Estrange.

He wedded secondly, in 1868, Anna Jane, youngest daughter of Robert William Lowry DL, of Pomeroy, County Tyrone, and Belmore, County Westmeath.

His eldest son,

JOHN RICHARD MALONE JP DL (1846-), High Sheriff of County Westmeath, 1896, Colonel Commanding 6th Battalion, Rifle Brigade, espoused firstly, in 1872, Charlotte Mildred, daughter of the Hon John Yarde Buller, and sister of John, 2nd Baron Churston, and had issue,

JOHN RICHARD MORDRED HENRY L'ESTRANGE;
Roderick O'Connor Vivian Henry Vere;
Victor Mildred Charles.

Colonel Malone wedded secondly, in 1893, Catherine Cecil, daughter of Major J W Percy, and had further issue,

Henry Anthony Percy;
Richard Maurice Fitzgerald;
Barbara Grace Maria Patricia.

BARONSTON HOUSE, Ballynacargy, County Westmeath, was a late 18th century house consisting of a three-storey centre block joined to two-storey wings by curved sweeps.

The centre block had a seven-bay front with a pedimented breakfront; a three-bay projecting porch; wings of five bays.

Having suffered a series of fires, the centre block was replaced, in 1903, by a large, gabled, Edwardian villa, with the sweeps and wings remaining on either side.

Baronston was sold in 1929 and subsequently demolished.

Sunderlin arms courtesy of European Heraldry.  First published in January, 2012.

Salterbridge House

THE CHEARNLEYS WERE MAJOR LANDOWNERS IN COUNTY WATERFORD, WITH 18,165 ACRES

SAMUEL CHEARNLEY (son of Anthony Chearnley, of Kilgrogy) married Mary, daughter of Philip Moore, and had issue,

ANTHONY, of whom presently;
Samuel.

Mr Chearnley died in 1741, and was succeeded by his elder son,

ANTHONY CHEARNLEY (c1716-55), of Spring Park, Affane, County Waterford, who wedded firstly, Anna Gervais, by whom he had a son, Thomas; and secondly, Janet, daughter and co-heir of Richard Musgrave, of Salterbridge, County Waterford, and had issue,

Samuel;
RICHARD, of whom hereafter;
ANTHONY, succeeded his brother;
Christopher;
Joseph;
John;
Christopher;
Janet; Mary; Elizabeth.

The eldest son of his second wife,

RICHARD CHEARNLEY, of Salterbridge, succeeded to his mother's property in 1760, and died childless, 1791, when he was succeeded by his brother,

ANTHONY CHEARNLEY (1761-1842), of Salterbridge, High Sheriff of County Waterford, 1809, who wedded firstly, in 1796, Julia Browne, of Gallstown, County Meath; and secondly, Isabella, daughter of the Most Rev Dr William Newcombe, Lord Archbishop of Armagh, and had issue,

Anthony, died unmarried;
RICHARD, of whom hereafter;
William;
Edward;
Philip;
Philip;
John.

The second son,

RICHARD CHEARNLEY JP DL (1807-63), of Salterbridge, High Sheriff of County Waterford, 1842, espoused Mary, daughter of the Ven Henry Cotton, Archdeacon of Cashel, and had issue,

RICHARD ANTHONY, his successor;
HENRY PHILIP, succeeded his brother;
William John;
Walter Cecil;
Isabella Mary; Frances; Mary.

Mr Chearley was succeeded by his eldest son,

RICHARD ANTHONY CHEARNLEY JP DL (1850-79), of Salterbridge, High Sheriff of County Waterford, who died unmarried, 1879, and was succeeded by his brother,

HENRY PHILIP CHEARNLEY JP DL (1852-1916), of Salterbridge, High Sheriff of County Waterford, 1882,  Major, Waterford Artillery Militia, who espoused, in 1879, Anne Elizabeth, daughter of John Palmer, of Tralee, and had issue,

Anthony Richard;
HENRY JOHN;
Charles Leopold;
Cecil Philip;
Aileen.

Major Chearnley was succeeded by his eldest surviving son,

HENRY JOHN CHEARNLEY (1882-1935), Captain, supplementary list, RFA, who wedded, in 1910, Dora, second daughter of Henry Lamont, of Gribton, Dumfriesshire.

His daughter Janet, who married Anthony Chearnley of Affane, inherited the property, and it remained in the ownership of the Chearnley famly until 1947.

SALTERBRIDGE HOUSE, near Cappoquin, County Waterford, is a two-storey house, built in 1849 on to the front of an earlier house around three sides of a courtyard.

The original house on this site was built in about 1750 by Richard Musgrave on land which had been acquired from the Lismore Castle estate.

The 1849 front comprises a three-bay projecting centre with a parapet and plain pilasters between the bays.

There are two-storey, one-bay wings with eaved roofs and single-storey three-sided bows.

The house has Wyatt windows, some with wooden mullions; a glazed classical porch; many Georgian glazed windows in the courtyard.

The drawing-room is remarkable for its ceiling decoration of scrolls and shields.

The Victorian country house’s grounds are filled with camellias, magnolias, rhododendrons and many other woodland shrubs.

Philip and Susie Wingfield have opened the house and gardens to visitors.

There are many fine trees, including most notably four splendid Irish yews, a cork oak, an Indian horse chestnut and a single leaved ash.

The garden is at its best in the spring.

First published in July, 2012.