Owenmore House

THE ORMES WERE MAJOR LANDOWNERS IN COUNTY SLIGO, WITH 11,771 ACRES

WILLIAM ORME, of Hanch Hall, Longdon, Staffordshire, descended from a family of graziers long settled in Cheshire, married, in 1612, Grace, daughter of Nicholas Hurt, of Castern, Staffordshire.

He died in 1623, leaving a son,

WILLIAM ORME (1614-65), of Hanch Hall, who being a Royalist, suffered heavy fines and imprisonment at the hands of the usurper, CROMWELL.

He lived to witness the Restoration, and had a confirmation of his arms by Sir William Dugdale, Norroy King-of-Arms, 1665.

Mr Orme wedded Anne, daughter of Thomas Brudenell, of Staunton Wivell, Leicestershire, and had issue,

Thomas (c1637-1716), dsp;
William, Colonel in the French Army;
JAMES, of whom presently;
Robert;
Dorothea.

The third son,

JAMES ORME, settled ca 1671 in County Mayo, where he purchased considerable estates.

He espoused Elizabeth, daughter of Thomas Barrow, of County Cork, and had issue,

ROBERT, his heir;
William, of Ballintubber.

Mr Orme died in 1707, and was succeeded by his eldest son,

ROBERT ORME, of Carne, County Mayo, who married, in 1703, Elizabeth, daughter of James Johnston, and had issue,

Thomas, of Carne;
James, of Fairfield;
WILLIAM, of whom hereafter;
Robert (Congressman), settled in Jones County, USA;
Mary; Margaret; Lettice.

The third son,

WILLIAM ORME JP (1810-76), of Owenmore, County Mayo, wedded firstly, in 1837, Janette, daughter of Christopher Carleton L'Estrange, of Market Hill, County Fermanagh; and secondly, in 1858, Margaret Barbara, eldest daughter of the Rev Savage Hall, Rector of Loughgall, County Armagh,

He dsp and was succeeded by his brother, 

ROBERT ORME JP DL (1815-77), of Owenmore, County Mayo, and Enniscrone, County Sligo, who espoused, in 1843, Sidney Frances, daughter of Christopher Carleton L'Estrange, and had issue,

ROBERT WILLIAM, his heir;
CHRISTOPHER GUY, succeeded his brother;
Albert L'Estrange;
Janet Georgina, m 1882, Claude Brownlow, of Killynether.

The eldest son,

ROBERT WILLIAM ORME JP DL (1856-1903), of Owenmore and Enniscrone, High Sheriff of County Sligo, 1879, died unmarried, and was succeeded by his brother,

CHRISTOPHER GUY ORME JP DL (1858-1929), of Owenmore and Enniscrone, High Sheriff of County Sligo, 1914, who married, in 1907, Mary Kathleen, daughter of the 1st Baron Morris and Killanin, and had issue,

ROBERT WILLIAM MARTIN, b 1908;
Lettice Frances; Cicely Dorothea.

OWENMORE HOUSE, near Crossmolina, County Mayo, built ca 1847, comprises two storeys over a high basement.

It has a five-bay entrance front, with a single-storey Doric portico.

The other side elevation has a two-storey bowed wing of similar style and height to the main block, though set back.

When the estate was decimated by the Land Acts, about 1926, it was sold to the Knox family.

It was sold again in 1950 to Major Marcus McCausland.

First published in July, 2012.

Ely Lodge

THE MARQUESSES OF ELY WERE THE GREATEST LANDOWNERS IN COUNTY FERMANAGH, WITH 34,879 ACRES

The family of LOFTUS, or, as it was anciently spelt, Lofthouse, appears, from the archives of York Minster, to have flourished in Yorkshire as early as the reign of ALFRED THE GREAT. The same records show that Christopher Lofthouse was prior of Helagh, Yorkshire, in 1460. Before the advent of the Normans it held the lands and town of Loftus, in Yorkshire, by thanage, and after the Conquest by military tenure.

EDWARD LOFTUS, of Swineshead, Yorkshire, living about 1480, left two sons, namely,

1. ROBERT, father of ADAM LOFTUS, LORD CHANCELLOR OF IRELAND, 1619;
2. ADAM.

The younger son,

THE MOST REV ADAM LOFTUS (c1533-1605) accompanied, as private chaplain, the Viceroy, Thomas, Earl of Sussex, into Ireland, and was consecrated Lord Archbishop of Armagh, 1562-3.

In 1567, Dr Loftus was translated to the see of Dublin; and six years afterwards we find him Lord Keeper of the Great Seal.

In 1578, His Grace was constituted LORD CHANCELLOR OF IRELAND, and he continued to hold the seals until his death.

This esteemed divine having a principal share in the foundation of Trinity College, Dublin, was appointed by charter its first Provost, which office he resigned in 1594.

He married Jane, eldest daughter of Alan Purdon, of Lurgan Race, County Louth, and by her had twenty children, of whom seven died young.

The survivors were eight sons and five daughters.

The Archbishop was succeeded by his eldest son, 

SIR DUDLEY LOFTUS (1561-), of Rathfarnham, who wedded Anne, daughter of Sir Henry Bagenal, of Newry, and had, with other issue,

ADAM, 1st Viscount Lisburne;
NICHOLAS, of whose line we are about to treat;
Edward;
Samuel.

Sir Dudley's second son,

NICHOLAS LOFTUS, of Fethard (1592-1666), Joint Clerk of the Pells and of the treasury in Ireland, wedded, in 1623, Margaret, daughter and heir of Thomas Chetham, of Nuthurst, in Lancashire, and Hacketstown, County Dublin; and was succeeded by his eldest surviving son,

SIR NICHOLAS LOFTUS (1635-1708), of Fethard, MP for Wexford, 1661-6, Fethard, 1695-9, who married firstly, Susan, daughter of Thomas Adderley, of Innishannon, County Cork, by whom he one surviving daughter, Margaret, wedded to Thomas Mildmay, of Lisburn.

Sir Nicholas espoused secondly, Eleanor, third daughter of Sir Edmund Butler Bt, and had several children, of whom the sons all died issueless, when the estates descended to his brother,

HENRY LOFTUS (1636-1716), of Loftus Hall, who wedded firstly, Annie, daughter of John Gorges, of Coleraine, County Londonderry, and had a son (who died young) and three daughters.

He married secondly, Anne, daughter and heir of Henry Crewkern, of Exeter, by whom he had two sons; and was succeeded by his elder son,

NICHOLAS LOFTUS (c1687-1763), MP for Fethard, 1710-13, Clonmines, 1713-14, Wexford County, 1715-51, who was elevated to the peerage as Baron Loftus, of Loftus Hall, in 1751.

His lordship was sworn of the privy council in 1753; nominated Governor of County Wexford, and advanced to a viscountcy, in 1756, as Viscount Loftus, of Ely.

He married firstly Anne, second daughter of William, Viscount Duncannon, by whom he had issue,

NICHOLAS, his successor;
HENRY, succeeded as 4th Viscount Loftus;
Mary; Anne;
Elizabeth, mother of CHARLES TOTTENHAM.

His lordship wedded secondly, Letitia, daughter of Sir John Rowley, Knight, by whom he had no issue.

His lordship was succeeded by his elder son, 

NICHOLAS (1714-66), 2nd Viscount, who was advanced to the dignity of an earldom, in 1766, as Earl of Ely.

His lordship married, in 1736, Mary, eldest daughter and heir of Sir Gustavus Hume Bt, of Castle Hume, County Fermanagh; and dying in 1766, was succeeded by his only son, 

NICHOLAS, 2nd Earl, MP for Fethard, 1759-67, who died unmarried in 1769, when the earldom expired, but the viscountcy and barony reverted to his uncle,

THE HON HENRY LOFTUS (1709-83), as 4th Viscount; who was advanced to an earldom, as Earl of Ely, in 1771; and installed a Knight Founder of the Most Illustrious of St Patrick, in 1783.

His lordship espoused firstly, in 1745, Frances, daughter of Henry Munroe, of Roe's Hall, County Down; and secondly, in 1775, Anne, daughter of Hugh Bonfoy, but had no issue.

At his demise, therefore, in 1783, the honours all expired, while his estates devolved upon the son of his sister (the Hon Elizabeth Tottenham), his nephew,

THE RT HON CHARLES TOTTENHAM, who then assumed the surname and arms of LOFTUS, and was created, in two years afterwards, Baron Loftus, of Loftus Hall.

His lordship, Privy Counsellor, Knight of St Patrick, Joint Postmaster-General in Ireland, Governor of County Wexford, was advanced to a viscountcy, in 1789 as Viscount Loftus; and, in 1794, Earl of Ely.

He was further advanced, in 1800, to the dignity of a marquessate, as MARQUESS OF ELY.

His lordship wedded, in 1766, Jane, elder surviving daughter and co-heir of Robert Myhill, of Killarney, by whom he had two sons,

JOHN, his successor;
Robert Ponsonby (Rt Rev), father of CHARLES JOHN.

He was succeeded by his elder son,

2nd Marquess of Ely KP (The National Trust)

JOHN, 2nd Marquess (1770-1845), Knight of St Patrick, 1807, Privy Counsellor, who espoused, in 1810, Anna Maria, daughter of Sir Henry Watkin Dashwood Bt, and had issue,

JOHN HENRY, his successor;
George William;
Adam (Rev), Rector of Magheraculmoney; father of 5th and 6th Marquesses;
Augustus William Frederick Spencer;
Henry Yorke Astley;
Charlotte Elizabeth; Catherine Henrietta Mary; three other daughters.

His lordship was succeeded by his eldest son,

JOHN HENRY, 3rd Marquess (1814-57), who married, in 1844, Jane, daughter of James Joseph Hope-Vere, and had issue,

JOHN HENRY WELLINGTON GRAHAM, his successor;
Marion Jane.

His lordship was succeeded by his only son and heir,

JOHN HENRY WELLINGTON GRAHAM, 4th Marquess (1849-89), who wedded, in 1875, Caroline Anne, daughter of George Caithness, though the marriage was without issue, and the titles passed to his cousin,

JOHN HENRY, 5th Marquess (1851-1925), who espoused, in 1895, Margaret Emma, daughter of F A Clark, though the marriage was without issue, and the titles passed to his youngest brother,

GEORGE HERBERT, 6th Marquess (1854-1935);

• George Loftus, 6th Marquess (1854–1935);

• George Loftus, 7th Marquess (1903–69);

• Charles Tottenham, 8th Marquess (1913–2006);

• John Tottenham, 9th Marquess (b 1943).

• The heir presumptive is the present holder's brother, Lord Timothy Tottenham (b 1948).

• The heir presumptive's heir apparent is his son Scott Tottenham (b 1977).

The Ely Papers are deposited at PRONI.

Ely Lodge, demolished in 1870.

The Loftus family relocated to Ely Lodge from nearby Castle Hume, through the marriage of the Hume heiress to Nicholas Loftus, 1st Earl of Ely.

Work began in 1813, under the direction of the celebrated landscape gardener, John Sutherland (1745-1826), in advance of the construction of a new Georgian house by the Dublin architect, William Farrell.

Located on a ‘greenfield site’ on the north side of Ely Island (171 acres), Ely Lodge (above), consisted of a two-storey, five-bay stuccoed block with Tuscan pilasters and flanking single-storey bowed wings.

Antique print of Ely Lodge ca 1869 (Image: eBay)

It was built for John, 2nd Marquess of Ely, as a replacement for the earlier (1729) mansion that stood 1½ miles to the south on the Ross Inner peninsula.

The park extended into Rossnafarran and Drumcose on the west bank of Lower Lough Erne, with two porter’s lodges on the Enniskillen Road, both apparently by Farrell.

One was based on Blenheim’s Eagle Lodge in Oxfordshire; while the other is a Tudor-Picturesque style lodge of ca 1830, with an associated causeway bridge incorporating flood arches.

Farrell also designed a pump house; and possibly the main landing pier, now mostly high and dry; while Sutherland was probably responsible for the Garden House and the original walled garden, located in the woods on the south side of the island.

Sutherland’s landscape, essentially Reptonian in style, was considered to be ‘a perfect example of the serpentine outlines so much admired by him’.

It was later criticised by some advocates of the Picturesque, among them Edmund Murphy, for harmonizing ‘indifferently with the bold projections and deep irregular lines of the natural woods’.

In 1870, Ely Castle was blown up as part of the twenty-first birthday celebrations of the 4th Marquess, whose intention had been to build a new house.

Doubtless he had expended too much of his income on his principal seat, Loftus Hall.

However, in the 1880s the former stable range, lying on the south side of the old house site, was converted into a residence with good views of the lough.

By this stage, the Elys spent most of their time at Loftus Hall and were mainly absentee landlords in County Fermanagh.

Ely Lodge today

George, 7th Marquess of Ely, sold the property ca 1948 to Lieutenant-Colonel Robert Grosvenor DSO TD JP DL, Lord Hugh Grosvenor's younger son, who subsequently succeeded as 5th Duke of Westminster.

The 5th Duke upgraded the former stable-block into a fine residence about 1965.

The 5th Duke's mother was the Lady Mabel Crichton, of Crom Castle, indeed the Duke spent much of his childhood at Crom.

The 5th Duke's son Gerald, 6th Duke of Westminster, was born at Omagh, County Tyrone. 

The 6th Duke was at that time styled Earl Grosvenor.

Both he and his sisters spent their childhood at Ely Lodge.

Ely Lodge remained part of the Westminster Estates till about 1987, when Viola, Dowager Duchess of Westminster, Lord-lieutenant of County Fermanagh, was tragically killed in a car accident.

In 1994, Charles Plunkett, the Duchess's land agent, inherited the estate on Her Grace's death, and subsequently sold the estate.

First published in January, 2010.

Ker of Portavo

THE KERS WERE MAJOR LANDOWNERS IN COUNTY DOWN, WITH 20,544 ACRES

DAVID KER (1530-1610), a Scottish laird who settled in Ballymena, County Antrim, in 1566, fled Ayrshire following the murder of David Rizzio (private secretary to Mary, Queen of Scots).

By the 18th Century the family had prospered in the linen industry.

DAVID KER, a merchant, of Ballymena, married Jean, daughter of _______ Boyd, and had issue, eleven children, including

William, of Ballymena;
Hugh. of Dublin;
DAVID, of whom hereafter.

One of his sons,

DAVID KER (1710-70), of Cateaton Street, City of London, and Tottenham, Middlesex, a prominent merchant banker, married, in 1748, Martha, daughter of William Macpheadris (sometimes spelled Mackpheadris), and had issue,

DAVID;
Richard Gervas, MP, of REDHALL, County Antrim;
Martha.

He purchased the Portavo estate in County Down for £23,000 (equivalent to about £4 million in 2019), in 1765, for his eldest son,

DAVID KER (1751-1811), of Portavo, who purchased the MONTALTO demesne about 1800 from the Earl of Moira.

By Maddelena, his wife, daughter of Francesco Guardi, of Venice, he left a son and heir,

DAVID GUARDI KER JP DL (c1778-1844), of Portavo and Montalto, MP for Athlone, 1820-6, Downpatrick, 1835-41, who purchased, in 1844, the De Clifford estate, Downpatrick.

He married, in 1814, the Lady Selina Sarah Stewart, daughter of Robert, 1st Marquess of Londonderry, and had issue,

DAVID STEWART, his heir;
Richard John Charles Rivers, JP, DL, MP for Downpatrick;
Catherine Anne Frances; Madelina Selina.

The eldest son,

DAVID STEWART KER JP DL (1816-78), of Montalto and Portavo, MP for Downpatrick, County Down, 1852-7, High Sheriff of County Down, 1852, Antrim, 1857, wedded, in 1842,  Anna Dorothea, daughter of Hans, 3rd Baron Dufferin, and had, with other issue,

ALFRED DAVID, his heir;
Charles;
RICHARD WILLIAM BLACKWOOD, succeeded his brother;
Henry;
Edward;
Robert;
David;
Hamilton Chichester (Rev);
Selina Frances Imogene; Helen; Violet.

He espoused secondly, in 1869, Caroline Hellena, eldest daughter of Parsons Persse, of Castle Turven, County Galway.

Mr Ker was succeeded by his eldest son,

ALFRED DAVID KER JP (1843-77), of Montalto and Portavo. High Sheriff of County Down, 1877, who married, in 1871, Eva Frances Caroline, elder daughter of Thomas, 1st Baron Deramore, by his wife, the Hon Caroline Elizabeth Anne, second daughter and co-heir of George, 4th Baron Dynevor, and had issue,

Sybil Anna; Eva Winifred Selina; Kathleen Elianore Mary; Eva Cecil Violet.

Mr Ker died without male issue, and was succeeded by his brother,

RICHARD WILLIAM BLACKWOOD KER JP DL (1850-1942), of Montalto and Portavo, High Sheriff of County Down, 1880, who wedded, in 1876, Edith Louisa, daughter of William George Rose, of Wolston Heath, Warwickshire, and had issue,

MAJOR DAVID ALFRED WILLIAM KER OBE (1878-1954), of Portavo, High Sheriff of County Down, 1939, who wedded Anna, eldest daughter of John Pollock, DL, of Mountainstown, County Meath, and had issue,

DAVID JOHN RICHARD;
Rosemary.

The son and heir,

CAPTAIN DAVID JOHN RICHARD KER, Coldstream Guards, High Sheriff of County Down, 1952, wedded, in 1948, Virginia Mary Eloise, daughter of the Hon James Knyvett Estcourt Howard, and had issue,

DAVID PETER JAMES, b 1951;
Caroline Moira; Camilla Rosanna Glan.

Ker armorial bearings in Down Cathedral, Downpatrick

THE family of KER (pronounced Carr), of Portavo and Montalto, of whom David Ker (1530-1610) settled at Ballymena, County Antrim in the second half of the 16th Century having fled Scotland after the murder of David Rizzio (private secretary to Mary Queen of Scots) in 1566.

By the 18th Century the family had prospered in the linen industry, and David Ker (1710-1770) a banker and merchant purchased Portavo in County Down for his eldest son, David (1751-1811).

Portavo House (Image: Irish Architectural Archive)

This David Ker was a voracious purchaser of land and by 1800 had acquired a number of estates culminating in the purchase of Montalto from the Earl of Moira in 1800.

He and his brother had taken the Grand Tour together in 1771, where David eloped with a Venetian singer by the name of Madelina Guardi, reputedly the daughter of Venetian painter Francesco Guardi.

Following the death of his young wife, David Ker returned to Italy with his three daughters, leaving his son to be educated at Eton.

In Italy he began to collect in the best traditions of the Grand Tour, purchasing a Raphael portrait and sending ‘three cases’ of purchases from Rome to Ulster, and later another ‘containing a Scagliola table’ in 1794.

This visit, which lasted two years, culminated in David Ker sitting for Angelica Kauffman and, at her suggestion, his daughters sat for Francis Xavier Fabre.

His son, David Guardi Ker, married Lady Selina Stewart, fourth daughter of the 1st Marquess of Londonderry.

This David Ker devoted his life to the collection of books and prints.

He also served as MP for Athlone and later Downpatrick, the seat he purchased from Lord de Clifford in 1844.

His eldest son, David Stewart Ker (1816-1878) started life as one of the richest commoners in Ireland.

He married Anna Dorothea Blackwood, daughter of the 3rd Baron Dufferin and Claneboye, of Clandeboye, County Down.

However, by the time of his death in 1878, he was declared bankrupt and considered ‘quite mad’.

He began the first dispersal of the family collections assembled by his father, grandfather and great-uncle, following the disastrous fire at Portavo in 1844.

First sold were books and prints at Christie’s in a series of seven day sales in 1847, 1848 and 1849, followed by endless dispersals of renowned pictures.

His son Alfred David Ker (1843-1877) did his best, in his short tenure, to bring some order to the family finances, but with his death at the young age of 34, the estates and possessions devolved to Richard Blackwood Ker (1850-1943), his brother, who married Edith Rose of Wolston Grange, Warwickshire.

Dick Ker’s greatest love next to women was horses, and being totally untrained in the management of estates was, like his father, eventually declared bankrupt.

Montalto was then sold in 1912 to the Earl of Clanwilliam, and the family returned to Portavo, where he built a ‘shooting box’ from the ruins of the mansion which had been destroyed by fire in 1844.

Dick Ker was succeeded by David Alfred Ker (1878-1954) who spent most of his life in minority controlled by Trustees.

His son, David Richard (Dick) Ker (1920-1997) finally sold Portavo in 1980, and it is his son David (born 1951) who proceeded to make dispersals from the Ker Collection.

David Ker had an interest in works of art and collecting from an early age, and after a career in property he started the David Ker gallery in 1980; and in 1993 formed Simon C Dickinson Ltd with Simon Dickinson.

*****

The Ker Papers contain a detailed account of the family:-

David Ker, a merchant of Ballymena, Co. Antrim, who had taken a lease of the first fall on Sir Robert Adair's mill-race at Ballymena, c.1710. He married Jean Boyd of Clontfinnan near Clough, Co. Antrim, and had a family of eleven children, of whom three were prominent merchants: William in Ballymena, Hugh in Dublin, and David in London. David Ker settled in London and traded at Cateaton Street, first as Ker & Elmes, then after 1755 as Ker, Elmes & Priest, and later after 1758 as David Ker & Co.

In 1765 he purchased the Portavo estate near Groomsport, in the Ards. He died in 1770 and was succeeded by his son, David, during whose lifetime the firm traded as Ker, Pope & Dyson and later as Ker, Brookland & Priest. In 1785 he purchased the Clough and Magheraknock estates in Co. Down from Arthur Annesley and in 1800 that of Montalto at Ballynahinch, Co. Down, from the 2nd Earl of Moira.

His brother, Richard Gervas Ker, High Sheriff of Co. Antrim in 1791, bought the Red Hall estate at Ballycarry, Co. Antrim, in 1780 from Sir Archibald Edmonstone Bt. David Ker died in 1811, and was succeeded by his son David, who married, in 1814, the daughter 1st Marquess of Londonderry and in 1834 bought the Southwell estate at Downpatrick, Co. Down, from the representatives of Lord de Clifford.

First published in March, 2012.

Donamon Castle

THE CAULFEILDS WERE MAJOR LANDOWNERS IN COUNTY ROSCOMMON, WITH 6,632 ACRES

THE REV AND HON CHARLES CAULFEILD (1686-1768), Rector of Donaghenry, County Tyrone, second son of William, 2nd Viscount Charlemont, married Alice, daughter of John Houston, and had issue,

Charles;
JOHN, of whom we treat;
James.

The younger son,

COLONEL JOHN CAULFEILD, of Donamon Castle, County Roscommon, wedded Mary, daughter of Henry Irvine, and had issue,

ST GEORGE, his heir;
Harriet.

Colonel Caulfeild succeeded, in 1778, to the estates of his kinsman, ST GEORGE CAULFEILD, Lord Chief Justice of Ireland, grandson of the Hon Thomas Caulfeild, of Donamon, youngest son of William, 2nd Baron Charlemont.

His only son and heir,

ST GEORGE CAULFEILD (1780-1810), of Donamon Castle, espoused, in 1802, Frances, daughter of Sir Edward Crofton, 2nd Baronet, and had issue,

FRANCIS ST GEORGE, his heir;
Harriet; Frances Henrietta.

The only son and heir,

FRANCIS ST GEORGE CAULFEILD JP (1806-96), married, in 1830, Susannah Anne, daughter of Sir Edward Crofton, 3rd Baronet, and had issue,

ST GEORGE FRANCIS ROBERT, his heir;
Alfred Henry;
Emily Susan; Fanny Florence.

Mr Caulfeild was succeeded by his eldest son,

ST GEORGE FRANCIS ROBERT CAULFEILD, who wedded Louisa Ann, daughter of Thomas Russell Crampton, and had issue, an only child,

ALGERNON THOMAS ST GEORGE CAULFEILD JP (1869-1933), of Donamon Castle, County Roscommon, High Sheriff of County Roscommon, 1899.

DONAMON CASTLE, Roscommon, County Roscommon, is a 15th century castle with a lofty arch between its towers, similar to that at Bunratty Castle.

It was enhanced towards the end of the 18th century with sash windows and Gothic-Georgian battlements.

The Castle was enlarged and altered again the in middle of the 19th century.

In 1939 the Divine Word Missionaries came to Ireland and purchased the castle from the Irish Land Commission.

The Missionary Society constructed several new buildings to create a campus for training people before they went into the field.

The Castle itself is still their home in Ireland.

The training campus is now managed by the Irish Wheelchair Association as a holiday centre.

First published in June, 2018.

BH Memoirs: VI

REMINISCENCES OF LIEUTENANT-COLONEL JOHN MATTHEW BLAKISTON-HOUSTON DL (1898-1984), OF BELTRIM CASTLE, COUNTY TYRONE, AND RODDENS, COUNTY DOWN, BORN AT ORANGEFIELD HOUSE, NEAR BELFAST

HE SERVED IN THE FIRST AND SECOND WORLD WARS; WAS AIDE-DE-CAMP TO HIS EXCELLENCY THE GOVERNOR-GENERAL OF AUSTRALIA, 1929-30; HIGH SHERIFF OF COUNTY DOWN, 1944; DEPUTY LIEUTENANT OF COUNTY DOWN, 1946; HIGH SHERIFF OF COUNTY TYRONE, 1954

I left the Army on the 1st November, 1935, after 19 years service.

The General Election was taking place a fortnight later.

From Chester I rang up Mr J M Andrews, Ulster’s Minister of Finance, in Northern Ireland, one evening to offer my services in the election in any capacity.

Next day I received a wire from Herbert Dixon [later 1st Lord Glentoran] asking me to contest Tyrone and Fermanagh.

It was a two seat constituency and a Lincolnshire farmer called Deane was to be my colleague.

We never had a chance unless there was a split among the nationalist opposition.

Unfortunately elections in Northern Ireland are a contest between the Roman Catholic Nationalists and the Protestant Unionists.

The election agents knew the exact voting strength of each side.

Up till nomination day we thought it might be a three-corner contest, but it turned out to be a straight fight.

Two nationalist abstentionists defeated us by about 52,000 to 46,000 votes.

We stayed at COLEBROOKE with Sir Basil Brooke [later 1st Viscount Brookeborough] for the election.

I had never made a political speech in my life before this election.

Since those days I have had quite a bit of experience in Irish Politics.

I fought a by-election in County Down on SIR DAVID REID's death in 1945, and stood as one of the Official Unionist candidates for County Down in the General Election in 1945.

I never succeeded.

As everyone knows, antagonism between the Roman Catholic anti-British Irish Free State and the Protestant pro-British North has been the dominant factor in every Northern Ireland Election since the passing of the Government of Ireland Act in 1920.

The Roman Catholics in the North with their co-religionists in Eire want Ireland to be one under an Irish Republican Parliament in Dublin; whereas the Ulster Protestants want to retain every tie that binds them to Britain.

The Ulster Unionist Party has been in power since 1921 without a break; Ulster enjoys great prosperity at present.

Agriculture is Ulster’s greatest industry, and while we are represented in Westminster and are constitutionally part and parcel of the United Kingdom, Ulster farmers enjoy the same guaranteed prices for their farm produce as do farmers in England.

From an economic point of view, therefore, we have no desire to join up with Eire.

As Protestants we have no desire to come under the control of a Roman Catholic Government in Dublin.

We are quite happy as we are.

The Ulster Government is strictly impartial to Protestants and Roman Catholics.

Unfortunately there have been one or two cases of local authorities having been not so impartial and uneducated men on both sides are definitely bigoted, but as far as government policy is concerned it is above reproach and why, then, it may be asked is Eire so anxious to absorb Northern Ireland?

On the map of the world Ireland is a very small place and, on the face of it, it seems ridiculous to have it divided into two countries.

The Irishman is intensely proud of having regained the status of Independent Nationhood.

He says “Ireland was a nation when England was a pup” etc.

Now to what extent is this claim true?

It can’t be denied that Ireland kept the flame of Christianity burning at a time when it was practically extinguished in England.

Neither can it be denied that the Penal Laws drove many fine Irishmen out of their native country.

It can’t be denied either, that the severity of those Penal Laws is still responsible for the present day hatred of England.

It is claimed that the Protestants of the North are not Irishmen at all but that they are all descendants of the Scottish and English Planters in the reign of Queen Elizabeth and the early Stewarts.

There is certainly some foundation for this, but purity of race in my belief can only be rightly claimed by a very few Celts who have been driven by a succession of invaders into the mountains and to the Atlantic Coast.

All the Eastern and Southern Counties were subjected to invasions by Danes, English, Scottish and others long before Ulster was touched.

Each invasion left its mark on the original inhabitants but like China, Ireland seemed to absorb them and they in their turn became “more Irish than the Irish”.

They adopted the Irish language and the Christianity of Ireland.

Fundamentally the Northerner is a materialist and the Southerner is a sentimental theorist.

Throughout history, however, except possibly for a very short time, Ireland never was a nation.

It was an agglomeration of three or four provinces or tribes usually warring against each other under rival chiefs.

Being unable to co-operate they never were able to keep invaders out and no one personality arose strong enough to defeat his competitors and to weld Ireland into a nation.

Far the greatest and most important claim Irishmen can make is that Ireland with England and Scotland were the foundation members of the Great British Empire.

Ireland has every right to make this claim.

It is not till one travels in America or in the British Dominions that one realises what Irishmen have done.

An Irishman is only half a man in Ireland.

We have argued the Irish question from many angles and as one always does, when Ireland is concerned, looked back into medieval history.

We have got no nearer a solution, and I’m beginning to think the present partition is the best we are likely to get for many years to come.

In spite of the fact that Eire was started off on her career with no National Debt and that she has been spared sharing in any cost of the two world wars, yet her economic position is not sound.

That is another very strong reason why she is so anxious to join up with the industrious North.

The Southern Irishman is one of the most pleasant companions in the world.

He is kind and full of good cheer and humour and is popular wherever he goes in the world.

It is a great relief to escape from the ever-present materialistic outlook of the modern world and there are few places where this can be done better than in Eire.

My father used to say “an Irishman is a man who honestly believes what he knows to be false.”

I have studied some of them for a long time now and am certain he was right.

First published in January, 2015.  Extracts by kind permission of RP Blakiston-Houston OBE JP DL

The Hamilton Baronetcy (1683)

JOHN HAMILTON (1576-1639), of Corraneary, County Cavan, and Hamiltonsbawn, County Armagh, next brother of JAMES HAMILTON (created Viscount Claneboye, 1622), married Sarah, daughter of Sir Anthony Brabazon, Governor of Connaught, and had issue,

HANS, his heir;
James;
Francis, of Tullybrick;
Mary; Eleanor.

The eldest son,

THE RT HON SIR HANS HAMILTON, Knight, of Hamiltonsbawn, MP for County Armagh, 1661-66, High Sheriff of County Armagh, 1669, married Magdalene, daughter of Sir Edward Trevor, Knight.

Sir Hans was created a baronet in 1662, designated of Monilla, County Armagh.

He had an only daughter, SARAH, married to Sir Robert Hamilton, Knight, of Mount Hamilton, County Armagh.

Sir Hans died suddenly in 1682, when the baronetcy expired, and the estates devolved upon Sir Hans's son-in-law,

SIR ROBERT HAMILTON, Knight, of Mount Hamilton, who was appointed Sir Hans's successor as custos rotulorum of the county.

Sir Robert was created a baronet in 1683, designated of Mount Hamilton, County Armagh.

Sir Robert, Privy Counsellor, 1685, died in 1703, and was succeeded by his son,

SIR HANS HAMILTON, 2nd Baronet (1673-1731), MP for Armagh County, 1703-13, Carlingford, 1713-14, who married Jane, eldest daughter of Clotworthy, 2nd Viscount Massereene, and had an only daughter and heiress,

ANNE HAMILTON, who married John Campbell, of London, banker, goldsmith, and founder of the great house of Coutts and Co, of the Strand, who assumed the surname of HAMILTON to possess her estate and was well known in the family as "Campbell Hamilton".

Sir Hans died at Utrecht, when the baronetcy expired.

First published in February, 2011.

Ballydrain House

HUGH MONTGOMERY OWNED 3,909 ACRES OF LAND IN COUNTY ANTRIM

The family of Montgomery claims to be a branch of the great Scottish house of MONTGOMERY. 

ROBERT EGBERT MONTGOMERY (1711-92), of Glenarm, County Antrim, married, in 1742, Isabella Stewart, and had issue,

HUGH, his heir;
William;
James;
Rose; Jane.

The eldest son,

HUGH MONTGOMERY (1743-1832), of Glenarm, who wedded, in 1785, Margaret, daughter of John Allen, of Kilmandil, County Antrim, and had issue,

John, his heir, of Benvarden, Co Antrim;
HUGH, of whom we treat;
Alexander, of Potter's Wall, Co Antrim;
Thomas, JP, of Birch Hill, Co Antrim;
Barbara; Isabella; Marion; Victoria.

Mr Montgomery's second son,

HUGH MONTGOMERY (1794-1867), of Ballydrain, County Antrim, married Emily, daughter of John Ferguson, of Ballysillan, and had issue,

Hugh (1830-54), killed in action;
John Ferguson (1832-76), accidentally killed;
Alexander Richard, d 1861;
James Charles, d 1870;
THOMAS, his heir;
GEORGE, of whom hereafter;
Emily Sarah; Mary Isabella; Florence Jane; Eva Victoria; Blanche Marjorie; Ellen Georgina.

Mr Montgomery's fifth son,

THOMAS MONTGOMERY JP DL (1837-1909), of Ballydrain, High Sheriff of County Antrim, 1885, wedded, in 1866, Isabella, daughter of the Rev Thomas Walker, and had issue,

Hugh Ferguson (d 1908);
Emily Sarah; Mary Isabella; Florence Jane; Eva Victoria; Blanche Marjorie; Ellen Georgina.

The sixth son of Hugh Montgomery and Emily Ferguson,

GEORGE MONTGOMERY (1843-c1881), Captain, Royal Horse Artillery, wedded Blanche, third daughter of John Eveleigh Wyndham, of Sock Dennis, Somerset, and had an only son,

HUGH WYNDHAM MONTGOMERY (1875-1965), High Sheriff of County Kildare, 1911, who married, in 1898, Annie Selina Emma, daughter of Thomas Benyon Ferguson by his wife, Emma Amelia Cary, sister of 12th Viscount Falkland, and had issue,

GEORGE WYNDHAM CLAUD, his heir;
Noel Hugh, b 1910;
Shelagh Blanche; Daphne Lena.

The eldest son,

GEORGE WYNDHAM CLAUD MONTGOMERY (1899-1978), espoused, in 1923, Estella M Crane, of Dorchester, Dorset.

The Montgomerys sold Ballydrain in 1918.  

BALLYDRAIN HOUSE, Dunmurry, now Malone Golf Club, is situated opposite Sir Thomas and Lady Dixon Park on the outskirts of south Belfast.

The early history of the demesne, from the beginning of the 17th century until 1834, is bound up with that of the Stewart family. The first house to be built on the site, in 1608, was a bawn (or fortified farmhouse) by William Stewart, whose family was of Scottish lesser royal blood.

Little remains from those early days, except the family tombstones in Drumbeg Parish Church and a stone inscribed 'A Free Howse 1675' in the church porch. John Stewart died in 1691. The property then passed to his son Thomas (1660-1715); and later to Thomas's son John (1701-84), who married Jane Legge (1698-1778).

John and Jane had seven children. One of the grandchildren, George, inherited Ballydrain. George married Martha Rainey and had two sons, William and Robert, both of whom died abroad in early life.

Shortly before his death in 1805, George sold Ballydrain to his cousin, John Younghusband.

The estate remained in Mr Younghusband's possession until 1834, when he sold it to Hugh Montgomery for £13,500 (£1.3 million in today's money).

Image: Hugh Montgomery, of Benvarden

The present house is thought to have been built in 1835, though documents of 1837 record that Montgomery was in the process of erecting 'a fine castle' on the estate, an indication that the house was still incomplete in 1837.

The building was certainly finished by 1843, as evidenced in a survey of the estate carried out by Hugh Hanna.

Hugh Montgomery's 'fine castle' was not erected on the site of the 18th century house, but some distance north-east of this.

The house was built in the Tudor-Revival style, with coursed but undressed stone, tall diamond-set chimney stacks, shouldered gables and mullioned windows.

The new owner of Ballydrain, Hugh Montgomery (1794-1867), was the second son of Hugh Montgomery (1743-1832) of BENVARDEN, County Antrim, President of Belfast Chamber of Commerce 1802-03 and founder, in 1809, of Montgomery's Bank, forerunner of the Northern Bank.

The bank was located at Donegall Place, neat Fountain Lane.

Like his father, Hugh was involved with the Northern Bank, being a director for forty-three years.

After his death in 1867 the estate became the property of his second son, John Ferguson Montgomery, (the eldest son, Hugh, having been killed in the Charge of the Light Brigade, at the battle of Balaclava, October 1854).

John Ferguson Montgomery (1832-76) was, by all accounts, a dashing figure: Nicknamed 'Rufus', on account of his red hair and beard, he was an outgoing character, cheerfully extrovert and a fearless sportsman.

He was well-known in Turf circles throughout the British Isles, being familiarly called 'The Captain', a title he was permitted to use after his retirement from the Queen's Royal Antrim Rifles.

His tragic early death was the result of an accident at the Maze racecourse in 1876.

After his death, Ballydrain passed to his brother Thomas, Hugh Montgomery's fifth son (the third and fourth sons, Alexander Richard and James Charles having died in 1861 and 1870).

Shortly after coming into possession of Ballydrain, Thomas Montgomery began a series of alterations to the house: the main entrance door was moved from beneath the oriel window and put into a projecting porch with a Tudor arch which was part of a major insertion with a dominant gable.

The garden front was also altered, the first floor oriel window being removed and replaced by a central two-storey canter bay inserted between the one-storey bays of the ground floor.

The alterations were very well handled and gave the building a unity and clarity it had hitherto lacked.

Though family tradition held the architect to be Sir Thomas Drew, the alterations were in fact the work of William Henry Lynn.

Thomas also added a conservatory (designed by James Boyd & Sons, of Paisley, in 1880) and a billiards-room.

Montgomery coat-of-arms on headstone at
Drumbeg parish church (Timothy Ferres, 2022)

After Thomas Montgomery's death in 1909 (his only son, Captain Hugh Ferguson Montgomery having died in 1908), his wife Isabella continued to reside at Ballydrain until her death in 1917.

The estate then passed to Thomas's nephew, Hugh Wyndham Montgomery, who sold it, in 1918, to John Barbour Morrison, director of the Ulster Spinning Company.

The house was inhabited until about 1940 and, like Wilmont, was occupied by the Army during the 2nd World War.

Following Mr Morrison's death in November, 1947, Ballydrain became the property of his son, John Maynard Morrison, of Mullaghbuoy, Donaghadee and his (John Barbour's) brother, James Morrison, of Balloo, Groomsport, County Down.

Though the land continued to be farmed, the house lay empty for several years, until the estate was purchased by Malone Golf Club in 1960.

Play commenced on the course on the 2nd June, 1962, and the house was officially opened, as Malone Clubhouse, on the 19th September of that year, by the Rt Hon Sir Basil Brooke Bt, Prime Minister of Northern Ireland.

Part of the grounds and the house were changed considerably by the golf club: One of the main alterations was the removal of the flower garden to make way for a car park; while the walled garden was turned into tennis courts and a bowling green.

The gate lodge at the main entrance was demolished. However, while the character of the estate - with its magnificent trees and lake - has been allowed to remain reasonably intact, this unfortunately has not been the case with the house: the Tudor chimneys and balustrades have been removed, as have the mullioned windows; and the main entrance has been altered considerably.

The present Ballydrain site is Malone Golf Club's fourth location since it was founded in 1895, moving from Newforge Lane, to Stranmillis, to the Upper Malone Road, and finally to its current location on the Upper Malone Road.

First published in December, 2010.