Castlecoote House

THE COOTES WERE MAJOR LANDOWNERS IN COUNTY ROSCOMMON, WITH 10,348 ACRES

This is the parent stock, whence the noble houses of COOTE, Earls of Mountrath, and COOTE, Barons Castle Coote, both now extinct, emanated.

The first settler of the Cootes in Ireland, descended from a very ancient English family, was

SIR CHARLES COOTE, Knight (1581-1642), who served in the wars against O'Neill, Earl of Tyrone, at the head, as captain, of 100 foot-soldiers, with which he was at the siege of Kinsale.

Sir Charles was appointed, by JAMES I, Provost-marshal of the Province of Connaught for life.

In 1620, he was constituted vice-president of the same province; and Sir Charles was created a baronet in 1621, designated of Castle Cuffe, Queen's County.

Sir Charles distinguished himself, subsequently, by many gallant exploits; but the most celebrated was the relief of Birr in 1642.

The surprising passage through Mountrath woods justly caused the title of Mountrath to be conferred upon his son; and the Coote Baronetcy, of Castle Cuffe, Queen's County, one of the oldest creations (1621) in the Baronetage.

Sir Charles Coote, 1st Baronet, Provost-Marshal and Vice-President of the Province of Connaught, greatly distinguished himself at the relief of Birr, 1642.

SIR CHARLES COOTE, 2nd Baronet (c1610-61), was elevated to the peerage, 1660, in the dignities of Baron Coote, of Castle Cuffe, Viscount Coote, and EARL OF MOUNTRATH, when the baronetcy merged with the peerage.

The 7th Earl and 8th Baronet, having no heir, obtained, in 1800, a new creation, namely Baron Castle Coote. 

This title became extinct in 1827, when the baronetcy reverted to the great-great-grandson of the 2nd son of the 1st Baronet.

Rear-Admiral Sir John Coote, 14th Baronet, CB CBE DSC, was Director of Naval Ordnance, 1955-58.

CASTLECOOTE HOUSE, near Castlecoote, County Roscommon, is situated on the site of a medieval castle, thought to have been built between 1570 and 1616.

It was a strategic site, and may have been the base of the Chieftains of Fuerty, the MacGeraghty clan. 

In 1616, it fell into the hands of Sir Charles Coote, who improved and re-fortified the castle.

The castle was attacked three times by the confederate forces in the 1640s.

Castlecoote House was built in the second half of the 17th century, within the enclosure of the old castle, which had by now fallen into ruins.

In the basement tower rooms, musket chambers still overlook the entrance steps.

In the 18th century the property passed into the ownership of the Gunnings, rumoured to have won it in a poker game.

The two Gunning sisters (one of whom was later to become Duchess of Hamilton and then Duchess of Argyll) were renowned for their beauty. Their portraits, painted by Joshua Reynolds, can be viewed in the main hall.

In the 20th century, the house was owned by Henry Strevens, a noted equestrian.

The present owner bought Castlecoote House in 1997,

The house was a cavernous ruin, with no floors, no ceilings, no stairs, no windows and crumbling interior walls. The entire basement was submerged beneath the earth and the main entrance steps had collapsed.

The restoration work took five years to complete, and included underpinning the foundations, consolidating the castle towers, rebuilding the mill race walls, landscaping the grounds and restoring the ceilings and ballroom to their former splendour.

First published in October, 2012.