Heritage & Beowulf

Timothy Belmont has had a very agreeable day today. I cycled into town in the trusty two-wheeler this morning for a spot of research at the Linenhall Library, viz. the Sandersons of Cloverhill and the Eccles' of Ecclesville.

Mission accomplished satisfactorily.

Afterwards I ambled round Marks & Spencer's for twenty-five minutes or so, though bought nothing.

I attached the ancient nose-bag early for a repast of battered scampi, chunky chips, onion rings, and a good garnish of lettuce, tomatoes and coleslaw.

Any acquaintance shall apprise you the we Belmonts are never found wanting in the race to the food-trough.

Having indulged in several requisite restoratives, one is prepared for an evening's entertainment, having recorded Who Do You Think You Are and Beowulf.

Most of the other stuff on mainline television this evening is utter drivel.

Lanesborough Visit

I have just returned from a very brief, though interesting, visit to County Fermanagh.

I stayed at Leander Lodge, beside Killyfole Lough, which, incidentally is lovely bed & breakfast accommodation.

Jim and Isobel are very hospitable and the first thing Jim did was to offer me tea and a biscuit.

They were having a barbecue for friends in the evening and kindly invited me to come along.

This morning, having checked out, I drove into Newtownbutler, still in County Fermanagh. The former Lanesborough Arms hotel (above) is in a sorry state.

Thence I motored across the border to County Cavan, where I met some acquaintances at Lanesborough Lodge.

The owner showed us round the grounds, including Quivvy Chapel, the ruinous school-house and the ruined mansion itself.

I have written about Lanesborough Lodge and the family already.

From Lanesborough Lodge, we motored the short distance to Cloverhill House (above), originally built in 1758.

Having had a good look round the derelict and roofless house, I bade the others farewell and drove home.

Killyfole Lough

 

This is the tranquil prospect of killyfole Lough in County Fermanagh.

Leander Lodge sits at the edge of the lake. It was formerly a reservoir.

There is a children's paddling pool at the far end.

Two black swans are spending the summer here.

Sunday Drive

LOWRY'S WOOD

I went for a drive in the new jalopy today, to Groomsport and Bangor, both in County Down.

The new two-seater drives beautifully. It is even smoother, more refined, more efficient, and quieter than my last one.

This model has no hand-brake. Instead, it has an electric parking brake which engages on a button and disengages when Drive or Reverse is selected.

The new car is lighter, with more use of aluminium and a perspex roof.

The "eco" feature contributes to more efficient motoring and thereby reduces the cost of Road Tax from £280 in the older model to £180.

The computer is extraordinary in what it can do, from "Distronic" to "Speedtronic" and lots of safety features.

JUST beyond Groomsport I stopped at the National Trust's two year-old plantation, Lowry's Wood, which is beside Portavo Reservoir.

The saplings seem to be growing satisfactorily, though there is much undergrowth.

iPad Review

I purchased a new iPad yesterday. This one has 32GB and Retina display.

Having used an iPad for about four months, I am now in a position to give my verdict: I like them.

These are extraordinary devices: Light; user-friendly; very efficient; very long battery life; almost perfect picture, especially on high definition images; and so on.

The BBC iPlayer function is wonderful, too, because many programmes can be downloaded for viewing literally anywhere without a wi-fi connection.

I watched a recording of Blackadder on a London flight recently, thanks to BBC iPlayer.

ITV Player, alas, does not have a download function, yet; perhaps because it is a commercial station.

The iPad does work satisfactorily enough for writing blogs and articles. The electronic touch-screen keyboard is excellent, to my mind.

However, I have found that editing is not quite as easy as on a full-size computer. It suffices, though, for occasional use, holidays and the like.

Emails are a cinch on the iPad. You can take a good photo at the press of a button, then there are pop-up options for sending it instantaneously to wherever or whomever you so desire.

The "apps" I have on mine include BBC iPlayer; BBC Weather; Facebook; Tripadvisor; Ebay; London Underground route-planner; various digital camera apps and more.

I have not fully explored the Games Section, though one particular game which involves "knocking down" as many imaginary cans from a wall is a great diversion if you have nothing better to do.

The older iPad I used had a "smart cover", viz. Invision Case Cover, black leather. This is cleverly designed so that your iPad can sit at an angle or vertically (to watch movies or television, for instance).

I have purchased two HD movies for my iPad, namely Avatar, and The Life of Pi. Be advised that movies take up a lot of capacity, so that's the main reason why I opted for a 32 GB version.

Another accessory I have is a half-decent pair of headphones by a company called AKG.

New DL

APPOINTMENT OF DEPUTY LIEUTENANT

Mr Robert Scott OBE, Lord-Lieutenant of County Tyrone, has been pleased to appoint:

Mrs Gail Ann Boyd, Clogher, County Tyrone,

To be a Deputy Lieutenant of the County, her Commission bearing date 19th August, 2013.

28th Baron de Ros

THE BARONY OF DE ROS IS ONE OF THE MOST ANCIENT TITLES IN THE PEERAGE

Peter Maxwell, 28th and present Lord de Ros, is Premier Baron of England.

Peter and Siân Maxwell still live at the ancestral family estate of Old Court, beside the village of Strangford, County Down.

The barony was created in 1264.

Since the history of the de Ros barony is already well documented I shall begin ca 1806, when Charlotte Boyle-Walsingham, Lady Henry FitzGerald, became the 21st Baroness de Ros in her own right.

The connection with County Down seems to commence at this point, when she married into the illustrious FitzGerald dynasty, Dukes of Leinster, Marquesses and Earls of Kildare, who owned the barony of Lecale in County Down; indeed the de Ros coat-of-arms has many similarities with that of the Dukes of Leinster, including the motto.

Lord Henry FitzGerald’s wife Charlotte, whom he married in 1791, established her (and her descendents') claim to the barony of de Ros in 1806.

Lord Henry and his elder brother, Lord Charles, who died in 1810, were endowed by their eldest brother William, 2nd Duke of Leinster, with the northern part of the family estates, mainly consisting of the barony of Lecale in County Down.

By the end of the 19th century the estate of Lord Henry's descendant, the 24th Baron de Ros, amounted to 2,952 acres in County Down and ca 1,250 acres in County Meath.

The principal family seat was Old Court in Strangford, County Down. The Meath estate was completely sold by 1929.

The Old Court estate was modest in size, by Victorian standards. Despite its size though, the de Ros estate easily compensated for this with its beauty and charm.

Few peerages - even baronies by writ - have passed through so many heirs female as this one.

As a consequence, it had been enjoyed by the Manners, Cecil and Villiers families prior to the FitzGeralds' succession to the title.

It was to fall into abeyance once more in 1939 on the death of Mary Frances, 25th Baroness de Ros; but was again successfully called out of abeyance in 1943 in favour of her eldest daughter, Una Mary; and, in 1958, in favour of the latter's granddaughter, Georgiana Angela Maxwell, 27th Baroness de Ros.

The relationship between the two families was compounded in 1824 when William Lennox Lascelles de Ros, later 23rd Baron, son of Lord and Lady Henry FitzGerald, married his cousin, Lady Georgiana Lennox, daughter of 4th Duke of Richmond, Lennox and Aubigny.

Lord de Ros, a grandson of the Duke of Leinster, became the 23rd Baron de Ros in 1839 and inherited the port and village of Strangford, which he decided to make his principal seat.

In 1844, he built Old Court (above) and surrounded it with pleasant walks and gardens.

Lord de Ros also made many improvements, extended Payne's Chapel at Old Court and built Katherine's Quay as his own private harbour.

Dudley, the 24th Baron, was equerry to HRH The Prince Consort (Prince Albert) 1853-74.

His life at Court during the period c.1850-62, and his manuscript account, give interesting personal reminiscences of certain events which occurred while he was acquainted with, and in the service of, Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, as well as dinner and shooting lists, etc.

The 26th Baroness, Una Mary, attended court in an application for compensation for criminal injury to property, after a malicious fire by the IRA had destroyed Old Court on the 18th May, 1922, together with two lists of articles lost.

Nevertheless, it seems that the family were popular with the villagers generally and there was much sadness at the time, when the old house was burnt.

Old Court House was a low, rambling two-storey house with many gables, some of them set on three-sided bows, the angle walls of which curved outwards under the eaves, so that some of the upstairs windows were bent in a vertical plane, like the windows at the stern of an old man-of-war ship.

There were barge-boards on the gables and hood mouldings over the windows. It was located at the site of the present, 1970s house in a most picturesque setting overlooking the harbour and Strangford Lough.

In the grounds, nestling in a glade nearby, there is a splendid little private chapel originally built in 1629, surrounded by an old graveyard. It is believed that the chapel is still used regularly by family and villagers.

Today the estate stretches from Strangford Bay to Strangford village, skirting the shore-line.

In the 1980s Georgiana, the 27th Baroness, and her husband (Commander J D Maxwell) lived in the present Old Court House while their son (the Hon) Peter Maxwell had a "bachelor pad" down in the little boat-house at Katherine's Quay.

When he married and succeeded to the title he built a relatively modern house in the grounds, not far from the delightful little Old Court chapel.

Peter Maxwell, the current Lord de Ros, runs a reproduction furniture company called Seventeen Hundreds (XVII) Furniture Limited.

First published June, 2009.   De Ros arms courtesy of European Heraldry.