Ardbraccan House
Thomas Cooley and James Wyatt (central block)
Ardbraccan House (known sometimes historically as Ardbraccan Palace) is a large Palladian country house in the town of Ardbraccan, County Meath, Ireland. The historic house served from the 1770s to 1885 as the residence of the Church of Ireland Lord Bishop of Meath.[1]
Construction
Ardbraccan itself had been the location of the residence of a Catholic bishop for over one thousand years, first of the Bishop of Ardbraccan and, later, following the merger of many small dioceses into the Diocese of Meath, as the residence of the Bishop of Meath. By the Middle Ages a large Tudor house, containing its own church, known as St. Mary's, stood on the site. However, in 1734, Bishop Arthur Price (1678-1752) decided to replace the decaying mansion with a new Georgian residence. Initially the two wings of the house were built, before the main four-bay two-storey block of the house was completed in the 1770s by Bishop Maxwell. It was partly designed by the acclaimed 18th-century German architect Richard Castle (also known as Richard Cassels), who was the architect of many notable Irish buildings including Leinster House in Dublin.[2][3][4][5]
Controversy/legend
Legend suggested that gravestones from a neighbouring Catholic cemetery at Markiestown, some miles away, were removed and used as the steps into the servants' quarters in the residence. Whether that was an urban myth based on the intense rivalry between the state-established Church of Ireland and the local, predominantly Catholic, population in Bohermeen (who were subject to the discriminatory Penal Laws and forced to pay tithes to the Church of Ireland) or had some basis in fact, is unclear. It is possible that the house utilised stone from the derelict pre-Reformation church at the cemetery, though it was notable that from the mid to late eighteenth century the cemetery was denuded of all gravestones.
Sale
The new bishop's palace became famous for its architecture. Funded by government grants and locally paid tithes, the Church of Ireland bishop held court from the mansion, which was the centre of a large agricultural demesne. However the disestablishment of the Church of Ireland in 1871, following the previous scrapping of Roman Catholic-paid tithes, fatally weakened the economic survival of the bishop's estate, which was left totally reliant on the small local Church of Ireland community, and in 1885 the bishop sold the estate and house, moving to a more suitable smaller mansion nearby named Bishopscourt. Ardbraccan House was bought by the eldest son of Hugh Law, a former Lord Chancellor of Ireland, and remained in the ownership of his descendants until sold by Colonel Owen Foster in 1985 to Tara Mines, who used it as a guest residence for visiting businessmen.
Today
In the late 1990s, the house was bought by David Maher who invested large sums to completely restore the mansion. In 2002 the restoration of Ardbraccan House won An Taisce's Best Restoration of a Private Building award, and it was opened to the public.
In the early 2000s, the (Meath) planning authority approved controversial plans to build a major new motorway linking Clonee and Kells through part of the house's historic demesne. The Irish Georgian Society and environmentalists criticised the proposal. The M3 motorway eventually opened in 2010.
In 2013 the property was sold to Charles Noell.[6]
See also
References
- ^ "CO. MEATH, ARDBRACCAN Dictionary of Irish Architects -". www.dia.ie. Retrieved 23 August 2022.
- ^ "Ardbraccan House, ARDBRACCAN, MEATH". Buildings of Ireland. Retrieved 23 August 2022.
- ^ "Navan Historical Society - Ardbraccan House". www.navanhistory.ie. Retrieved 23 August 2022.
- ^ "Tycoon appeals to build lift into Meath mansion due to 82 steps". independent. Retrieved 23 August 2022.
- ^ "Wyatt Thing". The Irish Aesthete. 4 January 2014. Retrieved 23 August 2022.
- ^ Fagan, Jack. "US buyer snaps up Meath estate for €4.9m". The Irish Times. Retrieved 8 June 2021.
- v
- t
- e
- Ashford Castle
- Aughnanure Castle
- Ballymore Castle
- Ballymote Castle
- Ballynahinch Castle
- Castle Hackett
- Classiebawn Castle
- Clifden Castle
- Clonalis House
- Dunguaire Castle
- Dunsandle Castle
- Eyrecourt Castle
- Fiddaun Castle
- Hazelwood House
- Glanleam House
- Kilronan Castle
- Lissadell House
- Markree Castle
- Menlo Castle
- Parke's Castle
- Strokestown House
- Tyrone House
- Westport House
- Abbeville, Dublin
- Aldborough House
- Áras an Uachtaráin
- Ardgillan Castle
- Ashtown Castle
- Baggotrath Castle
- Carrickmines Castle
- Castleknock Castle
- Chichester House
- Clontarf Castle
- Deerfield
- Drimnagh Castle
- Dublin Castle
- Farmleigh
- Frescati House
- Hillcourt
- Howth Castle
- Iveagh House
- Leinster House
- Lucan Manor
- Luttrellstown Castle
- Malahide Castle
- Manderley Castle
- Manresa House
- Mansion House
- Merrion Castle
- Mornington House
- Rathfarnham Castle
- Roebuck, Dublin
- Sutton Castle
- Swords Castle
- Allenstown House
- Altamont House
- Ardbraccan House
- Athlone Castle
- Athclare Castle
- Athlumney Castle
- Avondale House
- Ballinlough Castle
- Barberstown Castle
- Bargy Castle
- Beaulieu House
- Bellinter House
- Belvedere House
- Bellevue House
- Birr Castle
- Blessington House
- Butler House
- Carton House
- Castle Durrow
- Castlemartin House and Estate
- Castle Roche
- Castletown House
- Charleville Castle
- Dangan Castle
- Dardistown Castle
- Darver Castle
- Duckett's Grove
- Dunsany Castle
- Durhamstown Castle
- Emo Court
- Enniscorthy Castle
- Foulksrath Castle
- Gloster House
- Humewood Castle
- Huntington Castle
- Kilkea Castle
- Killeen Castle, Dunsany
- Kilkenny Castle
- Killruddery House
- Kinnitty Castle
- Leap Castle
- Leixlip Castle
- Lisnavagh House
- Loftus Hall
- Luggala Lodge
- Lyons Demesne
- Maynooth Castle
- Marlfield House
- Middleton Park House
- Mount Loftus
- Portlick Castle
- Powerscourt House
- Rock of Dunamase
- Russborough House
- Slane Castle
- Stradbally Hall
- Straffan House
- Summerhill House
- Tallaght Castle
- Townley Hall
- Trim Castle
- Abbeville, Tipperary
- Adare Manor
- Ardfinnan Castle
- Ballinalacken Castle
- Ballinskelligs Castle
- Ballycarbery Castle
- Ballyhannon Castle
- Bantry House
- Barryscourt Castle
- Black Castle
- Blarney Castle
- Bourchier's Castle
- Bunratty Castle
- Bowen's Court
- Cahir Castle
- Cappoquin House
- Castle Conway
- Castle Donovan
- Castle Gurteen de la Poer
- Castle Maine
- Castle Oliver
- Castle Otway
- Craggaunowen Castle
- Croom Castle
- Curraghmore
- Damer House
- Derreen House
- Derryquin Castle
- Desmond Castle, Kinsale
- Doonagore Castle
- Dough Castle
- Dromoland Castle
- Dromore Castle
- Dunasead Castle
- Dunboy Castle
- Dunkerron Castle
- Dunlough Castle
- Ennistymon House
- Fota House
- Gallarus Castle
- Kenmare House
- Kilcash Castle
- Killagha Abbey
- Killarney House
- Kiltinan Castle
- King John's Castle
- Knappogue Castle
- Leamaneh Castle
- Lismore Castle
- Listowel Castle
- Macroom Castle
- Moorstown Castle
- Mount Congreve
- Mount Trenchard House
- Muckross House
- Newhall House
- Newtown Castle
- O'Dea Castle
- Ormonde Castle
- Parkavonear Castle
- Red House
- Redwood Castle
- Rock of Cashel
- Roscrea Castle
- Ross Castle
- Shanmuckinish Castle
- Slevoir House
- Strancally Castle
- Tarbert House
- Vernon Mount
- Waterford Castle
- Woodhouse
- Woodstown House
- Altinaghree Castle
- Archbishop's Palace, Armagh
- Arthur Cottage
- Bailieborough Castle
- Ballymoyer House
- Bangor Castle
- Baronscourt
- Belfast Castle
- Bellamont House
- Blessingbourne House
- Burt Castle
- Carrickfergus Castle
- Castle Caulfield
- Castle Coole
- Castle Leslie
- Castle Saunderson
- Clandeboye House
- Cloughoughter Castle
- Crom Castle
- Dartrey Forest
- Derrymore House
- Doe Castle
- Donegal Castle
- Dundrum Castle
- Dungannon Castle
- Dunluce Castle
- Florence Court
- Glenarm Castle
- Glenveagh Castle
- Gosford Castle
- Grianan of Aileach
- Hillsborough Castle
- Hope Castle
- Inch Castle
- Lissan House
- Lough Eske Castle
- Monellan Castle
- Mongavlin Castle
- Mount Stewart
- Parkanaur House
- Richhill Castle
- Rossmore Castle
- Springhill House
- Tynan Abbey