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Bantry House
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Bantry House is a historic house with gardens in Bantry, County Cork, Ireland. Originally built in the early 18th century, it has been owned and occupied by the White family (formerly Earls of Bantry) since the mid-18th century. Opened to the public since the 1940s, the house, estate and gardens are a tourist destination in West Cork.[2]
Key Information
History
[edit]Bantry House (originally called 'Blackrock')[3] was constructed in about 1710 on the south side of Bantry Bay.[1] In 1750, Councillor Richard White bought Blackrock from Samuel Hutchinson and changed the name to 'Seafield'.[3]
The Whites had settled on Whiddy Island across the bay in the late 17th century, after having originally been merchants in Limerick. The family prospered and considerable purchases of land were made in the area surrounding the house. By the 1780s, Bantry House comprised approximately 80,000 acres (32,000 ha), though much of this would not be arable.[citation needed]
The house has been open to tourism since 1946.[2]
In 2012, Bantry House featured on an episode of Country House Rescue. [4]
Gardens
[edit]
The gardens to Bantry House were developed by Richard White, 2nd Earl of Bantry and his wife Mary. The gardens contain seven terraces; the house is located on the third. One hundred steps are located behind the house and fountain, and are surrounded by azaleas and rhododendrons.[5]
By 1997 the grounds of Bantry House were suffering from neglect in certain places. A European grant was obtained to start the restoration process. Funding ceased in 2000, although subsequent grants were obtained from the Irish Department of Housing and Heritage in 2022 and 2023. As of summer 2024, the restoration work was still ongoing.[6]
Armada centre
[edit]An exhibition on the role Bantry House played in the United Irishmen Rebellion was opened in the courtyard of the house ahead of the rebellion's bi-centenary.[7][8] The exhibition was designed to cover the French expedition to Ireland in 1796, and the role of Richard White, then owner of the house and later 1st Earl of Bantry, in opposing the attempted landings. Ultimately the French armada never landed, as severe weather resulted in the loss of several ships – including the frigate Surveillante.[9] The Armada Centre contained a scale model of the Surveillante and several artifacts recovered from its wreck.
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ a b c "Bantry House, Bantry, County Cork". Buildings of Ireland. National Inventory of Architectural Heritage. Retrieved 22 June 2018.
- ^ a b "Historic Houses and Castles - Bantry House and Garden". discoverireland.ie. Fáilte Ireland. Archived from the original on 11 December 2018. Retrieved 10 December 2018.
- ^ a b "The Story of Bantry House By Geoffrey Shelswell-White" (PDF). Irish Tatler and Sketch. May 1951. Retrieved 22 June 2018 – via BantryHouse.com.
- ^ "I Inherited A Country Manor And $900,000 Of Debt". Adobe. 5 July 2012. Retrieved 7 November 2023 – via Youtube.
- ^ "Bantry House & Gardens". bantry.ie. Bantry Development and Tourism Association. Archived from the original on 10 December 2018. Retrieved 10 December 2018.
- ^ Bernstein, Fred A. (10 July 2024). "How's Running a 49-Room, 18th Century Irish Country House? 'I Haven't Been Bored Since I Got Here.'". The Wall Street Journal.
- ^ "Things to see and do in Bantry - 1796 Bantry French Armada Exhibition Centre at Bantry House and Gardens". Cork-guide.ie. Retrieved 22 June 2018.
- ^ "Another kind of Baywatch". Irish Times. 24 February 1996. Retrieved 22 June 2018.
[Events of] 200 years ago [..] are to be remembered in the biggest series of events ever hosted by an Irish community of this size: Bantry Bay '96 [..] Bantry French Aramda Centre, an interpretative centre in the grounds of historic Bantry House, features the events of 1796 including a large scale [ship] model
- ^ "La Surveillante - Wreck Imagery" (PDF). Infomar.ie. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 July 2011.
External links
[edit]Bantry House
View on GrokipediaBantry House is a Georgian-style mansion located in Bantry, County Cork, Ireland, situated on a hillside overlooking Bantry Bay, originally constructed around 1700 as a modest three-storey house and later expanded into a grand 19th-century residence.[1][2] It served as the principal seat of the Earls of Bantry from the late 18th century, featuring extensive formal gardens with Italianate terraces, statues, and exotic plantings, as well as interiors housing notable collections of tapestries, furniture, and paintings often compared to those in major European museums.[3][4] Currently owned and maintained by the Shelswell-White family, descendants of the Whites, the house has been open to the public since 1946, offering guided tours, accommodations, and events while preserving its historical integrity.[5][6] The estate's prominence traces to Richard White, who acquired the property known then as Blackrock in the 1760s and transformed it through his commercial ventures before earning ennoblement as Baron Bantry in 1800 for organizing local defenses that contributed to the failure of the French fleet's 1796 landing attempt in Bantry Bay amid adverse weather.[3][6] Subsequent expansions under the 2nd Earl of Bantry in the 1830s and 1840s added wings, a library, and grand staircases, alongside the development of gardens drawing inspiration from Versailles and Italian villas, planted with rare species sourced during family travels.[1][4] These enhancements reflected the family's wealth from trade and political influence, culminating in a property that embodies Ireland's Anglo-Irish heritage amid the dramatic seascape of West Cork.[2] In the 20th century, economic challenges including inheritance taxes prompted the 5th Earl's heirs to relinquish the title while retaining ownership, converting parts of the east wing for bed-and-breakfast use since 1987 and relying on visitor revenue to sustain the estate's upkeep and collections, which include Aubusson carpets and Empire furniture acquired abroad.[5][7] Today, Bantry House stands as a rare example of a continuously family-occupied historic house in Ireland, with its 60-acre gardens recognized for horticultural significance and the site drawing attention for its panoramic views of the Caha Mountains and bay.[8][4]