Storied Homes of Ulster – Killyleagh Castle

The following is part of a series of articles which appeared in the Belfast Telegraph in 1953 under the pen name 'Fina'.

 

Killyleagh Castle

The storms of centuries have left it unshaken.

BEYOND the little harbour and the straggling factories of Killyleagh's narrow main street, one is surprised to find the curtain wall of a great grey castle dominating the town‘s tiny square.

To those who visit this busy town for the first time, the sight of the Castle, overpowering the huddled houses, comes as something of a shock, for gatehouse and town are in close proximity, not separated by vast parklands as is the more usual case.

These battlemented walls were built to ensure security for the inhabitants of the humbler dwellings that cluster round their base. Their strength and grandeur are portrayed in Raven's map of 1625. an excellent reproduction of which appears in Stevenson's "Two Centuries of Life in Down."

The fabric of Killyleagh has been excellently preserved, since for centuries it has been used as a home. The Earl of Abercorn, writing to his Master, James I, said that James Hamilton was building "a very strong castell, the lyk not in the north." These words could well be used to-day for nowhere is there a castle of such age in a like state of repair.

At the time when Lord Abercorn wrote to his King, James Hamilton was really making additions to a stronghold built by the Normans, probably some 400 years previously.

Hamilton, that shrewd Scots adventurer, had bought the Duffryn territory, which included Killyleagh, from the Whyte family about 1610. He reported to his monarch that the territory had been purchased for "a good valuable consideration."

The purchase of the territory did not, however, include the goodwill of the Whyte family, for we learn from Hamilton's later complaints that one Christopher Whyte had joined himself with Constantine O'Neale in rebellion against the new landlord. As later events disclosed that James Hamilton's "good valuable consideration" was a mere £40, the dissatisfaction of the Whyte family is not surprising.

The ill-fated Henry, Earl of Clanbrassil, Hamilton’s successor, restored Killyleagh in 1666. The castle was the scene of much disturbance when the rising of 1798 shocked the North with its bitterness. For a third time, in 1850, the Castle was restored on this occasion under the direction of Sir Charles Lanyon.

Some nine years later, the gatehouse section was rebuilt by the Marquis of Dufferin and Ava, as a gift for Lady Dufferin's brother, Mr. Gavin Hamilton. The annual rental is one of the most romantic in the Province, the tenant having the right to offer "a red rose to the Lady, or a pair of gilt spurs to the Master of Clandeboye."

FINA.

Next Week — Hockley Lodge, County Armagh.


Belfast Telegraph, Wednesday, 11 November 1953

Storied Homes of Ulster – Bank of Ireland, Armagh

The following is part of a series of articles which appeared in the Belfast Telegraph in 1953 under the pen name 'Fina'.

 

Bank of Ireland, Armagh

Site of St. Patrick's first church, legend says

ARMAGH has so many beautiful examples of Georgian architecture, both in the city itself and in the surrounding countryside, that it is difficult to select the most outstanding.

Remarkable for its simplicity of form is the Beak of Ireland. The building is set back a little way from the road, and its elegance is admirably enhanced by beautiful wrought iron work, a tribute to the skill of local craftsmen.

The serenity of the plain white front is offset by the richness of a charmingly curved handrail, and the delicate tracery of the lamp standards that flank the gate.

The house, completed about 1812, is attributed to the architect Francis Johnson. It was built for Leonard Dobbin, M.P. for the borough of Armagh. The lovely ceiling in the main reception room, where public business is now transacted, incorporates amongst its flowing arabesques, the Dobbin coat of arms.

At first, Leonard Dobbin carried out banking business in his new residence in a private capacity, but on January 1, 1827, he and his nephew Thomas became joint agents in Armagh lor the Bank of Ireland. Leonard Dobbin retained his seat in Parliament, and whilst he was at Westminster the business of banking was in his nephews complete charge.

Some difficulty about his political activities arose in 1834, and he resigned his seat in Parliament. He wrote to the Directors of the Bank of Ireland that he regarded the office of agent as a "position of honour and dignity."

Mr. Dobbin and his nephew continued as agents after this slight altercation, but they appear to have been retained mainly on account of their influential standing, for a manager was now appointed to undertake the more intricate part of the business,

Mr. Leonard Dubbin made one further effort to dabble in politics in 1841 when he carried out a whirlwind campaign on behalf of a certain Mr. Rawden. Upon the complaint of Mr. Rawden's opponent, Mr. George Fox, the Directors of the Bank intimated that Mr. Dobbin's political activities embarrassed them and thereafter these activities ceased, and the agent devoted himself entirely to banking.

Among the records still preserved at the bank are a lodgment docket dated 4th September, 1834, and an account book, filled with beautiful, faded copperplate, which dates from 1830.

It is said that St. Patrick had his first church in the tiny garden at the back of this Georgian house, long before Armagh became a city, and that later his sister founded a religious house in the same place.

Whatever the truth of this legend, it is certain that the garden was once a burying ground, since human remains have been discovered there within living memory.

FINA.

Next Week — Killyleagh Castle.

 

Belfast Telegraph, Wednesday 4 November 1953

Storied Homes of Ulster – Belfast Castle

The following is part of a series of articles which appeared in the Belfast Telegraph in 1953 under the pen name 'Fina'.

 

Belfast Castle

Autumn tints lend atmosphere to hillside mansion

From far below on the Antrim Road, Belfast Castle seems suspended halfway between the emerald gloom of the demesne's banked fir trees and the craggy top of Cave Hill, capped on a gold October day, with pearly sea-cloud.

The summer visitors are gone, and buses no longer run on the climbing road that leads to the Castle and its grounds, but just now, in the fall of the year, it is most rewarding to make the escent on foot.

A wide, grassy pathway winds round the hillside, fringing the edge of the demesne. Sunlight glints on woods that glow with all of autumn's richness, and in the sparkling air the tawny leaves are flecked with copper flame. Here and there, against the land's glossy green, the scarlet berries of the rowan trees hang jewel-like, and the tall plumes of the firs stir in the gentle wind.

It is only now, when summer’s profusion has passed, that we see the beauty of each separate leaf in the amber lace that clothes the branches.

The grey stone of the Castle, too, is warmed by the October sun, and the noonday brilliance dapples each pepper-pot turret with light. One thinks of Brunhilde and the Castles of the Rhine as one looks at the tall tower and pointed turrets of this place.

There is something of a fairy-tale quality in the curving stone staircase that leads to the first-floor reception rooms, and in the superb view of the Lough that one gains from the lawn fronting the dwelling. On a sunny autumn day, the sky’s deep blue is reflected in the sapphire waters of the Lough, which glisten like crystal as they are furrowed by harbour-bound vessels.

From this height, the city itself takes on a faery atmosphere as grey veils of smoke drift over it, making high gantries and upreaching chimneys rise, unsubstantially, from cloudy foundations.

This romantic building is little more than a hundred years old, its Scottish baronial style being typical of the Victorian era. Castle and grounds alike were bequeathed to the City by the Earl of Shaftesbury in 1934. The gift is characteristic of this noble family, which, in many ways, has been concerned in public service since the early 16th century.

The philanthropy of the seventh Earl is well-known. It is this hero of Victorian times, believing so passionately that life should be service to God, that we must thank for the humane reforms that came about during the second half of the 19th century. Lord Shaftesbury was the instigator of many of the Bills that reformed the Imperial Parliament, of the Mines Act that forbade the employment of women and boys underground, and of the Act that at last cured the evil of using child labour to sweep chimneys.

To the first Earl of Shaftesbury we owe our present system of Justice. He was the statesman who carried the Habeas Corpus Art through both Houses of Parliament, and who later introduced a Bill to render Judges independent of the Crown.

FINA.

Next week – Bank of Ireland, Armagh.


Belfast Telegraph, Wednesday, 21 October 1953

Storied Homes of Ulster – Hillsborough Courthouse

The following is part of a series of articles which appeared in the Belfast Telegraph in 1953 under the pen name 'Fina'.

 

Hillsborough Courthouse

Architectural grace in a Plantation town.

THE Courthouse at Hillsborough is a fine example of rural Irish Renaissance architecture, one of the many excellent public buildings that abound in the towns of Ulster. The building stands in an open space at the lop of the main street, between Government House and the old Fort.

The square centre of the Courthouse is flanked by two long wings, the space between their ends forming arcaded entrances which at one side face Government House and at the other the old Fort. These flanking wings are decorated with a “blinded" continuation of the central arcading, in a manner consistent with the Georgians’ obsession for symmetry.

Here are held the Courts of the Chairmen of the County or Quarter Sessions, which correspond to the English County Court Their origin, however, is of a much earlier date than their English counterpart. They were founded in 1794 in the reign of George III.

At Hillsborough, Quarter Sessions are held twice a year, and the Land Courts then taking place try all cases of dispute between landlord and tenant. Petty Sessions are held monthly and have jurisdiction over minor cases.

Hillsborough Courthouse was erected at the expense of the third Marquis of Downshire. Succeeding to his father's great estates at the age of 14, spoiled and flattered in a manner worthy of a reigning prince. Lord Downshire might have been excused had he succumbed to the profligacy of the age. That he did not reflects great credit upon the singular character of his mother, a woman who proved herself thoroughly capable of caring for the greet Downshire estate during her son's minority. Upon attaining his majority Lord Downshire interested himself in all that concerned the welfare of townsfolk and tenants.

The three years that followed his coming of age were years of high prices and great poverty, and he determined to improve the position of his tenants and the agricultural methods on his estates.

He it was who introduced ploughing matches to Ulster, the first of these being held at Hillsborough Park. In those days ploughs were mostly wooden. Lord Downshlre imported an iron plough from Glasgow, proved its superiority, then offered one of these ploughs and two sets of harness to the farmer in each townland who produced the finest crop of grain, flax, or potatoes.

For his time Lord Downshire had an unusual belief in the importance of education. He had studied the writings of that great educationist, Joseph Lancaster, who was introduced to him in Belfast. He was anxious that Lancaster should visit the schools he had built on his estate, but unfortunately the educationist had engagement in America which prevented him from so doing.

The Courthouse, school, market house end other public buildings erected by the Third Marquis form, at Hillsborough, one of the beet examples of a Plantation town.

FINA.

Next week: Bank of Ireland, Armagh.
 

Belfast Telegraph, Wednesday, 28 October 1953

The Story of the Ghost of John Greg

And how it gave a Belfast church its pulpit

JOHN GREG, who lived at Ballysillan in 1783, was a great land-grabber in his day. Any tenantry residing around Belfast had their lands taken from them — virtually over their heads.

So pernicious was he in this respect that agrarian trouble became very prevalent and was somewhat difficult to curb by the authorities. It is said that his spirit was unable to rest when he died in 1784.

Some friends appealed to Rev. William Bristow, M.A., vicar and sovereign of Belfast., 1772-1808, to see if he could help in any way. For some unknown reason Mr. Bristow was unable to stay the ghost of John. After many attempts, which ended in failure, he called to his assistance Rev. Hugh O'Donnell, first parish priest of Belfast.

To make a long story short, the efforts of the Rev. Hugh were said at the time to have been successful, though we are not told how, and the spirit of John was at peace.

Mr. Bristow was so grateful for this act of kindness that, when the first chapel was opened in Chapel Lane on May 30, 1784, he presented a pulpit to it. The chapel was opened in great style. The Belfast Volunteer Company, under Captain Waddell Cunningham, attended the ceremony in full dress.

As Rev. Hugh O'Donnell passed through their ranks to celebrate the first Mass, the Protestant Volunteer Company presented arms. The scene was marked for its enthusiasm and perfect good feeling. The congregation returned their most grateful thanks “to the Inhabitants at large for their generously enabling them to erect a handsome edifice for the celebration of divine worship."

It is worthy of note that Rev. Hugh O'Donnell was the first parish priest in Belfast to perform his duties publicly. The distinguished Volunteer Company endeavoured in every way to promote a feeling of freedom in religious matters. One of their resolutions was that "as Christians and as Protestants they rejoiced in the relaxation of the penal laws against their Catholic fellow subjects.”

The Volunteers agitated for "Reform in the Representation of the People." The committee dealing with the matter was composed of the Hon. Colonel Rowley (chairman), the Rt. Hon. John O'Neill, Capt. Black, Colonel Sharman, Capt. Bryson, Mr. Thompson, and Lieut. Moore.

They unanimously resolved on June 9, 1783, "that at an era so honourable to the spirit, wisdom and loyalty of Ireland, more equal representation of the people in Parliament deserves the deliberate attention of every Irishman, as that alone which can perpetuate to future ages the inestimable possession of a free constitution." This was probably passed as an expression of indignation in connection with the Carrickfergus election.

Waddell Cunningham,
First President of
Belfast Chamber of Commerce

CUNNINGHAM was elected member of Parliament for that town by a large majority, but a petition was presented by Joseph Hewitt (the defeated candidate), in which he said the voters were "drunk." Hewitt later became M.P. for Belfast through the efforts of Lord Donegall. Elections of candidates were usually connived at by means of bribery and corruption, irrespective as to the wishes of the people.

WADDELL Cunningham was a distinguished personality at the time. He was first president of the Belfast Chamber of Commerce, founded in 1783, and opened Cunningham's Bank in 1786 (according to Benn). At a meeting of the citizens of Belfast the following resolution was passed, "That the most sincere thanks of this assembly be given to Waddell Cunningham for his patriotic and unremitting exertions in favour of his country's rights."

Dr. A. G. Malcolm thus described him, "full of honours both as a public and private man." Cunningham died December 15, 1797, and was interred in Knockbreda Churchyard, where many of Belfast's distinguished rest.

Rev. Hugh O'Donnell was educated by his father — a man of culture. He died at the age of 75 years, and was buried in Glenarm, Co. Antrim, after ministering to his congregation for 44 years.

The epitaph on his tombstone reads –
    "Closed is the hand that often gave relief
     And cold the Heart that beat to each mans grief"

Would that we could all have our lives thus described!

W. C.

 

This article appeared in the Belfast Telegraph, 6 August 1937.

Storied Homes of Ulster – Kilwaughter Castle

The following is part of a series of articles which appeared in the Belfast Telegraph in 1953 under the pen name 'Fina'.

 

Kilwaughter Castle

There’s history in these crumbling walls

JOURNEYING inland from the tempestuous beauty of the Antrim coast, beyond the isolated farms, and tiny cottages which lie so snugly sheltered in the curve of the hills, you find Kilwaughter Castle.

The main gateway is gauntly barred with barbed wire, but, on ascending the “brae," darkened even in mid-afternoon by the great trees that overhang the walls, you find an overgrown driveway that leads, uninterrupted, to the deserted dwelling.

Primitive earthwork, Norman motte, Elizabethan bawn, Georgian round tower — this castle is almost a history book in itself.

When the brother of Robert Bruce landed at Larne in 1315 he destroyed all the Norman settlements, and, assisted by O'Neills, M'Sweeneys, and M'Donnells, he left "neither field of corn undestroyed, nor town unsacked, nor unfrequented place, were it never so little nor so desert, unsearched and unburnt."

The marauders failed to destroy the Norman motte upon which the original castle stood, and it can still be seen in the Kilwaughter demesne. The Norman family name remains, too, but in a changed form. D'Agneux became Agnew, and Agnews were still living at Kilwaughter at the end of the nineteenth century.

Another castle rose on these lands, still a strong-walled dwelling, for fortified houses were needed in Ulster long after the need for them had passed in England.

A dark mantle of ivy covers the broken walls of this later bawn, but their strength is evident even in ruin. Their rough hewn granite ends in purposeful battlements, very different from the decorative crenellations that surmount the smooth walls and round tower of the later mansion.

These later additions were built at a time when it was fashionable for every feature to play its allotted part in an architectural composition. This desire for uniformity is seen in the shape of the windows in the round tower:    they are all hooded to match those of the earlier period.

In later years, larger windows of the more generally recognised Georgian type replaced these matching hooded ones in the reception rooms on the lower floor of the tower, probably to give a better view of the little lake that can be seen where the velvet turf ends in a grove of trees.

For a little while longer this old castle sleeps on, its proud old walls, weathered to darkness by the winter winds, and warmed to greenness by the summer suns of centuries past, have outlived their usefulness

Soon only the placid waters of the little lake, giving back the green tracery of spring and the gold tracery of autumn as Nature's cycle is repeated in the overshadowing trees, will remain to remind us of the storied home there once was here.

FINA

Next week — Belfast Castle.

Belfast Telegraph, Wednesday, 14 October 1953

Storied Homes of Ulster – Florida Manor

The following is part of a series of articles which appeared in the Belfast Telegraph in 1953 under the pen name 'Fina'.

 

Florida Manor

Life – that is different – returns to Down house

Rev. John Dubourdieu, Rector of Anahilt, writing his survey of the County of Down in the year 1802, says:– “Besides the several spacious habitations of the principal proprietors of this county, there are numerous and elegant modern built mansions belonging to the gentlemen; and others also, of an earlier date, modernised with taste and judgment."

One of these "others of an earlier date” is Florida Manor in the Parish of Kilmood. Little seems to be known of its early history, but into the wall of one of the farm-buildings is built a plate bearing the date 1676

It is known that the house was built by the Gordons, a family of ancient Scottish lineage. The lands at one time probably belonged to the Whytes, but in the sixteenth century this family was not strong enough to retain its holdings and much went from its possession into the hands of bold Scots adventurers who sought, nearer home, such lands and wealth as Raleigh and his fellows were finding in the new lands of America.

During the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries Florida Manor must have been a pleasant and gracious place, standing in its wide demesne of ancient trees. Some of the oaks, we are told, were in 30 feet in girth. The wide hall with its elegantly moulded ceiling and handsome staircase was doubtless the scene of much coming and going when each of the fine coach houses at the rear of the dwelling held either chaise or phaeton.

In the lists of those who held the office of High Sheriff of the County of Down the name of Gordon of Florida twice appears. In 1810 David Gordon held the office, and in 1833 the honour fell to Robert Gordon.

At the beginning of the 20th century the dwelling could no longer be described in the Rev. J. Dubourdieu's glowing language, and by the time the second World war upon us, Florida Manor was in a sad state of repair. Ceilings had fallen in, floors had rotted, and in the once-gracious gardens a tangle of weeds rioted.

Happily, to-day a different tale can be told. The old house is once again being "modernised with taste and judgment." The dwelling and lands were purchased, a year or two ago, by a farmer who is also an artist and under his skilful supervision the ruined house has become a home for two families.

It was possible to save only a part of the beautiful hall ceiling, but the carved marble fireplaces still grace drawing-room and studio, and the long windows in the library retain all their elegance.

The freshly painted coach houses now shelter the more prosaic tractor, and from behind the stable doors come the grunts and lowings of the farm's livestock — sounds that tell us that life and prosperity are returning to Florida Manor.

FINA

Next week – Kilwaughter Castle, Co. Antrim.

Belfast Telegraph, 7 October 1953