Howth Castle

Coordinates: 53°23′11″N 6°04′44″W / 53.3863°N 6.0790°W / 53.3863; -6.0790
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Howth Castle
Map
General information
StatusPrivate dwelling house
TypeCastle
Architectural styleVarious including Medieval defensive, Gothic, Georgian, Arts and Crafts
AddressHowth
Town or cityHowth, County Dublin
CountryIreland
Coordinates53°23′11″N 6°04′44″W / 53.3863°N 6.0790°W / 53.3863; -6.0790
Groundbreakingc1235
Technical details
Materiallimestone, Portland stone Georgian door and window surrounds
Design and construction
Architect(s)Francis Bindon (1738)
Richard Morrison (1810, gates)
Francis Johnston (1825, minor alterations)
Richard Morrison (1840, stables and other minor alterations)
Joseph Maguire (1872, Gate lodge)
DeveloperVarious Lords, Barons and Earls of Howth
Other designersJames Hogan & Sons (1875, interior plasterwork)
Renovating team
Architect(s)Edwin Lutyens (1910-11, tower, loggia, chapel, corridors)
Civil engineerFrederick William Higginbotham (1910-11)
References
[1][2][3][4]

Howth Castle (/ˈhoʊθ/ HOHTH) and estate lie just outside the village of Howth, County Dublin in Ireland, in the administration of Fingal County Council. The castle was the ancestral home of the line of the St Lawrence family[5] (see: Earl of Howth) that had held the area since the Norman Invasion of 1180, and held the title of Lord of Howth until circa 1425, the Baron Howth to 1767, then Earl of Howth until 1909. The castle and estate are held since 1909 by their distaff heirs, the Gaisford-St Lawrence family.

The estate includes much of the peninsula of Howth Head, including extensive heathland and much of Howth's cliff walks, with views over Dublin Bay, light woodland, and the island of Ireland's Eye. On the grounds near the castle are golf, pitch and putt and footgolf facilities, a former hotel, formal gardens and a pond, rhododendron walks - and several small streams pass through the estate.

In October 2018, the family announced their agreement to sell the castle, demesne and Ireland's Eye to the Tetrarch investment group who intended to redevelop the hotel and course as a luxury resort. A 7-acre portion of the site zoned for residential development close to the castle gate was sold onwards by Tetrarch to Glenveagh Homes for €14m after the sale closed.[6][7]

History[edit]

Since 1180 the St Lawrence family were the feudal lords of Howth. The original family castle, a timber structure, was sited on the edge of Howth village, on Tower Hill, overlooking Balscadden Bay. In some form, Howth Castle has stood on its present site for over 750 years.

The great English architect Sir Edwin Lutyens in 1911 restyled a 14th-century castle built here, overlooking Ireland's Eye and the north Dublin coastline.

The estate previously included much of coastal northern Dublin, including the lands of Kilbarrack, Raheny and parts of Clontarf, but these were gradually sold off from the mid-19th to the mid-20th century.

In the second half of the 20th century, the castle's demesne was largely redeveloped to provide golfing facilities, and a mid-price hotel, with bar, restaurant and spa facilities, was opened.

In the early 21st century the Castle saw the opening of a cookery school, and later a cafe, and was occasionally available for guided tours.

In October 2018, Julian Gaisford St-Lawrence announced that the family had agreed to sell the property to a private investment group. The golf club and related facilities would remain open through 2019, the hotel would be redeveloped and reopened as a luxury property, and residential development would be possible.[6] No details were given on whether the family would retain some land, or a life right to live in the castle, or of the future of the volunteer-operated Transport Museum located on the grounds.

Legend[edit]

A popular legend about the castle concerns an incident that allegedly occurred in 1576.[8] During a trip from Dublin, the Gaelic chieftain and "pirate queen" Gráinne O'Malley attempted to pay a courtesy visit to the 8th Baron Howth.[8] However, she was informed that the family was at dinner and the castle gates were closed against her. In retaliation, she abducted the grandson and heir, the 10th Baron. He was eventually released when a promise was given to keep the gates open to unexpected visitors and to set an extra plate at every meal. At Howth Castle today, this agreement is still honoured by the descendants of the Baron.[8]

Castle and Grounds[edit]

Castle[edit]

In 1177 Almeric Tristram, the first Lord of Howth, came to Ireland with John de Courcy. It is likely the first Lord built a modest wooden castle close to the harbour near the present day village and St Mary's Abbey.

The first evidence of a castle on the current site is from a deed of 1235 indicating a new castle was built also in wood.

The earliest parts of the current castle and structures to survive is likely the keep and gate tower in stone dating from around 1450.[9]

Interiors[edit]

Most of the interiors of the castle were sold at auction in September 2021.[10][11]

Much of the interiors and even some of the windows of Killester House were moved to Howth Castle following its dereliction and eventual demolition including a marble fireplace which stands in the Lutyens library.[12]

Grounds[edit]

Howth Castle, circa 1820

In 1892 Rosa Mulholland referred to the grounds thus: "Back on the lower land you must visit the ancient demesne of the Earl of Howth, where a quaint old castle stands in a prim garden with swan-inhabited pond, and plashing fountain, encircled by dark beautiful woods full of lofty cathedral-like aisles, moss carpeted, and echoing with the cawing of rooks."(Mulholland 1892: 35)

The grounds near the castle are noted for the wild rhododendron gardens, which are open to the public in summer, and some of the oldest beech hedges in Ireland, planted in 1710. At certain times, such as summer 2016, guided tours of the castle could be booked at weekends. As late as the mid-20th century, there was a rock garden near the Church of Ireland parish church, a "sundial garden" near the main entrance gate, an orchard and a moat and the site of a well or spring in front of the castle; all of these features later fell into disuse. A small sunken garden lay beside the castle's chapel wing, and a formal garden, of which parts remain, behind it, with a walk cutting through to the Swan Pond, beside which was a fern garden.

The Bloody Stream ran in front of the castle, another stream used to pass directly by, and was later captured by castle drainage, and a third was connected to the Swan Pond. One of the streams in Sutton also comes from within the estate.

The more remote parts of the estate are treated as more or less public land, with walking trails, and are substantially subject to a Special Amenity Area Order.

In the 20th century, the 17th classical landscape was substantially modified to make the Deer Park golf courses, which had an associated hotel, the Deer Park Hotel, for many years.

The "Kitchen in the Castle Cookery School" was opened by two members of the family, based in the restored Georgian kitchens of Howth Castle.

The volunteer-operated National Transport Museum of Ireland is located in the grounds of the castle. It features lorries, trucks, fire engines and tractors. Also exhibited is the restored Hill of Howth No.9 Tram.

Howth Park Racecourse (1829 - 1842)[edit]

In 1829 a racecourse was established in the castle grounds by Thomas St Lawrence, 3rd Earl of Howth who had a particular passion for horses.[13] The course was known as Howth Park Racecourse and ran from the backgate lodge of the castle on Carrickbrack Road down to the corner of the grounds of Seafield House (now Santa Sabina school) and North broadly along the route of Offington before circling Corr Castle and returning up along the Howth Road.

The races were attended by all the leading owners, trainers and jockeys of the day with the race-card paying testament to the importance of the occasion. A sample of attendees from 1838 included Lord Howth, Lord Sligo, Sir John Kennedy, Captain Burke and Burnell and the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, Constantine Phipps, 1st Marquess of Normanby.[14] Although initially only members of respected racing clubs (Howth Park Club or the Corinthians Club at the Curragh) and gentry were allowed to enter, in 1834 access expanded to include a Tradesmen's Cup and in 1839 a Citizens' Plate. The races stopped permanently at Howth in 1842, likely due to the death of Emily, first wife of the Lord Howth however racing did eventually recommence post the Great Famine nearby at Baldoyle Racecourse from 1853 onward.[15][16][17][18][19] Notable races included the St.Lawrence Stakes and the Vaughan Goblet.

Popular culture[edit]

Literature[edit]

Howth Castle Library, Howth circa 1910

The locale of James Joyce's 1939 novel Finnegans Wake is "Howth Castle and Environs," which is taken to mean Dublin, and it begins and ends with a reference to this.[20] The initials HCE appear in many contexts in the novel, not least in the name of its presumed main character, Humphrey Chimpden Earwicker.

Joyce also put more than a dozen references to Howth, its team and the rhododendron walks near the castle, in his 1922 novel Ulysses.

In his 'Reveries Over Childhood and Youth' (1916) W. B. Yeats recalls "I would sleep among the rhododendrons and rocks in the wilder part of the grounds of Howth Castle".[21]

Film location[edit]

Howth Castle was depicted as the fictitious "Castle Haloran" from the 1963 Roger Corman and Francis Ford Coppola b-film Dementia 13 (a.k.a. The Haunted and the Hunted) where it was the setting of numerous scenes.

Flashback scenes from the Sergio Leone Spaghetti Western, Duck, You Sucker were shot here.[22] The castle was used extensively for exterior shots in Love & Friendship, Whit Stillman's adaptation of the Jane Austen novel Lady Susan.[23] Howth castle was also featured prominently in the 2021 Hallmark movie "As Luck Would Have It."[24]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "CO. DUBLIN, DUBLIN, HOWTH CASTLE Dictionary of Irish Architects -". www.dia.ie. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
  2. ^ "Howth Castle, Howth Road, HOWTH DEMESNE, Howth, DUBLIN". Buildings of Ireland. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
  3. ^ "Howth Castle, Howth Road, HOWTH DEMESNE, Howth, DUBLIN". Buildings of Ireland. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
  4. ^ "Howth Castle, Howth Road, HOWTH DEMESNE, Howth, DUBLIN". Buildings of Ireland. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
  5. ^ [1] Howth Castle, family official site - History of Howth Castle, visited 6 October 2018 [failed verification]
  6. ^ a b Tetrarch buys 470 acres in Howth including its castle and former hotel Irish Times, 2018-10-05.
  7. ^ "Glenveagh - 2019 Interim Results". www.glenveagh.ie. 23 August 2019. Retrieved 2 December 2019.
  8. ^ a b c McInerny, Tim; O'Leary, Naomi (13 July 2017). "Irish Elites". The Irish Passport (Podcast) (6 ed.). SoundCloud. Event occurs at 5:30. Retrieved 6 November 2018.
  9. ^ "Howth Castle | History". howthcastle.ie. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
  10. ^ "Fonsie Mealy's | Auction Results | Howth Castle, 800 Years of History. Entire Clearance - Remaining Conte..." www.fonsiemealy.ie. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
  11. ^ "800 years of history on display at Howth Castle ahead of auction". The Irish Times. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
  12. ^ "Killester Manor House". www.irelandxo.com. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
  13. ^ "HOWTH PARK RACECOURSE". greyhoundderby.com. Retrieved 17 June 2020.
  14. ^ Hurley, Michael (2006). "Baldoyle as a Racecourse Village". Dublin Historical Record. 59 (1). Old Dublin Society: 65–80. JSTOR 30101607.
  15. ^ Racing Calendar. proprietor Robert Hunter. 1842. pp. 243–.
  16. ^ The New Sporting Magazine. 1836. pp. 1–.
  17. ^ The Racing calendar, by R. Hunter. 1839. pp. 105–.
  18. ^ Pond John fl.1754 (1836). The Sporting Kalendar. pp. 62–.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  19. ^ The Sportsman. pp. 322–.
  20. ^ Killeen, Terence (12 June 2017). "Swerve of shore to bend of bay - An Irishman's Diary on Joyce, Howth and 'Finnegans Wake'". The Irish Times. Retrieved 27 June 2023.
  21. ^ The Poems of W.B. Yeats Volume One: 1882-1889. Taylor & Francis. 2020. p. 7.
  22. ^ Duck, You Sucker, AKA A Fistful of Dynamite (2-Disc Collector's Edition, Sergio Donati Remembers) (DVD). Los Angeles, California: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. 1972.
  23. ^ Wiggins, Leslie Anne. "Whit Stillman's New Film, Love & Friendship, Takes Us Back to the 19th Century | Architectural Digest". Architectural Digest. Retrieved 29 March 2017.
  24. ^ Moon, Ra. "Kilabbey & ALL the Filming Locations: Where was As Luck Would Have It filmed?| Atlas of Wonders". Atlas of Wonders. Retrieved 24 June 2021.

Sources[edit]

  • Mulholland, R. (1892). "At Howth." The Irish Monthly 20(223): 33–7.

External links[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Howth Castle.
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