Tudenham Park House | |
---|---|
Teach Tudenham | |
Former names | Rochfort House [1] |
General information | |
Architectural style | Palladian |
Location | Rochfort Demesne |
Town or city | Mullingar, County Westmeath, Ireland |
Country | Ireland |
Coordinates | 53°28′20.385″N7°22′16.875″W / 53.47232917°N 7.37135417°W |
Elevation | 92 metres (302 ft) |
Construction started | 1717 |
Completed | 1742 |
Renovated | 1790 |
Destroyed | 1958 |
Owner |
|
Technical details | |
Material | limestone |
Design and construction | |
Architect(s) | Richard Cassels |
Tudenham Park House (Irish : Teach Tudenham), [1] originally called Rochfort House, is an 18th-century Palladian limestone country house located in Tudenham Park on the Rochfort Demesne near Belvedere House and Gardens beside Lough Ennell, County Westmeath, Ireland.
The house is known for being involved in an ordeal with Robert Rochfort's brother, George, which resulted in Robert constructing The Jealous Wall so he would not have to look at his brother's grander house.
The construction on the house began in 1717, and it was completed in 1742 for George Rochfort. [2]
Later a glass house designed by Richard Turner was affixed to the property. [3]
It was purchased by Sir Francis Hopkins in 1836, and the name was subsequently changed from Rochfort to Tudenham Park. [4] Hopkins' tenure lasted 34 years until the property was sold to the affluent Tottenham family in 1870.
On 7 March 1906, Charles Gore Loftus Tottenham inherited Tudenham House and land from his grandmother. [5]
The house was used as a hospital and convalescent home for army officers during World War I and World War II and was still in military possession in 1945. [6]
The Tottenham family had not lived in the property since 1952; and in 1958 the house was gutted by a fire that destroyed the roof but spared the walls, chimneystacks and main façade, which still stand to this day. The family decided to sell the house ruin and land in 1963. [7]
As of 2023, the house is largely covered with overgrown vegetation, and multiple efforts have been made to conserve the property since 2005. [8]
In December 2013, the land, including the house, was sold at an auction for €681,000 to a businessman from Westmeath. [9]
In October 2023, the property again went on the market with a guide price of €1.2m. [10]
County Westmeath is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It formed part of the historic Kingdom of Meath, which was named Mide because the kingdom was located in the geographical centre of Ireland. Westmeath County Council is the administrative body for the county, and the county town is Mullingar. At the 2022 census, the population of the county was 95,840.
Castlepollard is a village in north County Westmeath, Republic of Ireland. It lies west of Lough Lene and northeast of Lough Derravaragh and Mullingar.
Rathfarnham Castle is a 16th-century fortified house in Rathfarnham, South Dublin, Ireland. Originally a semi-fortified and battlemented structure it underwent extensive alterations in the 18th century. It is in State care, has been restored and is open to the public.
Belvedere House and Gardens is a country house located approximately 8 kilometres (5 mi) from Mullingar, County Westmeath in Ireland on the north-east shore of Lough Ennell. It was built in 1740 as a hunting lodge for Robert Rochfort, 1st Earl of Belvedere by architect Richard Cassels, one of Ireland's foremost Palladian architects.
Rochfortbridge is a village in County Westmeath, Ireland. The village is located at the intersection of the R400 and the R446 roads. As of the 2016 census, the population of Rochfortbridge was 1,473.
Muckross House is located on the small Muckross Peninsula between Muckross Lake and Lough Leane, two of the lakes of Killarney, 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) from the town of Killarney in County Kerry, Ireland. In 1932 it was presented by William Bowers Bourn and Arthur Rose Vincent to the Irish nation. It thus became the first National Park in the Irish Free State and formed the basis of the present day Killarney National Park. The house now forms part of a visitor attraction marketed as Muckross House, Gardens and Traditional Farms.
Luttrellstown Castle is a castellated house located in Clonsilla on the outskirts of Dublin, Ireland dating from the early 15th century.
Middleton Park House is a mid 19th-century country house in Castletown-Geoghegan, County Westmeath
Arthur Loftus Tottenham was a landowner and Conservative politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1880 to 1887.
The High Sheriff of Westmeath was the British Crown's judicial representative in County Westmeath, Ireland from its creation under The Counties of Meath and Westmeath Act 1543 until 1922, when the office was abolished in the new Free State and replaced by the office of Westmeath County Sheriff. The sheriff had judicial, electoral, ceremonial and administrative functions and executed High Court Writs. In 1908, an Order in Council made the Lord-Lieutenant the Sovereign's prime representative in a county and reduced the High Sheriff's precedence. However the sheriff retained his responsibilities for the preservation of law and order in the county. The usual procedure for appointing the sheriff from 1660 onwards was that three persons were nominated at the beginning of each year from the county and the Lord Lieutenant then appointed his choice as High Sheriff for the remainder of the year. Often the other nominees were appointed as under-sheriffs. Sometimes a sheriff did not fulfil his entire term through death or other event and another sheriff was then appointed for the remainder of the year. The dates given hereunder are the dates of appointment. The following is an incomplete list: all addresses are in County Westmeath unless stated otherwise.
Newbridge Demesne is an early 18th-century Georgian estate and mansion situated in north County Dublin, Ireland. It was built from around 1751 by Charles Cobbe, Archbishop of Dublin, and remained the property of his Cobbe descendants until 1985. It was then acquired by Dublin County Council, in an arrangement, under which Newbridge House would remain the family home.
The High Sheriff of Leitrim was the British Crown's judicial representative in County Leitrim, Ireland from c.1582 until 1922, when the office was abolished in the new Free State and replaced by the office of Leitrim County Sheriff. The sheriff had judicial, electoral, ceremonial and administrative functions and executed High Court Writs. In 1908, an Order in Council made the Lord-Lieutenant the Sovereign's prime representative in a county and reduced the High Sheriff's precedence. However the sheriff retained his responsibilities for the preservation of law and order in the county. The usual procedure for appointing the sheriff from 1660 onwards was that three persons were nominated at the beginning of each year from the county and the Lord Lieutenant then appointed his choice as High Sheriff for the remainder of the year. Often the other nominees were appointed as under-sheriffs. Sometimes a sheriff did not fulfil his entire term through death or other event and another sheriff was then appointed for the remainder of the year. The dates given hereunder are the dates of appointment. All addresses are in County Leitrim unless stated otherwise.
The Rochfort family came to Ireland in the thirteenth century and acquired substantial lands in counties Kildare, Meath and Westmeath. Several members of the family were prominent lawyers and politicians. They gained the title Earl of Belvedere, and gave their name to the village of Rochfortbridge. The main Rochfort line ended with the death of the 2nd Earl of Belvedere in 1814.
Oak Park is a Georgian house and estate in County Carlow, Ireland, located 3 kilometres (2 mi) north of the town of Carlow.
Robert Rochfort, 1st Earl of Belvedere PC was an Anglo-Irish politician and peer. He became notorious for his abusive treatment of his second wife, Mary Molesworth.
George Augustus Rochfort, 2nd Earl of Belvedere was an Anglo-Irish peer and politician.
Moylisker is a civil parish in County Westmeath, Ireland. It is located about 6.14 kilometres (4 mi) south of Mullingar.
The Jealous Wall is a large 18th century Gothic folly made from limestone located in the Belvedere House and Gardens in Mullingar, County Westmeath, Ireland. It is notable for being the largest folly in Ireland. It was constructed by Robert Rochfort in 1760.
Gaulstown, also spelt Gallstown is a townland in County Westmeath, Ireland. The townland is located in between the towns of Rochfortbridge and Milltownpass, close to the R446 regional road.. Neighbouring townlands include Bellfield, Corcloon, Drumman, Milltown and Windmill to the east, Gibbonstown and Gortumly to the west and Mahonstown to the north.
Farthingstown is a townland in County Westmeath, Ireland. The townland is located on the border with County Offaly and is in the civil parish of Castlelost. The M6 Motorway runs through the middle, with a junction linking up with the R400 regional road. The Monagh River flows through the south of the area. The town of Rochfortbridge is to the north.