A Brief tour of the Ardgillan Castle (zt)
A Brief history
The demesne consists of the ancient townlands of Kilmainham, Ardgillan and Baltray. The district was originally controlled by the Gaelic O'Casey family and later the Earl of Tyrconnell. However, the period 1600 - 1700 saw great changes in the pattern of land ownership in Ireland due to the confiscation and redistribution of land after the Cromwellian and Williamite wars (1640's and 1680's respectively).
In 1658 the "Down Survey" records that Ardgillan was owned by a wine merchant, Robert Usher of Crumlin, Dublin and by 1737, the property had been acquired by the Reverend Robert Taylor, one of the Headfort Taylors, whose grand-farther had collaborated with Sir William Petty on the mid 17th Century "Down Survey of Ireland". Ardgillan remained the family home of the Taylors (later changed to Taylour) for more two hundred years until 1962 when the estate was sold to Heinrick Pott of Westphalia, Germany. In 1982 Dublin County Council purchased Ardgillan Demesne and it is now managed by Fingal Council.
The Castle
Although referred to as a Castle, the residence at Ardgillan is a large country-style house with castellated embellishments. Originally named "Prospect", the central section was built in 1738 by Robert Taylor, with the west and east wings added in the late 1700's.
Initially the site was heavily wooded, the name Ardgillan being derived from the Irish "Ard Choill" meaning High Wood. It was cleared by out-of-service soldiers and itinerant workers in return for one penny a day, sleeping accommodation and one meal.
The house consists of two storeys over a basement which extends out under the lawns on the southern side of the building. When occupied, the ground and first floors were the living accommodation while the west and east wings were servants quarters and estate offices. The basement was the service floor, the kitchen and stores. The castle has now been restored and the ground floor rooms and kitchens are open to visitors for guided tours. Tea-rooms are located off the main reception area and serving light snacks are open in conjunction with the Castle opening times. Upstairs, the former bedrooms are used for classes and exhibitions including a permanent and unique exhibition of the "Down Survey" colour maps and text. Rooms are also available form small group meetings and workshops.
Ardgillan Today
Ardgillan was opened to the public as a Regional Park in June 1985. Preliminary works were carried out prior to the opening in order to transform what had been an arable farm, into a public park. Five miles of foothpaths were provided throughout the demesne, some by opening old avenues, while others were newly constructed. They now provide a system of varied and interesting woodland walks, and vantage points from which to enjoy views of the sea and coastline.
The main car and pinic area is located close to the Demesne entrance at 'Blackhills', while a second car and coach park, adjacent to the Castle is open Monday to Saturday and for restricted use on Sundays and Public Holidays
The Gardens
The gardens are in two main parts, the formal garden to the west of the house and the walled garden to the north west. In 1983 work began on the replanting of the formal garden using the layout of the Ordnance Survey map of 1865. A wide collection of roses have been planted, from species and old varieties around the perimeter, climbing roses on the pergola and 'Hybrid Ts' and 'Floribundas' in the centre beds.
The final stage of the development of the Rose garden was the rebuilding of the victoria conservatory, constructed by the Scottish firm 'Mckenzie an Moncur' in the 1880's for the Jameson of 'Seamount', Malahide. When fully completed this will incorporate a Museum of Garden History with access from the Walled Garden. This very fine glasshouse was donated to the Parks Department by Mr & Mrs Tracey, the present owners of 'Seamount'.
The walled garden was originally a Victorian styled kitchen garden, used to supply the fruit, vegetables and cut flower requirements of Ardgillan House. It is 2 acres in size, and subdivided into five seperate compartments, each having a different theme; a Herb garden, using herbs suitable to culinary, medicinal, dyeing and pot-pourii, as well as a number of plants specifically for bees and butterflies; a vegetable pottager, demonstrating the variety of vegeatables that can be grown in a small area and yet look attractive.
The 'Irish Garden' is constantly increasing its collection of plants of Irish origin, whether native species or varities, or plants named after Irish collectors. This section also includes a most unusual free-standing 'Fruit Wall' with twenty alcoves used for growing the more tender fruit such as peaches, nectarines, pears etc. Another section includes a 'Four Seasons' garden showing the variety of plants that either flower, fruit or have ornamental bark in a particular season. The final section will demonstrate the wide rane of semi-tender plants that can survive outdoors for many years as well as a range of fruit plants of Irish origin.
A coffee shop is open in the former Head Steward's house adjoining the Castle. The opening hours are displayed on the notice board.
Guided tours of the Gardens are available during the months of June / July / August at 3.30pm on Thursday afternoons or by special arrangement for groups.
The Yew Walk
One surviving feature still intact in the garden is the Yew Walk which lies to the south of the house and is seen as one approaches from the entrance at Blackhills. This was planted in 1800's during the lifetime of Marianne Taylor, wife of Rev. Henry Edward Taylor. It was the favourite walk of Captain Edward Taylour (1863 - 1938). Local folklore has it that a shadowy figure sometimes seen here is the ghost of a member of the Taylour family.
The Lady's Stairs
This is a pedestrian footbridge above the Balbriggan / Skerries Road and the Dublin - Belfast Railway Line which runs along the north-eastern boundary of the demesne. The bridge was initially constructed by the Dublin and Drogheda Railway Company and it links the demesne to the beach at Barnageera. The name derives from reports that the ghostly figure of a "Lady" is seen here from time to time.
The Ice House
While site works were proceeding in 1985, an underground passage was discovered, which turned out to be the long-lost Ice House, the precursor of the modern day refrigerator. In winter ice would have been collected from frozen lakes and rivers and packed into the chamber so as to provide a cold store for meat, dairy products, wines plus other perishable commodities to be used later in the year.
