Burrenwood
Encyclopedia
Burrenwood is a country house and estate near Castlewellan
, County Down
, Northern Ireland.
at Burrenwood was conceived by Theodosia Hawkins-Magill
(5 September 1743- 2 March 1817), the Countess of Clanwilliam, a great Ulster heiress and landowner, the daughter and heir of Robert Hawkins-Magill, of Gill Hall, Dromore
, Co. Down.
Having inherited her father's estates centred around Dromore and Rathfriland
, as a child in 1747, she married Sir John Meade
, 4th Bart., (Meade was ennobled in 1766 & 1776), in 1765.
The house, a 6170 square feet (573.2 m²), horseshoe shaped, rustic villa and cottage ornée
, was built near Castlewellan
in the late eighteenth century.
It lies on some land conveniently half way between Theodosia Clanwilliam's mother's famous new house at Castle Ward
, near Strangford Lough
(the mother had married Bernard Ward
after the early death of Robert Hawkins-Magill), the seventeenth century holdings of Alderman William Hawkins in and near Rathfriland, the infamous and similarly ancient Magill ancestral seat at Gill Hall, near Dromore, and the Greenore
ferry which was caught by way of Newry
, which at one time was plague ridden, avoidance of which is said to have been the incentive to build, in six weeks, the house by the Burren.
The Countess's second son, the Hon. General Robert Meade (1772–1852), Colonel of the 12th Regiment, inherited the Rathfriland
estate and the Burrenwood demesne which he extended; and it remained with his family for several further generations.
In 1808 he had married Anne Louise (d.1853), daughter and heir of General Sir John Dalling, Bt.
Burrenwood is comparable with the Swiss cottage
at Cahir
; Derrymore, Bessbrook
, Newry, Co. Armagh (National Trust
); and the Petit hameau
de la Reine at Versailles. All of which were in part inspired by Abbé Laugier, aka Marc-Antoine Laugier
.
It lies between the forest parks of Lords Clanbrassill and Roden's
Tollymore
and Lord Annesley's
Castlewellan, beside the Mourne
mountains (the inspiration for C. S. Lewis
's Narnia) and just inland from Dundrum bay at Newcastle
.
Castlewellan
Castlewellan is a village in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is beside Castlewellan Lake and Slievenaslat mountain, southwest of Downpatrick. It lies between the Mourne Mountains and Slieve Croob. It had a population of 2,392 people in the 2001 Census....
, County Down
County Down
-Cities:*Belfast *Newry -Large towns:*Dundonald*Newtownards*Bangor-Medium towns:...
, Northern Ireland.
History
The ornamental wooded and cottaged demesneDemesne
In the feudal system the demesne was all the land, not necessarily all contiguous to the manor house, which was retained by a lord of the manor for his own use and support, under his own management, as distinguished from land sub-enfeoffed by him to others as sub-tenants...
at Burrenwood was conceived by Theodosia Hawkins-Magill
Theodosia Hawkins-Magill
Theodosia Hawkins-Magill , later Countess of Clanwilliam, was a great heiress and landowner in County Down, Ireland.She was daughter and heir of Robert Hawkins-Magill , of Gill Hall, Dromore, County Down, by his second wife, Anne Bligh, daughter of John , first Earl of Darnley.She married John...
(5 September 1743- 2 March 1817), the Countess of Clanwilliam, a great Ulster heiress and landowner, the daughter and heir of Robert Hawkins-Magill, of Gill Hall, Dromore
Dromore, County Down
Dromore is a small market town in the Banbridge District of County Down, Northern Ireland. It is south-west of Belfast, on the A1 Belfast – Dublin road. The 2001 Census recorded a population of 4,968 people....
, Co. Down.
Having inherited her father's estates centred around Dromore and Rathfriland
Rathfriland
Rathfriland is a village in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is a hilltop Plantation of Ulster settlement between the Mourne Mountains, Slieve Croob and Banbridge. It had a population of 2,079 people in the 2001 Census.-History:...
, as a child in 1747, she married Sir John Meade
Earl of Clanwilliam
Earl of Clanwilliam is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1776 for John Meade, 1st Viscount Clanwilliam. The Meade family descends from John Meade, who represented Dublin University and County Tipperary in the Irish House of Commons and served as Attorney-General for Ireland...
, 4th Bart., (Meade was ennobled in 1766 & 1776), in 1765.
The house, a 6170 square feet (573.2 m²), horseshoe shaped, rustic villa and cottage ornée
Ferme ornée
The term ferme ornée as used in English garden history derives from Stephen Switzer's term for 'ornamented farm'. It describes a country estate laid out partly according to aesthetic principles and partly for farming. During the eighteenth century the original ferme ornée was Woburn Farm, made by...
, was built near Castlewellan
Castlewellan
Castlewellan is a village in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is beside Castlewellan Lake and Slievenaslat mountain, southwest of Downpatrick. It lies between the Mourne Mountains and Slieve Croob. It had a population of 2,392 people in the 2001 Census....
in the late eighteenth century.
Castle Ward
Castle Ward is an 18th century National Trust property located near the village of Strangford, in County Down, Northern Ireland. It overlooks Strangford Lough and is 7 miles from Downpatrick and 1.5 miles from Strangford....
, near Strangford Lough
Strangford Lough
Strangford Lough, sometimes Strangford Loch, is a large sea loch or inlet in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is separated from the Irish Sea by the Ards Peninsula. The name Strangford is derived ; describing the fast-flowing narrows at its mouth...
(the mother had married Bernard Ward
Viscount Bangor
Viscount Bangor, of Castle Ward, in the County Down, is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1781 for Bernard Ward, 1st Baron Bangor, who had previously represented Down in the Irish House of Commons. He had already been created Baron Bangor, of Castle Ward in the County of Ward, in...
after the early death of Robert Hawkins-Magill), the seventeenth century holdings of Alderman William Hawkins in and near Rathfriland, the infamous and similarly ancient Magill ancestral seat at Gill Hall, near Dromore, and the Greenore
Greenore
Greenore is a small town, townland and deep water port on Carlingford Lough in County Louth, Ireland. The population of Greenore and the surrounding rural area was 898 in the 2002 Irish census....
ferry which was caught by way of Newry
Newry
Newry is a city in Northern Ireland. The River Clanrye, which runs through the city, formed the historic border between County Armagh and County Down. It is from Belfast and from Dublin. Newry had a population of 27,433 at the 2001 Census, while Newry and Mourne Council Area had a population...
, which at one time was plague ridden, avoidance of which is said to have been the incentive to build, in six weeks, the house by the Burren.
The Countess's second son, the Hon. General Robert Meade (1772–1852), Colonel of the 12th Regiment, inherited the Rathfriland
Rathfriland
Rathfriland is a village in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is a hilltop Plantation of Ulster settlement between the Mourne Mountains, Slieve Croob and Banbridge. It had a population of 2,079 people in the 2001 Census.-History:...
estate and the Burrenwood demesne which he extended; and it remained with his family for several further generations.
In 1808 he had married Anne Louise (d.1853), daughter and heir of General Sir John Dalling, Bt.
Burrenwood is comparable with the Swiss cottage
Swiss cottage, Cahir
The Swiss cottage is located at Kilcommon near the town of Cahir, South Tipperary in Ireland. It was built around 1810 and is a fine example of cottage ornée, or ornamental cottage. It was originally part of the estate of Lord and Lady Cahir, and used for entertaining guests...
at Cahir
Cahir
Cahir is a town in South Tipperary in Ireland. The town is best known for its castle and the Swiss Cottage. It is in the barony of Iffa and Offa West.-Location and access:...
; Derrymore, Bessbrook
Bessbrook
Bessbrook is a village in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. It lies about three miles northwest of Newry and close to the main Dublin–Belfast road and rail line...
, Newry, Co. Armagh (National Trust
National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty
The National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, usually known as the National Trust, is a conservation organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland...
); and the Petit hameau
Petit hameau
The Hameau de la Reine |Hamlet]]) is a rustic retreat in the park of the Château de Versailles built for Marie Antoinette between 1785 and 1792 near the Petit Trianon in the Yvelines, France...
de la Reine at Versailles. All of which were in part inspired by Abbé Laugier, aka Marc-Antoine Laugier
Marc-Antoine Laugier
The abbé Marc-Antoine Laugier was a Jesuit priest and architectural theorist. Laugier is best known for his Essay on Architecture published in 1753. In 1755 he published the second edition with a famous, often reproduced illustration of a primitive hut...
.
It lies between the forest parks of Lords Clanbrassill and Roden's
Earl of Roden
Earl of Roden is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1771 for Robert Jocelyn, 2nd Viscount Jocelyn. This branch of the Jocelyn family descends from the 1st Viscount, prominent Irish lawyer and politician Robert Jocelyn, the son of Thomas Jocelyn, third son of Sir Robert Jocelyn,...
Tollymore
Tollymore Forest Park
Tollymore Forest Park was the first state forest park in Northern Ireland, established on the 2 June 1955. It is located at Bryansford, near the town of Newcastle. Covering an area of at the foot of the Mourne Mountains, the forest park offers panoramic views of the surrounding mountains and the...
and Lord Annesley's
Earl Annesley
Earl Annesley, of Castlewellan in the County of Down, is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created on 17 August 1789 for Francis Annesley, 2nd Viscount Glerawly, with special remainder to his younger brother the Hon. Richard Annesley. He had previously represented Downpatrick in the Irish...
Castlewellan, beside the Mourne
Mourne
-Places:*Mourne Abbey, a small parish just south of Mallow, County Cork, Ireland*Mourne , a barony in County Down, Northern Ireland*Mourne Mountains, a granite mountain range located in County Down in the south-east of Northern Ireland...
mountains (the inspiration for C. S. Lewis
C. S. Lewis
Clive Staples Lewis , commonly referred to as C. S. Lewis and known to his friends and family as "Jack", was a novelist, academic, medievalist, literary critic, essayist, lay theologian and Christian apologist from Belfast, Ireland...
's Narnia) and just inland from Dundrum bay at Newcastle
Newcastle, County Down
Newcastle is a small town in County Down, Northern Ireland. It had a population of 7,444 people recorded in the 2001 Census. The seaside resort lies on the Irish Sea coast at the base of Slieve Donard, one of the Mourne Mountains, and is known for its sandy beach and the Royal County Down Golf Club...
.
External links
- Hawkins-Magill & Meade history from the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (PRONI): A.P.W. Malcolmson & Peter Houston.
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-
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- Alternative link to the above info.
- The Complete Peerage, ed. G. E. Cokayne, volume III.
- Nicholas Groves-Raines architects. Photos of the north front. As above.
- Ulster Architectural Heritage Society, from their publication of 1975.
- Castle Ward
- Derrymore
- Ulster Museum's 1765 Reynolds portrait of Theodosia Magill.
- Ulster Museum's 1765 Gainsborough portrait of Theodosia Magill.
- Alternative link to the above info.
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