Gosford Castle is situated in Gosford, a townland of Markethill

Markethill

Markethill is a village in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. In the 2001 Census it had a population of 1,292 people. It sits at the southern side of Gosford Forest Park...

, County Armagh

County Armagh

-History:Ancient Armagh was the territory of the Ulaid before the fourth century AD. It was ruled by the Red Branch, whose capital was Emain Macha near Armagh. The site, and subsequently the city, were named after the goddess Macha...

, Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...

, close to the border with County Down

County Down

-Cities:*Belfast *Newry -Large towns:*Dundonald*Newtownards*Bangor-Medium towns:...

. Construction of the castle began in 1819 and finished in the 1850s. It was commissioned by Archibald Acheson, 2nd Earl of Gosford

Archibald Acheson, 2nd Earl of Gosford

Archibald Acheson, 2nd Earl of Gosford GCB , styled The Honourable Archibald Acheson from 1790 to 1806 and Lord Acheson from 1806 to 1807, was a British politician who served as Lieutenant-Governor of Lower Canada and Governor General of British North America in the 19th century.-Background:Born at...

 and the architect was Thomas Hopper, one of the leading London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

 architects of the first half of the 19th century. It is the largest Grade A listed building in Northern Ireland.

The Ministry of Agriculture bought the estate in 1958, establishing Gosford Forest Park

Gosford Forest Park

Gosford Forest Park is located outside the Co. Armagh village of Markethill. Gosford Forest Park, previously Gosford Demesne, was acquired by the Department of Agriculture in 1958 and comprises some 240 hectares of diverse woodland and open parkland...

. In January 2006 the decaying castle was bought by a development company, the Boyd Partnership, which planned to turn it into private homes. In January 2008 the first residents of the new apartments moved in. The estimated repair bill was in the region of £4m, the nature of the development was selected by a government-appointed panel.

Architecture

The style of Gosford is that of Norman revival, it being one of the few examples of this in the world. It was regarded by Robin Fredden, Secretary of the 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...

 in 1952 as "one of the most original buildings of the first half of the nineteenth century", he further noted that it was "reputed to be the largest pile in Ireland", having some 150 rooms. Thomas Hopper, the architect, also designed Penrhyn Castle

Penrhyn Castle

Penrhyn Castle is a country house in Llandegai, Bangor, Gwynedd, North Wales, in the form of a Norman castle. It was originally a medieval fortified manor house, founded by Ednyfed Fychan. In 1438, Ioan ap Gruffudd was granted a licence to crenellate and he founded the stone castle and added a...

 in Wales, which is in a similar style.

History

The 4th Earl of Gosford was forced to sell the castle's contents in 1921 and, during the Second World War, it was commandeered and used as prisoner-of-war camp. Following the war the Gosfords sold the estate and, eventually, it was acquired by the Forestry Commission

Forestry Commission

The Forestry Commission is a non-ministerial government department responsible for forestry in Great Britain. Its mission is to protect and expand Britain's forests and woodlands and increase their value to society and the environment....

. It was, for periods, occupied as a hotel, barracks and restaurant. It was also used during the Troubles in NI by the British Army. There is also a crypt hidden somewhere in one of the corners of the castle that has recently been sealed.

Jamboree

The park was the site of an Irish

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

 Scout

Scouting

Scouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide youth movement with the stated aim of supporting young people in their physical, mental and spiritual development, that they may play constructive roles in society....

 Jamboree

Jamboree (Scouting)

In Scouting, a jamboree is a large gathering of Scouts who rally at a national or international level.The 1st World Scout Jamboree was held in 1920, and was hosted by the United Kingdom...

 in 1989. "Gosford '89" was attended by over 3,000 scouts from around the world, including contingents from Canada, Japan and America. The Camp Chief was Wilson Lambe, and the co-ordinator was Mark Larmour. There were six subcamps as well as a staff subcamp.

Redevelopment

The government regained possession of the castle and in February 2002. The castle at this time was in a desperate state of disrepair and without urgent intervention was in real danger of becoming irretrievably beyond repair. Following lengthy negotiations, in 2006 a local developer and specialist architects, in partnership with the Northern Ireland Heritage Service, put forward a proposal to restore the castle. The agreed proposal was to turn Gosford Castle into 23 residences. The castle was sold to Gosford Castle Developments for £1,000 in January 2006, although the repair bill was estimated at £4million.

As many sections of the building have a degree of vertical independence, the principal sub-division of the castle was be into vertically-separated dwellings. To achieve this, a team of artisans and craftsmen were recruited to create the individualistic homes of one, two, three and four storeys in height, set within the original fabric of the castle. The development retains the character and historic integrity of the castle by using existing staircases and walls where possible. Attention to detail included the restoration of original colour schemes in the principal rooms, such as the vaulted ceiling of the Inner Hall, picked out in gold; walls that were painted green to represent drapery; and a background of scarlet used to set off the library’s wooden bookcases. Residents began moving in to the apartments in January 2008.

External links

• Gosford Castle, developer's website
• Gosford Castle, Gosford Forest Park website
• Gosford Castle, Queen's University Belfast
• Gosford Leisure
• Gosford Castle Accommodation