Classiebawn Castle is a country house built for The 3rd Viscount Palmerston (1784–1865) on what was formerly a estate on the

Mullaghmore Peninsula The Mullaghmore Peninsula (), also referred to as Mullaghmore Head, is a small peninsula in the north of County Sligo, Ireland. The coastal village of Mullaghmore is the peninsula's sole settlement. The village has 136 year-round residents accord ...

near the village of

Cliffoney Cliffoney, officially Cliffony (), is a village in north County Sligo, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It lies on the N15 road (Ireland), N15 national route at its junction with the R279 road (Ireland), R279. It is only three kilometres away from M ...

County Sligo County Sligo ( , gle, Contae Shligigh) is a county in Ireland. It is located in the Border Region and is part of the province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the an ...

, in the

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 Counties of Ireland, counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern ...

. The current castle was largely built in the late 19th century.

Design

It was designed in the

Baronial Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knigh ...

style by

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...

architect

James Rawson Carroll James Rawson Carroll (1830 – November 30, 1911) was an Irish architect who was involved in many projects throughout Ireland during the Victorian Era. He was a founding partner of the Carroll & Batchelor architectural firm in 1892, alongside ...

, and is constructed from a yellow-brown sandstone brought by sea from

County Donegal County Donegal ( ; ga, Contae Dhún na nGall) is a county of Ireland in the province of Ulster and in the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the town of Donegal in the south of the county. It has also been known as County Tyrconn ...

. It comprises a gabled range with a central tower topped by a conical roofed turret. The land, which once belonged to the

O'Connor Sligo Ó Conchobhair Sligigh (anglicised O'Conor Sligo), Gaelic- Irish family and Chief of the Name. The Ó Conchobhair Sligigh were a branch of the Ó Conchobhair Kings of Connacht. They were descended from Brian Luighnech Ua Conchobhair (k.1181), a ...

family, was confiscated by the

English Parliament The Parliament of England was the legislature of the Kingdom of England from the 13th century until 1707 when it was replaced by the Parliament of Great Britain. Parliament evolved from the great council of bishops and peers that advised t ...

to compensate the people who put down an Irish rebellion. Around of land on which Classiebawn now stands was granted to Sir John Temple (1600–1677),

Master of the Rolls in Ireland The Master of the Rolls in Ireland was a senior judicial office in the Irish Chancery under English and British rule, and was equivalent to the Master of the Rolls in the English Chancery. Originally called the Keeper of the Rolls, he was respons ...

. The property passed down to The 3rd Viscount Palmerston, a statesman who served as both

British Prime Minister The prime minister of the United Kingdom is the head of government of the United Kingdom. The prime minister advises the sovereign on the exercise of much of the royal prerogative, chairs the Cabinet and selects its ministers. As moder ...

and

British Foreign Secretary The secretary of state for foreign, Commonwealth and development affairs, known as the foreign secretary, is a minister of the Crown of the Government of the United Kingdom and head of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. Seen ...

. It was this Lord Palmerston who commissioned the building of the current Classiebawn Castle and the harbour at Mullaghmore. The house was not complete upon his death in 1865 but was completed in 1874 by his stepson and successor, The Rt. Hon. William Cowper-Temple, P.C., M.P. (later created The 1st Baron Mount Temple). The latter died childless in 1888 and the estate passed to his nephew, The Hon. Evelyn Ashley, the second surviving son of The 7th Earl of Shaftesbury. Evelyn Ashley spent some time there each year and on his death in 1907 was succeeded by his only son,

Wilfrid Ashley Colonel (British Army), Colonel Wilfrid William Ashley, 1st Baron Mount Temple, His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, PC (13 September 1867 – 3 July 1939) was a British people, British soldier and Conservative Party (UK), Conservative p ...

(later created Baron Mount Temple in a new creation). He also spent his summers at the castle with his daughters Edwina, the future

Countess Mountbatten Patricia Edwina Victoria Knatchbull, 2nd Countess Mountbatten of Burma, Lady Brabourne, (née Mountbatten; 14 February 1924 – 13 June 2017) was a British peeress and a third cousin of Queen Elizabeth II. She was the elder daughter of Admiral ...

, and Mary (1906–1986), who was Baroness Delamere from 1944 until 1955 as the second wife (of three) of The 4th Baron Delamere.

Mountbatten years

In 1916, the house was cleared and remained empty until 1950. It was inherited in July 1939 by

Edwina Mountbatten Edwina Cynthia Annette Mountbatten, Countess Mountbatten of Burma, (''née'' Ashley; 28 November 1901 – 21 February 1960), was an English heiress, socialite, relief worker and the last vicereine of India as the wife of (the then) Rear Admiral ...

, who, with her husband Admiral of the Fleet Louis Mountbatten, made several improvements, installing electricity and a mains water supply. After his wife's death in February 1960, Mountbatten, the last

Viceroy of India The Governor-General of India (1773–1950, from 1858 to 1947 the Viceroy and Governor-General of India, commonly shortened to Viceroy of India) was the representative of the monarch of the United Kingdom and after Indian independence in 19 ...

, spent his summers there until his death when his boat was blown up off the coast of Mullaghmore by the

IRA Ira or IRA may refer to: *Ira (name), a Hebrew, Sanskrit, Russian or Finnish language personal name *Ira (surname), a rare Estonian and some other language family name *Iran, UNDP code IRA Law *Indian Reorganization Act of 1934, US, on status of ...

in August 1979. The castle and surrounding lands are now owned by the estate of Hugh Tunney (1928–2011), a deceased businessman from

Trillick Trillick () is a small village in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It had a population of 2,439 people in the 2011 Census. Trillick is in the Civil Parish of Kilskeery, Barony of Omagh East. It is located within the Diocese of Clogher (both R ...

County Tyrone County Tyrone (; ) is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the thirty-two traditional counties of Ireland. It is no longer used as an administrative division for local government but retai ...

, who bought the castle and of the surrounding estate in 1991 after having leased it for many years.

References

External links

Classiebawn castle by Lord Mountbatten
* Liam Collins:

', Independent.ie, 19 May 2016. {{Castles in Connacht Buildings and structures in County Sligo History of County Sligo Houses completed in 1874 Mountbatten family