Fota (statutory spelling Foaty; ga, Fóite) is an island in
Cork Harbour
Cork Harbour () is a natural harbour and river estuary at the mouth of the River Lee in County Cork, Ireland. It is one of several which lay claim to the title of "second largest natural harbour in the world by navigational area" (after Port Ja ...
, Ireland, just north of the larger island of
Great Island
Great Island () is an island in Cork Harbour, at the mouth of the River Lee and close to the city of Cork, Ireland. The largest town on the island is Cobh (called Queenstown from 1849 to 1922). The island's economic and social history has histo ...
. Fota Island is host to Ireland's only wildlife park – as well as the historical Fota House and gardens and golf course owned by the "Fota Island Golf Club and Resort". The island comprises two
townland
A townland ( ga, baile fearainn; Ulster-Scots: ''toonlann'') is a small geographical division of land, historically and currently used in Ireland and in the Western Isles in Scotland, typically covering . The townland system is of Gaelic origi ...
s both called Foaty: one each in the
civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authority ...
es of Clonmel (the western half of Great Island) and
Carrigtohill
Carrigtwohill, officially Carrigtohill (), is a town in County Cork, Ireland with a population of 5,080 (2016). It is 12 kilometres east of Cork city. It is connected to Cork Suburban Rail and is bypassed by the N25 road. Carrigtwohill is on ...
(on the mainland).
Name
Although ''Foaty'' is the spelling fixed in the nineteenth century by the
Ordnance Survey of Ireland
Ordnance Survey Ireland (OSI; ga, Suirbhéireacht Ordanáis Éireann) is the national mapping agency of Ireland. It was established on 4 March 2002 as a body corporate. It is the successor to the former Ordnance Survey of Ireland. It and the ...
, ''Fota'' is now more common. The origin of the name is uncertain.
It may be of
Hiberno-Norse origin, with second element
Old Norse
Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and t ...
"island";
Donnchadh Ó Corráin
Donnchadh Ó Corráin (28 February 1942 – 25 October 2017) was an Irish historian and Professor Emeritus of Medieval History at University College Cork. He earned his BA in history and Irish from that institution, graduating in 1964.
He was a ...
suggests "foot island", from its position at the mouth of the
River Lee
The River Lee (Irish: ''An Laoi'') is a river in Ireland. It rises in the Shehy Mountains on the western border of County Cork and flows eastwards through Cork, where it splits in two for a short distance, creating an island on which Cork's ...
down from
Cork city
Cork ( , from , meaning 'marsh') is the second largest city in Ireland and third largest city by population on the island of Ireland. It is located in the south-west of Ireland, in the province of Munster. Following an extension to the city' ...
; some medieval references have an ''-r-'' in the name.
Ó Corráin is sceptical of proposed Gaelic etymologies, "sod house", "warm sod", and "decayed/withered".
Fota House and Gardens
Fota House
![Fota House - geograph](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/30/Fota_House_-_geograph.org.uk_-_734620.jpg)
Fota House was the former home of the Smith-Barry family (
Earls of Barrymore
Earl of Barrymore was a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created for David Barry, 6th Viscount Buttevant, in 1627/28. Lord Barrymore held the subsidiary titles of Baron Barry (created c. 1261) and Viscount Buttevant (created 1541) in the ...
since 1627), descendants of
Philip de Barry
Philip de Barry (fl. 1183), was a Cambro-Norman warrior from Manorbier in Pembrokeshire who participated in the colonisation of Kingdom of Desmond following the Norman invasion of Ireland. He was the founder of the Barry or De Barry family in Cou ...
. The
de Barry family
The de Barry family is a noble family of Cambro-Norman origins which held extensive land holdings in Wales and Ireland. The founder of the family was a Norman Knight, Odo, who assisted in the Norman Conquest of England during the 11th century. ...
came from Wales as part of the
Norman invasion of Ireland
The Anglo-Norman invasion of Ireland took place during the late 12th century, when Anglo-Normans gradually conquered and acquired large swathes of land from the Irish, over which the kings of England then claimed sovereignty, all allegedly sanc ...
. The family were granted lands at Fota and elsewhere in 1185. The family first resided at
Barryscourt Castle
Barryscourt Castle (''Caisleán Chúirt an Bharraigh'' in Irish) is a castle located in eastern County Cork in southern Ireland, close to the town of Carrigtwohill.
History
The site on which Barryscourt castle now stands has been occupied for ...
,
Carrigtwohill
Carrigtwohill, officially Carrigtohill (), is a town in County Cork, Ireland with a population of 5,080 (2016). It is 12 kilometres east of Cork city. It is connected to Cork Suburban Rail and is bypassed by the N25 road. Carrigtwohill is on ...
, then at
Castlelyons
Castlelyons () is a small village in the east of County Cork, Ireland. It is also a civil parish in the barony of Barrymore. where they held extensive lands. Fota House was originally a hunting lodge and became the family's main residence in the 1820s when the architect,
Sir Richard Morrison
Sir Richard Morrison (1767 – 31 October 1849 / 1844Philip Smith (writer), ''An Introduction to the Architectural Heritage of County Wicklow'' (Dublin: Wordwell Press / Government of Ireland, Department of the Environment, Heritage, and Local Gov ...
(1767–1849) and his son Vetruvius Morrison (1794–1838), created the present
regency
A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...
mansion with over 70 rooms.
The last member of the Smith-Barry family to live in Fota House was
Dorothy Bell
The Honourable Dorothy Elizabeth Bell (14 April 1894 – 16 January 1975) was an Anglo-Irish aristocrat, landowner, Red Cross nurse and a farmer. Bell also served with a number of charitable organisations in Ireland, including the Irish Red Cros ...
(1894–1975), daughter of
Arthur Smith-Barry, 1st Baron Barrymore
Arthur Hugh Smith-Barry, 1st Baron Barrymore, (17 January 1843 – 22 February 1925), was an Anglo-Irish Conservative politician.
Background and education
Smith-Barry was the son of James Hugh Smith Barry, of Marbury, Cheshire, and Fota Islan ...
(1843–1925). She continued to develop and record the plant collections in the gardens and in the
arboretum
An arboretum (plural: arboreta) in a general sense is a botanical collection composed exclusively of trees of a variety of species. Originally mostly created as a section in a larger garden or park for specimens of mostly non-local species, man ...
, which her family had started in the 1840s. On Bell's death in 1975, the estate was sold to
University College, Cork
University College Cork – National University of Ireland, Cork (UCC) ( ga, Coláiste na hOllscoile Corcaigh) is a constituent university of the National University of Ireland, and located in Cork.
The university was founded in 1845 as one of ...
.
During the latter part of the last century, the house fell into some disrepair – culminating in the collapse of a ceiling. This closed the house to the public for some time. It was restored using EU,
Irish government
The Government of Ireland ( ga, Rialtas na hÉireann) is the cabinet that exercises executive authority in Ireland.
The Constitution of Ireland vests executive authority in a government which is headed by the , the head of government. The governm ...
and private funding, prior to reopening in early 2002. In December 2007, the new
Irish Heritage Trust
The Irish Heritage Trust is an architectural and cultural organisation which aims to preserve, maintain and understand notable Irish buildings for the purposes of education, research and recreation. The organisation was founded in 2006 as Ireland ...
took over responsibility for Fota House.
Fota Gardens
![Fota Gardens and Arboretum - geograph](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/de/Fota_Gardens_and_Arboretum_-_geograph.org.uk_-_768149.jpg)
Fota Gardens are in the grounds of Fota House. These consist of a structured
arboretum
An arboretum (plural: arboreta) in a general sense is a botanical collection composed exclusively of trees of a variety of species. Originally mostly created as a section in a larger garden or park for specimens of mostly non-local species, man ...
, walled garden and
terrace
Terrace may refer to:
Landforms and construction
* Fluvial terrace, a natural, flat surface that borders and lies above the floodplain of a stream or river
* Terrace, a street suffix
* Terrace, the portion of a lot between the public sidewalk a ...
s. The gardens include rare and exotic shrubs and trees, along with an extensive
rose garden
A rose garden or rosarium is a garden or park, often open to the public, used to present and grow various types of garden roses, and sometimes rose species. Most often it is a section of a larger garden. Designs vary tremendously and roses m ...
.
The layout and structure of the arboretum and gardens date largely from the tenure of the Smith-Barry family, who recognised the significance of Fota's sheltered location and warm soil — "Fota" is derived from the Irish "Fód te" meaning warm soil. The conditions are appropriate for the growing and cultivation of certain trees and exotic plants.
The development of the arboretum and gardens coincided with the great plant hunting expeditions around the world bringing back specimens from places such as Asia, South America and the Pacific coast of northwest America. Some of these rare plants found their way to Fota within a few years of their discovery.
In the 1840s, John Smith-Barry ensured that trees were well-spaced - enabling them to thrive with displays of seasonal colour. The family also recorded the plant collections throughout the 19th and most of the 20th century and this work of cataloguing, conservation and development continues today.
Many of these plant collections are arranged in association with the
National Botanic Gardens,
Glasnevin
Glasnevin (, also known as ''Glas Naedhe'', meaning "stream of O'Naeidhe" after a local stream and an ancient chieftain) is a neighbourhood of Dublin, Ireland, situated on the River Tolka. While primarily residential, Glasnevin is also home t ...
, Dublin, and other botanic institutions such as the
Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh
The Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (RBGE) is a scientific centre for the study of plants, their diversity and conservation, as well as a popular tourist attraction. Founded in 1670 as a physic garden to grow medicinal plants, today it occupies ...
, Scotland.
In 1996 the Irish state was given control of the arboretum and gardens. They are now administered by the
Office of Public Works
The Office of Public Works (OPW) ( ga, Oifig na nOibreacha Poiblí) (legally the Commissioners of Public Works in Ireland) is a major Irish Government agency, which manages most of the Irish State's property portfolio, including hundreds of ow ...
in conjunction with the Irish Heritage Trust.
Fota Island Resort
Fota Island Resort lies within a 780-
acre
The acre is a unit of land area used in the imperial
Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism.
Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to:
Places
United States
* Imperial, California
* Imperial, Missouri
* Imp ...
estate (originally the Fota House
demesne
A demesne ( ) or domain was all the land retained and managed by a lord of the manor under the feudal system for his own use, occupation, or support. This distinguished it from land sub-enfeoffed by him to others as sub-tenants. The concept or ...
) comprising woodlands and landscaped areas. Its
golf course
A golf course is the grounds on which the sport of golf is played. It consists of a series of holes, each consisting of a tee box, a fairway, the rough and other hazards, and a green with a cylindrical hole in the ground, known as a "cup". Th ...
consisted of three
par 71 championship courses. These courses were named Deerpark (Par 71), Belvelly (Par 72) and Barryscourt (Par 73). Golf was first played in Fota Island in 1886.
In 1993, Fota Island Golf Club was further developed by
Christy O'Connor Junior (Irish Ryder Cup), and
Peter McEvoy
Peter Aloysius McEvoy OBE (born 22 March 1953) was a leading British amateur golfer for many years, and is now a golf course designer, golf administrator, and golf writer.
Early life
McEvoy was born in London, but spent much of his childhood l ...
(two-time
British Amateur Champion). The golf resort has hosted a number of tournaments, including the Irish Club Professional Championship, 2011 PGA Europro "Audi Cork Irish Masters", and the
Irish Open in 2001, 2002 and 2014.
In 2004 the resort was purchased by the ''Killeen Group'' (owners of
Mount Juliet Golf & Spa Hotel
The Mount Juliet Hotel & Golf Course is situated in Mount Juliet Estate Thomastown, County Kilkenny, Ireland.
History
The Mount Juliet Estate was named by the Earl of Carrick after his wife Juliet, and consists of a Georgian manor home set ...
in
Kilkenny
Kilkenny (). is a city in County Kilkenny, Ireland. It is located in the South-East Region and in the province of Leinster. It is built on both banks of the River Nore. The 2016 census gave the total population of Kilkenny as 26,512.
Kilken ...
), who invested to bring facilities in-line with
European Tour
The European Tour (currently known as the DP World Tour for sponsorship reasons), legally the PGA European Tour is the leading men's professional golf tour in Europe. The organisation also operates the European Senior Tour (for players aged fift ...
standards.
In November 2004, Killeen sold the club to the ''Fleming Group''.
In 2006, the Fleming Group completed construction of the 5-star Fota Island Hotel & Spa as well self-catering accommodation.
On 27 September 2013, Fota Island Resort management announced a handover to new owners, the Kang Family Worldwide Group. The Kang family, originally from
Hebei Province
Hebei or , (; alternately Hopeh) is a northern province of China. Hebei is China's sixth most populous province, with over 75 million people. Shijiazhuang is the capital city. The province is 96% Han Chinese, 3% Manchu, 0.8% Hui, an ...
in China, acquired the 500-acre resort from the
National Asset Management Agency
The National Asset Management Agency (NAMA; ga, Gníomhaireacht Náisiúnta um Bhainistíocht Sócmhainní) is a body created by the government of Ireland in late 2009 in response to the Irish financial crisis and the deflation of the Irish pr ...
(NAMA).
Fota Wildlife Park
![A family of giraffes at Fota Wildlife Park (geograph 2885200)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/87/A_family_of_giraffes_at_Fota_Wildlife_Park_%28geograph_2885200%29.jpg)
Opened in July 1983 by the President of Ireland,
Dr Patrick Hillery,
Fota Wildlife Park
Fota Wildlife Park is a wildlife park located on Fota Island, near Carrigtwohill, County Cork, Ireland. Opened in 1983, it is an independently funded, not-for-profit charity that is one of the leading tourism, wildlife and conservation attract ...
has the primary aim of conservation of global wildlife. It is a joint project of the
Zoological Society of Ireland
Zoology ()The pronunciation of zoology as is usually regarded as nonstandard, though it is not uncommon. is the branch of biology that studies the Animal, animal kingdom, including the anatomy, structure, embryology, evolution, Biological clas ...
and
University College, Cork
University College Cork – National University of Ireland, Cork (UCC) ( ga, Coláiste na hOllscoile Corcaigh) is a constituent university of the National University of Ireland, and located in Cork.
The university was founded in 1845 as one of ...
.
Fota Wildlife Park has more than 70 species of exotic wildlife in open surroundings. Animals include
ostrich
Ostriches are large flightless birds of the genus ''Struthio'' in the order Struthioniformes, part of the infra-class Palaeognathae, a diverse group of flightless birds also known as ratites that includes the emus, rheas, and kiwis. There are ...
es, giraffes,
kangaroo
Kangaroos are four marsupials from the family Macropodidae (macropods, meaning "large foot"). In common use the term is used to describe the largest species from this family, the red kangaroo, as well as the antilopine kangaroo, eastern gre ...
s,
zebra
Zebras (, ) (subgenus ''Hippotigris'') are African equines with distinctive black-and-white striped coats. There are three living species: the Grévy's zebra (''Equus grevyi''), plains zebra (''E. quagga''), and the mountain zebra (''E. zeb ...
s and
antelope
The term antelope is used to refer to many species of even-toed ruminant that are indigenous to various regions in Africa and Eurasia.
Antelope comprise a wastebasket taxon defined as any of numerous Old World grazing and browsing hoofed mammals ...
. Most of the animals who inhabit the island are allowed to roam throughout more than of mature grassland, with the exception of the
cheetah
The cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus'') is a large cat native to Africa and central Iran. It is the fastest land animal, estimated to be capable of running at with the fastest reliably recorded speeds being , and as such has evolved specialized ...
s and other predators, which have fenced enclosures.
Ring-tailed lemur
The ring-tailed lemur (''Lemur catta'') is a large strepsirrhine primate and the most recognized lemur due to its long, black and white ringed tail. It belongs to Lemuridae, one of five lemur families, and is the only member of the ''Lemur'' ge ...
s, wallabies and other animals freely roam the park.
Many of the animals at Fota are under threat of
extinction
Extinction is the termination of a kind of organism or of a group of kinds (taxon), usually a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of the species, although the capacity to breed and ...
, and Fota Wildlife Park is involved in breeding programs for these endangered species, as well as being a breeding source for other
zoo
A zoo (short for zoological garden; also called an animal park or menagerie) is a facility in which animals are kept within enclosures for public exhibition and often bred for Conservation biology, conservation purposes.
The term ''zoological g ...
s around the world. An Asian sanctuary opened between in 2015, and includes enclosures for tigers and other animals. In 2017 the park was the eleventh most popular paid attraction in Ireland, with 455,559 visitors that year.
Transport
By rail, the island is served by
Fota railway station
Fota railway station serves Fota Island in County Cork.
It is a station on the Cork to Cobh commuter service. Travel to Glounthaune station to transfer to Midleton.
Description
The halt is unstaffed. There are two platforms, with level access ...
, which opened on 1 July 1865.
By road, Fota lies just south of the
N25 road
The N25 road is a national primary road in Ireland, forming the route from Cork to Rosslare Europort via Waterford City. The road is part of the E30 European route and a short section is also part of the E01 European route. It forms part of t ...
from
Cork
Cork or CORK may refer to:
Materials
* Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product
** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container
***Wine cork
Places Ireland
* Cork (city)
** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...
to
Rosslare. It is directly accessible via
Cobh
Cobh ( ,), known from 1849 until 1920 as Queenstown, is a seaport town on the south coast of County Cork, Ireland. With a population of around 13,000 inhabitants, Cobh is on the south side of Great Island in Cork Harbour and home to Ireland's ...
and
Carrigtwohill
Carrigtwohill, officially Carrigtohill (), is a town in County Cork, Ireland with a population of 5,080 (2016). It is 12 kilometres east of Cork city. It is connected to Cork Suburban Rail and is bypassed by the N25 road. Carrigtwohill is on ...
on the
R624
The R624 road is a regional road in Ireland which runs from the south-east of the N25 in Tullagreen, County Cork to Cobh town centre. It runs to several of County Cork's tourist attractions, including Fota Wildlife Park.
An upgrade had been ...
regional road - which runs from Tullagreen (N25 Southside Carrigtwohill-Cobh interchange) to
Cobh
Cobh ( ,), known from 1849 until 1920 as Queenstown, is a seaport town on the south coast of County Cork, Ireland. With a population of around 13,000 inhabitants, Cobh is on the south side of Great Island in Cork Harbour and home to Ireland's ...
town Center.
References
External links
Fota House and GardensFota Island ResortFota Wildlife Park
{{authority control
Zoos in the Republic of Ireland
Islands of County Cork
Tourist attractions in County Cork
Parks in County Cork
Gardens in County Cork
Irish Open (golf) venues