The Steward's Lodge is a house which was originally part of the Farmleigh estate, alongside the

Phoenix Park The Phoenix Park () is a large urban park in Dublin, Ireland, lying west of the city centre, north of the River Liffey. Its perimeter wall encloses of recreational space. It includes large areas of grassland and tree-lined avenues, and since ...

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

. It is sometimes used as a residence by the

Taoiseach The Taoiseach (, ) is the head of government or prime minister of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The office is appointed by the President of Ireland upon nomination by Dáil Éireann (the lower house of the Oireachtas, Ireland's national legisl ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

History

Origins

The Steward's Lodge was originally built in the grounds of Farmleigh house – an 18th-century estate which was formerly owned by members of the

Guinness family The Guinness family is an extensive Irish family known for its achievements in brewing, banking, politics, and religious ministry. The brewing branch is particularly well known among the general public for producing the dry stout beer Guinnes ...

. Originally accessible within the grounds of the estate, the lodge was subsequently separated from Farmleigh during refurbishment works.

Taoiseach's residence

There is no

official residence An official is someone who holds an office (function or mandate, regardless of whether it carries an actual working space with it) in an organization or government and participates in the exercise of authority (either their own or that of th ...

of the

, with each Taoiseach residing in either their own homes, or in an apartment in Dublin. In the 1970s, plans were made to turn the former

Apostolic Nunciature An apostolic nunciature is a top-level diplomatic mission of the Holy See that is equivalent to an embassy. However, it neither issues visas nor has consul (representative), consulates. The head of the apostolic nunciature is called a ''nuncio ...

(formerly the Under Secretary's Lodge) in the Phoenix Park into an official residence. However, the plans fell through and the Georgian building was subsequently demolished. In 2006, it was announced by the

Office of Public Works The Office of Public Works (OPW) (; legally the Commissioners of Public Works in Ireland) is a major Government of Ireland, Irish Government agency, which manages most of the Irish State's property portfolio, including hundreds of owned and ren ...

that the Steward's Lodge had been renovated, at a cost of nearly €600,000. It was speculated that the house would become the official private residence of the Taoiseach after the 2007 general election, and any official engagements would be carried out in the nearby Farmleigh or Government Buildings. There was political sensitivity at government level about the project, with some concerned that it could be depicted as a lavish "perk" for the Taoiseach. In 2005, a spokeswoman for

Bertie Ahern Bartholomew Patrick "Bertie" Ahern (born 12 September 1951) is an Irish former Fianna Fáil politician who served as Taoiseach from 1997 to 2008, and as Leader of Fianna Fáil from 1994 to 2008. A Teachta Dála (TD) from 1977 to 2011, he served ...

stated he had no interest in using it, and he remained resident in his private home in Drumcondra in Dublin. In 2008, it was reported that Brian Cowen might use it as his official residence. Media reports suggest that Garda concerns for the Taoiseach's security precluded him from continuing to reside in his own Dublin home in the city centre. Cowen did not formally reside in the Steward's Lodge, preferring to return to his family home in

County Offaly County Offaly (; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. It is named after the Ancient Ireland, ancient Kingdom of Uí ...

, but he did use it "from time to time". In 2011, it was reported that the then Taoiseach, Enda Kenny, would make use of the residence, however he used it very rarely. Former Taoiseach Leo Varadkar resided in his private apartment in Castleknock, but used the Lodge for occasional parties at his own expense. During the COVID-19 pandemic in the Republic of Ireland it was used as a residence by Varadkar due to its teleconferencing facilities. In July 2024, it was reported that government security advisors were insisting that the Taoiseach and his family move into Steward's Lodge for their security, following a number of anti-immigration disturbances and an increase in the number of attacks on politicians internationally.

References

External links

* {{Irish governmental buildings Buildings and structures in Dublin (city) Department of the Taoiseach Prime ministerial residences Official residences in the Republic of Ireland