Castle Coole townland neo classical Georgian mansion Enniskillen County Fermanagh Northern Ireland wooded estate
This is an illustration from ‘Picturesque views of Scots of Noblemen and Gentlemen of Great Britain and Ireland’ Castle Coole is a townland and a late-18th-century neo-classical mansion situated in Enniskillen, County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. Set in a 1200 acre (5 km²) wooded estate, it is one of three properties owned and managed by the National Trust in County Fermanagh, the others being Florence Court and the Crom Estate. The Castle Coole estate was purchased in 1656 by the Belfast merchant John Corry, grandfather of the first Earl. The estate is named for Lough Coole (from Irish Gaelic cúil, 'seclusion'), a lake surrounded by the Killynure hills. A ráth here and a crannog in Lough Coole itself are reminders that the area has been settled since prehistoric times. Other lakes on the estate include Lough Yoan and Brendrum Lough. Castle Coole was constructed between 1789 and 1798 as the summer retreat of Armar Lowry-Corry, the 1st Earl Belmore. Lord Belmore was the Member of Parliament for County Tyrone in the former Irish Houses of Parliament in Dublin and a wealthy heir to 70,000 acres (283 km²) of land throughout Ireland, acquired by ancestors with a successful background in merchantry. The income generated by the estates allowed Castle Coole to be constructed at a cost of £57,000 in 1798, equivalent to approximately £20 million today. The siting on the comparatively small 1200 acre (5 km²) estate in County Fermanagh was primarily due to its unspoilt rural location and natural beauty amongst ancient oak woodland and small lakes, yet with proximity to the market town of Enniskillen for the domestic labour necessary for a large mansion. Additionally, several smaller family residences had been built on the Castle Coole estate preceding the mansion, including a dwelling of the King James period (later deliberately destroyed by fire) and a Queen Anne house built in 1709.
Size: 3605px × 2595px
Photo credit: © SOTK2011 / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
Model Released: No
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