Turvey, Donabate, County Dublin – demolished 

Bence-Jones, Mark. A Guide to Irish Country Houses (originally published as Burke’s Guide to Country Houses volume 1 Ireland by Burke’s Peerage Ltd. 1978); Revised edition 1988 Constable and Company Ltd, London.

p. 278. “(Barnewall, Kingsland, V/DEP; and Trimlestown, B/PB) A late C17 house of two storeys…The seat of that branch of the Barnewall family who held the now dormant or extinct Viscountancy of Kingsland. Towards the end of C18, when there was a false rumour of the death of the bachelor 5^th Viscount Kingsland, who lived abroad, a Dublin tavern waiter named Matthew Barnewall, believing himself to be the heir, took possession of Turvey with a party of his friends and dispensed “rude hospitality: there to the local populace, cutting down trees and lighting bonfires. After a short while he was evicted and committed to prison for contempt; but in 1814, thanks to the researches of a friendly lawyer, he was actually recognized as 6^th Viscount. He did not, however, succeed in claiming Turvey or any of the other estates which formerly went with the title, since they had been bequeathed by 5^th Viscount, who died 1800, to his kinsman, 13^th Lord Trimlestown.” 

supplement 

“The house, which incorporated an earlier tower house in the late C17 building, was demolished 1987” 

Listed in Vanishing Country Houses of Ireland by The Knight of Glin, David J. Griffin and Nicholas K. Robinson, published by The Irish Architectural Archive and The Irish Georgian Society, 1988.

p. 67. “A very important house of many periods. Basically a 17C house incorporating an earlier castle or tower house. The entrance front seems to have been on the east side. In the early 18C a wing was added at right angles to this and the entrance was changed to the south. This front had a superb doorcase (similar to that at 33 Molesworth Street, now removed) wiht Ionic columns supporting a segmental pediment with urns and a coat of arms. The top floor then consisted of three gables with a Diocletian window in each. The house was again altered in the late 18C when the space between the gables was filled in and the house was re-roofed. Very interesting interior with rooms of all periods. Late 18C hall and staircase, with mid18C library. One ground floor room had a ceiling with rococo decoration in papier mache. Seat of the Barnewall family. Demolished 1987.“

featured in Georgian Mansions in Ireland with some account of the evolution of Georgian Architecture and Decoration by Thomas U. Sadleir and Page L. Dickinson. Dublin University Press, 1915. 

p. 87. According to tradition, a subterranean passage ran from the cellars to the sea; but, except for a section of some thirty feet, this is now closed. This portion is lined wiht shells of various sorts, arranged in geometric patterns, bu tno record exists as to when this work was done, or by whom.  

The lands of Turvey belonged at an early period to the Butler family, and in the third year of Queen Mary the seneschalship of this Manor was granted by Thomas, Earl of Ormond, to Christopher Barnewall, a distinguished lawyer, who served as High Sheriff of County Dublin in 1560. He built the shell of the present mansion at Turvey, and died here. His son and grandson inherited successively. His son and grandson inherited successively. The latter was Sir Nicholas Barnewall, who, in reward for his serviced and those of his eldest son Patrick, Colonel of a troop of horse during the Civil War in England, was created by Charles I, 29^th June 1646, Viscount Barnewall of Kingsland, and Baron of Turvey. In June 1654, he was imprisoned for alleged complicity in a plot against the Protector, but his estates, which were forfeited, were subsequently restored to him by Charles II. Lord Kingsland, as he is usually called, died at Turvey on 20^th Aug 1663 at the age of 91… 

p. 87. Nicholas [3^rd Viscount who] acquired considerable landed estate by his marriage with Frances, daugther of Sir George Hamilton, step-daughter of Richard, Duke of Tyrconnell, whose mother was the only sister of Sarah, Duchess of Marlborough. 

p. 88. He served in Lord Limerick’s Dragoons in the Jacobite army, and was in consequence attained and declared an outlaw, but being comprehended within the terms of the Treaty of Limerick this attainder was reverted. 

p. 88. Henry, 4^th Viscount Kingsland, inherited Turvey on his father’s death, 14^th June 1725. According to the then existing law he was debarred by his religion from taking his seat in the House of Lords. He was Grand Master of the Freemasons in Ireland, 1733-35. On May 1735 he married Honora, eldest daughter of Peter Daly of Queensbury, Co Galway. 

…Dying without issue on 11^th March 1774, Lord Kingsland was succeeded by his nephew George Barnewall, who, having conformed to the Established Church, was allowed his place in the House of Peers as Fifth Viscount on 18^th January 1787. 

It does not seem clear whether this nobleman ever lived at Turvey, which, at the time he succeeded to the title and for several years subsequently, was occupied by Robert Birch, described as “a sort of Merchant banker,” [see The Irish Parliament in 1775] who sat in the Irish Parliament as MP for Belturbet. …About 1785 Birch became bankrupt and disappears. We may assume that he was only a tenant here, for on his lordship’s death, 5^th April 1800, Turvey and other lands passed to his cousin Nicholas, 14^th Baron Trimleston (eldest son of the Hon Richard Barnewall, by Frances, daughter of Nicholas, 3^rd Viscount Kingsland). He accordingly went to reside at Turvey, where he died on 16^th april 1813. Since his death the house has not been occupied by owners, though the estae has continued to devolved with the title of Trimleston.” 

Paddy Rossmore. Photographs. Edited by Robert O’Byrne. The Lilliput Press, Dublin 7, 2019. 

“The demolition of Turvey in 1987 took place under such questionable circumstances that just over a decade later it was discussed at the Flood (later Mahon) Tribunal established to investigate corruption in planning decisions and land rezoning. …built by Sir Patrick Barnewall, seemingly using stone from a former convent in the area. The building subsequently underwent modification and expansion in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries while the Barnewalls were created Viscounts Barnewall of Kingsland. Following the death in a French lunatic asylum of the childless fifth viscount in 1800, the title was claimed by Matthew Barnewall, a Dublin barrow boy who, rather like the fictional Tess Durbyfield, believed himself to come from noble stock. With a group of supporters he occupied Turvey and embarked on a legal battle to retain his supposed inheritance: opposing him waas Nicholas Barnewall, fourteenth Baron Trimleston. In 1814 the House of Lords finally confirmed Matthew Barnewall’s right to the viscountcy but this did not come with any property, and he would die penniless in London twenty years later. Turvey passed to the Trimlestons and remained with them until 1918 when financially obliged to sell the place: its next owners likewise suffered from penury and had to dispose of the property half a century later. 

Paddy’s photograph captures the house shortly before this event, and shows it still in good condition. Over the next twenty years Turvey was allowed to fall into ruin. Even so, it is astonishing that prior to the building’s demolition, the local authority’s senior architect could declare the place to have “no great architectural merit apart from its antiquity.” A great loss.” 

featured in Georgian Mansions in Ireland with some account of the evolution af Georgian Architecture and Decoration by Thomas U. Sadleir and Page L. Dickinson. Dublin University Press, 1915. 

[p. 87] The lands of Turvey belonged at an early period to the Butler family, and in the third year of Queen Mary, the seneschalship of this Manor was granted by Thomas, Earl of Ormond, to Sir Christopher Barnewall, a distinguished lawyer, who served as High Sheriff  of county Dublin in 1560. He built the shell of the present mansion of Turvey, and died there of a hot, burning ague in 1575. His son and grandson inherited successively. The latter was Sir Nicholas Barnewall, who, in reward for his services and those of his eldest son Patrick, Col of a troop of Horse during the civil War in England, was created by Charles I 1646, Viscount Barnewall of Kingsland, and Baron of Turvey. In June 1654, he was imprisoned for alleged complicity in a plot against the Protector, but his estates, which were then forfeited, were subsequently restored to him by Charles II. Lord Kingsland died at Turvey on 20 Aug 1663, at the age of 91, 

His third but eldest surviving son Henry, second Viscount, succeeded to the estates, and in 1685 had a grant under the Commission of Grace of the Lordship of Turvey, alias Much Turvey, Little Turvey and Staffordstown, with Butler’s Meadows and the Mill, 439 acres, together with other lands in County Dublin, and estensive estates in Meath, Longford and Roscommon. 

“On his deat 1688, the title devolved on his eldest son, Nicholas, who acquired considerable landed estate by his marriage with Frances, daughter of Sir George Hamilton, step-daughter of Richard, Duke of Tyrconnell, whose mother was the only sister of Sarah, Duchess of Marlborough. He served in Lord Limerick’s Dragoons in the Jacobite Army, and was in consequence attainted and declared an outlaw; but being comprehended within the terms of the Treaty of Limerick, his attainder was reversed. 

p. 88. “Henry, fourth Viscount Kingsland, inherited Turvey on his father’s death, 1725. According to the then existing law he was debarred by his religion from taking his seat in the House of Lords. He was Grand Master of the Freemasons in Ireland 1733-35. IN 1735 he married Honora, eldest daughter of Peter Daly of Quansbury, Co Galway. 

…Dying without issue in 1774, Lord Kingsland was succeeded by his nephew George Barnewall, who, having conformed to the established church, was allowed his place in the House of Peers as 5^th Viscount in 1787. It does not seem clear whether this nobleman ever lived at Turvey, which, at the time he succeeded and several years subsequently, was occupied by Robert Birch, described as a sort of Merchant Banker who sat in the Irish Parliament as MP for Belturbet…about 1785 Birch became a bankrupt and disappears. We may assume that he was only a tenant here, for on his lordship’s death, 1800, turvey and other lands passed to his cousin Nicholas, 14^th Baron Triimleston (eldest son of the Hon. Richard Barnewall, by Frances, daughter of Nicholas, third Viscount Kingsland). He accordingly went to reside at Turvey, where he died 1813. Since his death the house has not been occupied by its owners…” 

THE BARONS TRIMLESTOWN OWNED 3,025 ACRES OF LAND IN COUNTY MEATH 

 
This family, whose surname was anciently written De Barneval and Barnewall, deduces its lineage from remote antiquity, and claims, among its earliest progenitors, personages of the most eminent renown. 
 
It is the parent stock whence the noble houses of BARNEWALL and TRIMLESTOWN branched. 
 
The name of its patriarch is to be found, with the other companions in arms of WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR, in the roll of Battle Abbey. 
 
In Ireland, the Barnewalls came under the denomination of “Strongbowians“, having established themselves there in 1172, under the banner of Richard de Clare, 2nd Earl of Pembroke, commonly known as Strongbow. 
 
SIR MICHAEL DE BERNEVAL, Knight, the first settler, joined the English expedition, with three armed ships, and effected a descent upon Berehaven, County Cork, previous to the landing of his chief, the Earl of Pembroke, in the province of Leinster. 
 
Sir Michael is mentioned in the records at the Tower of London as one of the leading captains in the enterprise; and in the reigns of HENRY II and RICHARD I, he was lord, by tenure, of Berehaven and Bantry. 
 
From this gallant and successful soldier we pass to 
 
SIR ULPHRAM DE BERNEVAL, Knight, the tenth in descent, first possessor of Crickstown Castle and estate, and the founder of what was termed the “Crickstown Branch” of the family. 
 
The great-grandson of this Sir Ulphram, 
 
NICHOLAS DE BERNEVALL (fourth of the same Christian name), married a daughter of the Lord Furnivall, and left three sons, 

Christopher (Sir), father of 1st Baron Trimlestown; 
John, ancestor of the Barons Kingsland; 
Barnaby (Sir), an eminent lawyer. 

The eldest son, 
 
SIR CHRISTOPHER BERNEVALL (1370-1446), as the name began to be spelt, succeeded to the patrimonial estate of Crickstown; and was, in 1445 and 1446, Vice-Treasurer of Ireland and Lord Chief Justice of Ireland. 
 
He married Matilda, daughter of Sir _____ Drake, of Drakerath, and had two sons, of whom the younger, 
 
SIR ROBERT BARNEWALL, Knight, was elevated to the peerage by EDWARD IV, in 1461, as BARON TRIMLESTOWN, of Trimlestown, County Meath. 
 
“The next patent of creation that occurs” said the historian, William Lynch, in his work on Feudal Dignities, “is one of considerable importance, as being the first grant (in Ireland) of any description of peerage conveying, by express words, the dignity of a baron of parliament.” 

The patent was dated in the second year of EDWARD IV’s reign, and thereby the King ordained and constituted Sir Robert Barnewall, Knight, for his good services to His Majesty’s father when in Ireland, as essendum unum baronum parliamenti nostri infra terram nostram prædictam, to hold to him and the heirs male of his body lawfully begotten, and to be called by the name of Domini et Baronis de Trymleteston, etc; 

And also that the said Sir Robert should be one of his, the King’s, Council within the said land during his life, with the fee of £10 yearly, payable out of the fee-farm of Salmon Leap and Chapelizod etc. 
 
His lordship wedded firstly, Elizabeth Broune, by whom he acquired a considerable estate, and had two sons, 

CHRISTOPHER (Sir), his heir; 

Thomas. 

He espoused secondly, Anne, daughter of Sir Thomas Plunkett, but had no other issue. 
 
His lordship was succeeded at his decease in 1470 by his elder son, 
 
CHRISTOPHER, 2nd Baron; who obtained a pardon for his participation in the treason of Lambert Simnel. 
 
His lordship married Elizabeth, daughter of Sir Thomas Plunkett, of Rathmore, and had issue, 

JOHN, his heir; 

Robert; 

Ismay; 

a daughter; 

Alison. 

His lordship died ca 1513, and was succeeded by his eldest son, 
 
JOHN, 3rd Baron, an eminent judge and politician, who wedded no less than four times, and was succeeded at his decease, in 1538, by the only son of his first wife, Janet, daughter of John Bellew, of Bellewstown, 
 
PATRICK, 4th Baron, who espoused Catherine, daughter of Richard Taylor, of Swords, County Dublin, and widow of Richard Delahyde, Recorder of Drogheda. 
 
His lordship died in 1562, and was succeeded by his eldest son, 
 
ROBERT, 5th Baron, who married Anne, only daughter of Alderman Richard Fyan, Mayor of Dublin; but dying issueless, in 1573, the barony devolved upon his brother, 
 
PETER, 6th Baron. This nobleman dying in 1598, was succeeded by his only son, by Catherine, daughter of the Hon Sir Christopher Nugent, and granddaughter of Richard, 11th Baron Delvin, 
 
ROBERT, 7th Baron (c1574-1639), who wedded Genet, daughter of Thomas Talbot, of Dardistown, County Meath, by whom he had issue, 

Christopher, father of MATTHIAS, 8th Baron; 
John; 
Patrick; 
Richard; 
Matthew; 
Mary; Catherine; Ismay. 

His lordship had a memorable dispute with the Lord Dunsany regarding precedency, which was decided in favour of Lord Trimlestown by the Privy Council in 1634. 
 
He was succeeded by his grandson, 
 
MATTHIAS, 8th Baron (1614-67), eldest son of the Hon Christopher Barnewall, by Elizabeth, daughter of Sir Edward FitzGerald, Knight. 
 
This nobleman serving against the usurper CROMWELL was excepted from pardon for life, and had his estates sequestered; but surviving the season of rebellion and rapacity, he regained a considerable portion of his lands. 
 
His lordship espoused, in 1641, Jane, daughter of Nicholas, 1st Viscount Netterville, and was succeeded by his only surviving son, 
 
ROBERT, 9th Baron, who married Margaret, daughter of Sir John Dungan Bt, and niece of William, Earl of Limerick, by whom he had two sons and five daughters, 

MATTHIAS, 10th Baron; 
JOHN, 11th Baron; 
Jane; Bridget; Dymna; Catharine; Mary. 

His lordship sat in JAMES II’s parliament in 1689, and dying in June that year, was succeeded by his eldest son, 
 
MATTHIAS, 10th Baron, who had a commission in the 1st Troop of King James’s guards under the Duke of Berwick, and fell in action against the Germans in 1692, when the barony devolved upon his brother, 
 
JOHN, 11th Baron (1672-1746). The 10th Baron having been attainted by WILLIAM III, that monarch granted the family estates to Henry Sydney, 1st Earl of Romney; but those estates were subsequently recovered at law, and were enjoyed by the house of Trimlestown. 
 
His lordship wedded Mary, only daughter of Sir John Barnewall, Knight, second son of Sir Patrick Barnewall Bt, of Crickstown, by whom he six sons and four daughters, 

ROBERT, his heir; 
John; 
Richard; 
Thomas; 
James; 
Anthony; 
Thomasine; Margaret; Bridget; Catharine. 

His lordship was succeeded by his eldest son, 
 
ROBERT, 12th Baron (c1704-79); who lived for many years in France, and pursued the study of medicine with great success. 
 
After his return to Ireland he resided at Trimlestown, and gratuitously and freely communicated his advice to all who applied for it. 
 
His lordship was succeeded at his decease by his eldest surviving son, 
 
THOMAS, 13th Baron, a Knight of Malta, who conformed to the established church, and had a confirmation of the dignity (which, although adopted, was unacknowledged from the time of CROMWELL), in 1795. 
 
His lordship dying unmarried, the title reverted to his cousin, 
 
NICHOLAS, 14th Baron (1726-1813), who espoused firstly, in 1768, Martha Henrietta, only daughter of Monsieur Joseph D’Aquin, president of the parliament of Toulouse, by whom he had issue, 

JOHN THOMAS, his heir; 
Rosalia. 

He married secondly, in 1797, Alicia, second daughter of Major-General Charles Eustace. 
 
His lordship was succeeded by his son, 
 
JOHN THOMAS, 15th Baron (1773-1839), who wedded, in 1794, Maria Theresa, daughter of Richard Kirwan, of Gregg, County Galway, and had issue, 

THOMAS; 
Martha Henrietta. 

His lordship was succeeded by his son, 
 
THOMAS, 16th Baron (1796-1879), who espoused, in 1836, Margaret Randalina, eldest daughter of Philip Roche, of Donore, County Kildare, and had issue, 

THOMAS, died in infancy; 
Anna Maria Louisa. 

His lordship died without surviving male issue, when the barony became dormant. 
 
In 1891, however, the peerage was was claimed by 
 
CHRISTOPHER PATRICK MARY, de jure 17th Baron (1846-91), a descendant of the Hon Patrick Barnewall, second son of the 7th Baron. 
 
The 17th Baron died before he had fully established his claim; but in 1893, his younger brother, 
 
CHARLES ALOYSIUS, 18th Baron (1861-1937), was confirmed in the title by the Committee for Privileges of the House of Lords. 
 
His lordship married, in 1889, Margaret Theresa, daughter of Richard John Stephens, of Brisbane, Australia, and had issue, 

Reginald Nicholas Francis (1897-1918), killed in action; 
CHARLES ALOYSIUS, of whom presently; 
Ivy Esmay; Marcella Hilda Charlotte; Letitia Anne Margaret; Geraldine Christia Marjory. 

He wedded secondly, in 1907, Mabel Florence, daughter of William Robert Shuff, of Torquay, Devon; and thirdly, in 1930, Josephine Francesca, fourth but second surviving daughter of the Rt Hon Sir Christopher John Nixon Bt, of Roebuck Grove, Milltown, County Dublin. 

 
His lordship was succeeded by his second son, 

 
CHARLES ALOYSIUS, 19th Baron (1899-1990), who espoused, in 1926, Muriel, only child of Edward Oskar Schneider, of Mansfield Lodge, Manchester, and had issue, 

ANTHONY EDWARD, 20th Baron; 
RAYMOND CHARLES, 21st Baron; 
Diane. 

He married secondly, in 1952, Freda Kathleen, daughter of Alfred Allen Atkins, of Ross-on-Wye, Herefordshire. 

 
His lordship was succeeded by his eldest son, 

 
ANTHONY EDWARD, 20th Baron (1928-97), who wedded firstly, in 1963, Lorna Margaret Marion, daughter of Charles Douglas Ramsay; and secondly, in 1977, Mary Wonderly, eldest daughter of Judge Thomas Francis McAllister, of Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA. 

 
His lordship died without issue, when the honours devolved upon his brother, 

 
RAYMOND CHARLES, 21st Baron, born in 1930, of Chiddingfold, Surrey. 

 
There is no obvious heir presumptive to the Barony of Trimlestown. 

 
An heir presumptive may be found amongst the descendants, if any, of Thomas Barnewall, of Bloomsbury, London, a cousin of the 17th and 18th Barons Trimlestown. 

TURVEY HOUSE, Donabate, County Dublin, was a late 17th century mansion comprising two storeys below a gabled attic storey. 

 
The upper storey has three distinctive lunette windows added between 1725-50. 

 
The house has nine bays and lofty, narrow windows grouped in threes. 

 
This was once the seat of the extinct Viscounts Barnewall (of Kingsland); though subsequently it passed to a kinsman, the 13th Baron Trimlestown. 

***** 

TRIMLESTOWN CASTLE, Kildalkey, County Meath, is a medieval tower-house with an 18th century house attached. 

 
In the 19th century, the castle was adorned with ornamental towers, an embattled parapet, and other marks of the style which prevailed in the latter part of the 16th century. 

Shortly afterwards, however, the family abandoned the castle and it became ruinous.