Blayney Castle, (also known as Hope castle), Co Monaghan 

Mark Bence-Jones. 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.

(Blayney, B/DPE; Hope.LG1937; Pelham-Clinton-Hope, Newcastle, D/PB) A three storey five bay Georgian block, built near the site of a C17 “Plantation Castle”; refaced and embellished during the Victorian period. Entablatures over windows; scrolled cresting on roof parapet; segmental pediment with arms on garden front. Entrance front with central curved bow, to which a projecting porch, and a canopy of ornamental cast iron work and glass, was added. Top storey treated as attic, above cornice. Lower service wing, and single-storey four bay C19 addition with roof on bracket cornice prolonging garden front. Centre first floor window of garden treated like a niche, sheltering a statue. Sold 1853 by 12^th and last Lord Blayney to Henry Hope, of Deepdene, Surrey, son of Thomas HOpe, the great exponent of neo-Classicism and a member of the Scottish-Dutch banking family, famous for its ownership of the Hope Diamond. Passed by descent to Lord Henry Francis Hope Pelham-Clinton-Hope, afterwards 8^th Duke of Newcastle. Now a convent.” 

https://archiseek.com/2015/1600s-blayney-castle-castleblayney-co-monaghan

1600s – Blayney Castle, Castleblayney, Co. Monaghan 

The area of Muckno and Ballynalurgan was granted to Sir Edward Blayney under the Plantation of Ulster in 1607 and 1611. Blayney was a Welsh soldier, and built a stone defensive castle, Blayney Castle, consisting of a fortified house and bawn.  

The town of Castleblayney has grown up round that original site. Blayney was created the first Baron Blaney in 1621 and the Blayneys would continue to occupy the estate until the 1850s. The castle was derelict by the 1790s, by which time the family had moved into a large Georgian house nearby. No trace remains today. 

https://archiseek.com/2009/1799-hope-castle-castleblayney-co-monaghan

1799 – Hope Castle, Castleblayney, Co. Monaghan 

Architect: Robert Woodgate 

Known also as Blayney Castle after the plantation castle nearby (from which the town gets its name), Hope Castle has had many owners and uses over the years. Originally a three storey 5 bay Georgian block, it was sold in 1853 by the twelfth and last Lord Blaney to the Hope family after whom the famous Hope Diamond is name.  

Henry Hope had the house extended, and the facade of the house received many embellishments including scrolled cresting on the roof parapets and at one stage an ornamental cast iron and glass porch canopy. After the Hopes, it was used as a military base and later as a convent. 

The building has suffered greatly during its lifetime – after being an convent, it remained empty for many years and was taken over the the local County Council who demolished the 19th century additions to the garden and main fronts and renovated the building. Its most interesting internal feature – a Soanesque toplit upper stair landing was destroyed during the building’s phase of dereliction. It has since been badly damaged by fire and is currently boarded up and derelict. The estate still has a good stableyard and cast-iron gateway with matching gatehouses.  

No Hope

The sad remains of Hope Castle, County Monaghan. Built on the edge of Castleblayney, the house – like the town – owes its existence to the Blayney family who settled here at the start of the 17th century. Initially they lived in a castle built by Sir Edward Blayney, created first Baron Blayney in 1721 but at the end of the 18th century his descendant, the 11th Lord Blayney commissioned a new house designed by Dublin-born Robert Woodgate who for several years had worked in London for Sir John Soane. In 1853 the 12th Lord Blayney sold the estate to the rich Henry Thomas Hope; he enlarged and remodelled the building in what has been called ‘a frivolous kind of Italianate classicism.’ Occupied by Queen Victoria’s son the Duke of Connaught for several years at the start of the last century when he served Commander of the Forces in Ireland, Hope Castle was sold in 1928 and served as a military barracks and then a county hospital before being occupied until the mid-1970s by Franciscan nuns. It was then acquired by the local county council, which leased it to an hotelier who was permitted to strip out all of Woodgate’s interiors. In 2010 the building was badly damaged by arsonists and has remained in a sorry state ever since. 

and https://lordbelmontinnorthernireland.blogspot.com/2014/07/blayney-castle.html

THE BARONS BLAYNEY WERE THE SECOND LARGEST LANDOWNERS IN COUNTY MONAGHAN, WITH 24,546 ACRES 

SIR EDWARD BLAYNEY (1570-1629), Knight, a native of Wales, said to be descended from Cadwallader, King of Cambria and a younger son of the Prince of Wales, had been employed from his youth in the armies of ELIZABETH I. 

He accompanied Robert, Earl of Essex, as Colonel, into Ireland, 1598, where he obtained both wealth and renown in the subsequent wars. 

Sir Edward, Governor of Monaghan, was granted the thirty-two townlands of Ballynalurgan and in 1611 he obtained the termon of Muckno as well. 

Blayney built a castle, around which a Planter village soon began to develop. 

This was the origin of the present town of Castleblayney. 

Sir Edward married Anne, second daughter of the Most Rev Dr Adam Loftus, Lord Archbishop of Dublin, CHANCELLOR OF IRELAND, by whom he had, with six daughters, two sons, 

HENRY (Sir), his successor; 
ARTHUR (Sir), of Castle Shane. 

Sir Edward was elevated to the peerage by JAMES I, in 1621, in the dignity of BARON BLAYNEY, of Monaghan.  

His lordship was succeeded by his elder son, 

HENRY, 2nd Baron, who wedded, in 1623, Jane, daughter of Gerald, Viscount Drogheda, by whom he had two surviving sons and five daughters. 
 
His lordship, who was a military man, was slain at the battle of Benburb, County Tyrone, 1646, and was succeeded by his elder son, 

EDWARD, 3rd Baron (c1625-69), who died unmarried, and was succeeded by his brother,  

RICHARD, 4th Baron (c1625-70), who was high in favour with CROMWELL, and had been appointed, in 1656, the usurper’s custos-rotulorum of County Monaghan, and escheator of County Tyrone. 
 
His lordship espoused firstly, in 1653, Elizabeth, eldest daughter of Mr Alderman Vincent, of Dublin, MP, by whom he had several children; and secondly, Jane, daughter of John Malloch. 
 
His lordship was succeeded by his eldest son, 
 
HENRY VINCENT, 5th Baron, who wedded Margaret Moore, eldest sister of John, 1st Lord Tullamore, by whom he had an only surviving child, Elinor. 
 
His lordship fled Castleblayney at the outbreak of the Williamite wars and was chosen as commander-in-chief of the Protestant forces raised to defend Monaghan and Armagh against JAMES II, who transmitted it to his brother,  

WILLIAM, 6th Baron, who married, in 1686, Mary, eldest daughter of William, 1st Viscount Charlemont, and dying in 1705, was succeeded by his only surviving son,  

CADWALLADER, 7th Baron (1693-1732), who married Mary, daughter of the Hon John Tucket, and niece of Charles, Duke of Shrewsbury, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, and had issue. 
 
His lordship espoused secondly, Mary, daughter and heiress of Sir Alexander Cairnes Bt, of Monaghan.  
 
His lordship was succeeded by his eldest son, 

THE VERY REV CHARLES TALBOT, 8th Baron (1714-61), Dean of Killaloe, at whose decease, without surviving issue, the title devolved upon his brother,  

CADWALLADER, 9th Baron (1720-75), who married, in 1767, Sophia, daughter of Thomas Tipping, of Beaulieu, and had issue, 

CADWALLADER DAVIS, his successor; 
ANDREW THOMAS, succeeded his brother; 
Sophia; Mary. 

His lordship, a lieutenant-general in the army, was succeeded by his elder son, 

CADWALLADER DAVIS, 10th Baron (1769-84); at whose decease, unmarried, the title reverted to his brother, 

ANDREW THOMAS, 11th Baron (1770-1834), a lieutenant-general in the army, who wedded, in 1796, Mabella, eldest daughter of James, 1st Earl of Caledon, and had issue, 

CADWALLADER DAVIS, his successor; 
Anne; Charlotte Sophia. 

His lordship was succeeded by his son, 

CADWALLADER DAVIS, 12th Baron (1802-74), MP for County Monaghan, 1830-34, at whose decease, unmarried, the title expired. 

 
 
THE CALEDON CONNECTION 

The Caledon estate in County Tyrone is just a few fields away from that of the Leslies in Glaslough, County Monaghan, and the Earls of Caledon themselves owned some land in County Monaghan. 

Because of the family connection between the lst and 2nd Earls and the 11th Lord Blayney, who was their son-in-law and brother-in-law respectively, the correspondence between Blayney and the two earls yields a lot of information about his military and political careers; for example, the siege of Alexandria and as a prisoner of war in Napoleonic France. 

During Blayney’s long incarceration, the 2nd Earl of Caledon looked after his financial, domestic, and political affairs, thus being drawn into the Monaghan sphere. 

This brought political figures such as Dawson and Leslie beating a path to Caledon’s door, because during this period he was the representative of Blayney and ‘the Blayney interest’. 

On his return, Blayney was given a seat in parliament for Caledon’s infamous ‘rotten borough’ of Old Sarum, Wiltshire. Later, he attempted to get Caledon to use his influence with the Government to get him elected an Irish Representative Peer. 

This yields a very illuminating and often pained correspondence between the two men. 

The Blayney/Hope Papers are deposited at PRONI.  

HOPE CASTLE, Castleblayney, County Monaghan, formerly known as Blayney Castle after the plantation castle nearby (from which the town gets its name), has had many owners and uses over the years. 

Originally a three storey, five bay Georgian block, the house received many embellishments during the Victorian era including scrolled cresting on the roof parapets and at one stage an ornamental cast iron and glass porch canopy. 

In 1853, Cadwaller, 12th and last Lord Blayney, sold the Castle and estate to Henry Thomas Hope from Deepdene in Surrey, a former MP at Westminster. 

Thereafter the Castle was renamed Hope Castle, as it still called. 

Hope gave the Georgian Castle with its splendid prospect a Victorian makeover that the present building retains, externally at least. 

After his death in 1862, Hope’s wife Anne inherited the estate. 

Soon after 1887, the Castle and demesne fell to the next heir, a grandson of Hope: Lord Henry Francis Hope Pelham-Clinton-Hope, famous for having sold the renowned family heirloom, the Hope Diamond. 

From 1900 until 1904, the Castle became the residence of Field-Marshal HRH The Duke of Connaught,  Commander-in-Chief, Ireland. 

After 1916, Lord Henry no longer resided in the Castle nor in Ireland. 
 
On becoming 8th Duke of Newcastle in 1928, he later sold both the Castle and the estate, which was broken up and used in part for local political patronage. 

In 1919-21, the Castle was used as a barracks by the British Army. 
 
Some time afterwards it functioned as a hospital; and from 1943-74, it was occupied by Franciscan nuns who also managed an adjacent guest house. 

After some years of neglect, the Castle has been used for catering and hotel purposes set in what is now a Leisure Park with golf course. 

In October 2010, the Castle was burnt down in an arson attack.  

The building has suffered greatly during its lifetime – after being an convent, it remained empty for many years and was taken over the the local County Council who demolished the 19th century additions to the garden and main fronts and renovated the building. 

Its most interesting internal feature – a Soanesque top-lit upper stair landing, was destroyed during the building’s phase of dereliction. 

The estate still has a good stable-yard and cast-iron gateway with matching gatehouses. 

http://davidhicksbook.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2015-02-16T12:14:00-08:00&max-results=7&start=26&by-date=false 

THURSDAY, 12 FEBRUARY 2015 

 Hope Castle  

 Co. Monaghan 

Hope Castle can be found near the town of Castleblayney in County Monaghan. Perched high on a hill overlooking an expanse of water known as Lough Muckno, the castle is hidden by trees and accessed from the town through impressive entrance gates. The town of Castleblayney is the third largest in County Monaghan and its development is closely linked to the influential Blayney family. From the late 1700s the Blayneys were responsible for the creation of local industry and the construction of a number of the public buildings in the town. A few months after I began to compile this piece, I learnt that the castle had been deliberately burnt to the ground. As a result of the loss of this building I felt I had to highlight its history and beauty, in the hope it would rally local people to ensure that it is restored. It is also fascinating that the family that gave their name to the worlds most famous gem stone also lent their surname to this castle in Monaghan. 

The entrance front of Castle Hope with its large extension added by Henry  Thomas Hope in the 1860s. The Hope family crest is emblazoned  on the castle in the centre of this facade.  Accreditation- The National Library of Ireland

In the 1600s, the lands around Lough Muckno were owned by the Blayney family who built the original castle that preceded the existing building. The eleventh Baron Blayney, Lord Andrew Thomas Blayney eventually built a new castle near the site of the original ancestral seat. It is little wonder that the site for the new castle was chosen as it enjoys one of the most spectacular views of Lough Muckno and the surrounding countryside. Robert Woodgate who designed the new castle in 1799 had previously served as an apprentice to the architect John Soane in London. In the same year, he also set up his Irish practise in Dublin and secured the commission from Baron Blayney in County Monaghan. Woodgate wrote to Soane, his former employer, in November 1799 and enclosed a sketch of Castle Blayney. The grateful apprentice recorded the following in the accompanying letter- ‘Sketch of the first house I ever built as a small tribute due for your former kindness to me’. The completed three storey, five bay block of Castle Blayney now stood on the hill overlooking the lough but its completion would also mark the end of the Blayneys connection with the estate. The eleventh Baron was a generous man and in 1814 he donated a painting of St. Sebastian to be used as an alter piece in the local Catholic Church which stood on land that he had donated in 1803.During the time that the eleventh Baron Blaney succeeded to the Monaghan estate he did much to improve the town of Castleblayney and he was responsible for its streetscape and development of local industry. Lord Blayney died on April 8, 1834 and was succeeded by his son Cadwallader Davis Blayney, the twelfth and last Lord Blayney. In 1853, the Hope family purchased the remainder of the Blayney estate under the Encumbered Estates Act 1849 for £180,000 

The castle is now boarded up since it was destroyed by fire in 2010. The  substantial wing built by Henry Thomas Hope was demolished around the  time the castle was renovated  in the 1980s leaving the building as it  appeared when it was first built.  Accreditation- Photograph by Ellie Ross

The most famous diamond in the world which shares its name with a castle  

in Monaghan once owned by Henry Hope 

A niche on the rear elevation of the castle still contains a statue that  once overlooked a formal garden. Accreditation- Photograph by Ellie Ross

 
The estate had been sold to Henry Thomas Hope of Surrey who was a member of the Scottish-Dutch banking family, famous for their ownership of Hope Diamond. The diamond was a supposedly cursed jewel that had passed through both the French and British Royal families and had supposedly brought ruin to whoever owned it. Henry Thomas Hope had the building in Monaghan refaced and embellished during the 1860s which included the addition of the Hope family crest to the parapet of all the facades of the castle. A large extension was added to the building which now became a modern country retreat for the extremely affluent family. Inside a large collection of art treasures were amassed which included a gallery of pictures by the Dutch and early English masters. Henry Thomas Hope died in 1862 and the castle eventually passed to his grandson, Lord Henry Francis Hope Pelham-Clinton. Between 1900 and 1904, Hope Castle was occupied by the Duke of Connaught, son of Queen Victoria, during his appointment as Commander in Chief to Ireland. It was said at the time that the Duke and Duchess experienced a great deal of difficulty in finding an Irish home as they did not wish to spend all their time in the official residence at the RoyalHospital in  Kilmainham, Dublin. The Irish residence associated with the office of Commander in Chief was not thought to be suitable for habitation by such high ranking royals as the grounds of the residence were far from private and its location was thought to be in an inferior part of the city. The residence of the Lord Lieutenant and the Chief Secretary in the Phoenix Park would have been suitable but neither of these residents could vacate those houses. The large administrative staffs associated with these official roles could not be moved easily without huge disruption. Several other houses such as Castletown House in Kildare were considered before the Duke settled on Castle Hope in Monaghan which he leased from Lord Henry Francis Hope.  

Prince Arthur, 1st Duke of Connaught  (The National Portrait Gallery, London)

The garden front of the castle that overlooks Lough Muckno, the large  drawing room of the house was contained behind the large projecting  bay window that can be seen in this picture. Accreditation- Photograph from The Irish Historical Picture Company

Leonie Leslie  

It is believed that Castle Hope was chosen as it was located near the home of Leonie Leslie, a prominent socialite at the time, who lived at Castle Leslie. She was a close friend of the Duke and Duchess of Connaught but it is alleged that she was a closer friend of the Duke. The royal couple arrived in Castle Blayney in June 1900 and received a warm welcome from the local people; both the gates to the castle and the whole town were decorated with bunting and flags. The Duke had taken the castle for the summer season in 1900 with an option of leasing it for a further five years.  It was thought at the time that Castle Hope would become an official royal residence and that Queen Victoria would visit her son here. She never graced Castle Hope with her presence before her death in 1901 and the Duke of Duchess of Connaught ended their association with the castle in 1904.  

The entrance gates to the castle  in the 1900s around the time that Duke and  Duchess of Connaught were in residence. The presence of police officers  also gives credence to this assumption. Accreditation- The National Library of Ireland.

Today the handsome gates piers and adjoining lodges are a distraction  surrounded by parked cars, incongruous signage and electric wires. Accreditation- Photograph by Ellie Ross

Lord Henry, the castle’s owner, lived beyond his means which eventually led to marriage troubles and financial woes. He was forced to sell the Hope Diamond in 1901 for £29,000, which would be over two million pounds in today’s money, but this was not sufficient to plug the gapping hole in his finances. Lord Henry Francis Hope had mortgaged the estate in Monaghan heavily and ceased to live there from 1914. After this, the castle was occupied by every army that the country had seen since 1919 which included the Auxiliaries, Black and Tans and the Free State Army. It was also recorded that after the ratification of the treaty that the Crown forces were evacuated from Hope Castle on January 16, 1922. 

Lord Henry Francis Hope Pelham-Clinton 

(The National Portrait Gallery, London) 

 None of these occupants had caused serious damage to the stately pile’s contents and in 1926, an auction of the property of Lord Henry Francis Hope was announced. The contents of the castle consisting of antique furniture, paintings, china and the entire furnishings contained in the billiard room, drawing room, boudoir, library, smoking room, bedrooms, servant’s quarters and kitchen were to be auctioned. The sale of the furniture was the final severance of the connection that the Hope Family had with the town of Castleblayney and the auction attracted a huge attendance for the sale of the 1,400 lots. A lot of the large antique furniture sold quite cheaply due to its large size not being suitable for the average family home of the time. Items dispatched for sale included a grand piano and a billiard table which were sold to the nearby Hope Arms Hotel. Over the following years, the castle remained empty and unoccupied until it was used as a temporary hospital between 1932 and 1937 while the new county hospital was being built. It again lay idle for a number of years until it was purchased by a Franciscan Order of nuns who lived there from 1942 until the early 1970s. The Franciscan Sisters had purchased their new home in Monaghan as their previous convent in Londonhad been lost in the blitz during the Second World War. They sought permission to come to Monaghan in December 1941 and secured a loan of £6,000 to establish their convent in Castleblayney. In 1951 the lands of the Hope Estate was taken over by the Land Commission and divided up among the former tenants of the estate. In later years the Franciscan Sisters ran the castle as a guesthouse and they had converted the ballroom into a chapel. 

A gravel path led directly from the French doors of the drawing room, down to the shores of Lough Muckno and a boat house.  Accreditation- The National Library of Ireland.

The boarded up windows of the drawing room of the castle once overlooked  Lough Muckno which is considered to rival the famous Lakes of  Killarney in County Kerry. Accreditation- Photograph by David Hicks

 
In 1979, the castle and the remaining estate lands were offered for sale which extended to 1,000 acres but only fifty-five acres were deemed to be agricultural land as over 900 acres were occupied up by Lough Muckno and its twelve islands. The castle was described as having a floor area of 22,500 sq.ft. which included five reception rooms, twenty-six bedrooms and four bathrooms. There were also coach houses, stables, two gate lodges, farm buildings and a boat house. An asking price of £500,000 was sought and eventually in the 1980s the castle and surrounding lands were purchased by Monaghan County Council. The nineteenth century additions built by Henry Thomas Hope were demolished and the surviving main block of the building was renovated. The eighteenth century castle was leased and operated as a fourteen bedroom hotel for the next number of decades.  

A niche on the rear elevation of the castle still contains a statue  that once overlooked a formal garden. Accreditation- Photograph by Ellie Ross

The castle once was surrounded by gardens that contained elaborate  planting, statues and stone balustrades topped with flower filled urns. Accreditation- Photograph From the National Library of Ireland

In 2010, the townspeople of Castleblayney were shocked to hear that a fire had swept through Hope Castle which caused extensive interior damage. The alarm was raised by Gardai who were on an early morning patrol when they discovered a huge fire was raging inside the building. Fire units from all the neighboring towns were called but serious damage had been done, the castle had been unoccupied at the time and the fire was started maliciously by trespassers. The blaze ripped through the building leaving large sections of the castle destroyed and many of the antiques that furnished its reception rooms were also lost. For the moment Hope Castle remains cordoned off behind a high fence that shields it from public view. Behind this hoarding is a scene of desolation of broken windows and blackened walls, a view reminiscent of the house burnings of the 1920s. I sincerely hope that this building is restored as a resource that can be enjoyed by the local community and the tourists of Castleblayney. Surely this building could become a place where the history of the many famous people associated with this castle could be recorded. How many buildings in Ireland have their history’s interwoven with the world’s most famous diamond and members of the British Royal family? 

As a result of the fire, the castle is now surrounded by hoardings that  prevents public access but this also inhibits the replication of the above  historical image. Architecturally, the facades of this side of the building  remain relatively unchanged. Accreditation- Photograph by Ellie Ross

Comparing the aerial photograph above and the period ordinance survey  

map below illustrates the reduction in size of the Castle  

Copyright OSI