Abbeville, formerly Abbeyville House, is an 18th-century country house in the townland of Abbeyville, civil parish of Kinsealy, within the traditional County Dublin, Ireland.[1]
| Abbeville | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Abbeville from the air | |
 | |
| General information | |
| Status | Private dwelling house |
| Type | House |
| Architectural style | Georgian |
| Town or city | Kinsealy, Dublin |
| Country | Ireland |
| Coordinates | 53°25′38″N 6°11′13″W / 53.4272115°N 6.1870269°W |
| Estimated completion | 1790 |
| Renovated | 1945 |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | 3 |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect(s) | James Gandon |
| Developer | John Beresford |
| Known for | Former residence of Charles Haughey |
| Renovating team | |
| Architect(s) | Michael Scott (1945) |
It is known as being the home of Charles Haughey during his years as Taoiseach.[2] The grounds contain streams, a pond and the site of a long-closed brewery.
History edit
Richard Montgomery (1738–1775) grew up in the original estate. His father Thomas Montgomery is recorded as leasing the estate as his Dublin residence in 1736. It was then under a different name.
It was altered and enlarged by James Gandon for John Beresford c.1790.[1] It consists of two storeys over a basement; the front has seven bays, flanked by two wide curved bows, and is further prolonged by single-storey one-bay wings.[3]
It is said the house was so named as Beresford's son was marrying a girl from Abbeville in France.[4] Beresford's first wife was also French and had died in 1772.[5]
For a period in the early 19th century the house was owned by the antiquarian Austin Cooper.[6]
The house was owned by the Cusack family for over a century from the early 19th century (1830-1940).[7][8]
In 1945, the architect Michael Scott is recorded as carrying out work on the house for Percy Reynolds, who bought the house in the 1940s.[9]
In 1969 it was bought by Charles J Haughey, then a minister for finance, who became Taoiseach in 1979. Renovations works were carried out by Sam Stephenson.
In 2003, after his retirement and disgrace, Haughey sold it to Manor Park Homes, which intended to redevelop it after his death, which occurred in 2006. Manor Park Homes went bankrupt during the Irish financial crisis, and in 2012, the house was offered for sale at a guide price of €7.5 million, about a fifth of the 2003 price.[2]
It was purchased in 2013 by the Japanese Nishida family, owners of the Toyoko Inn hotel group.[10]
Parts of the Abbeville estate were separated to provide sites for homes for members of the Haughey family, including his widow, and these remain in family hands.
Access edit
For most of recent history, the house and grounds were almost wholly private. Under the previous property tax regime, it was possible for Abbeville to be exempt if the house was open one day a year, a requirement fulfilled by events on the annual Irish Cancer Society Daffodil Day; the much more extensive opening required to avoid inheritance tax was not done.[clarification needed][citation needed]
Emsworth House edit
The house contains a tunnel which connects with the James Gandon designed Emsworth House nearby which was constructed in 1794 for James Woodmason.[11][12] Woodmason, a London stationer, had earlier joined Beresford as a partner in his Dublin banking operations at Beresford Place alongside Thomas Needham in 1793.
Sources edit
- M. Bence-Jones, A guide to Irish country houses, Constable, 1990, p. 1
- B. De Breffny & R. ffolliot, The houses of Ireland, Thames & Hudson, 1984, p. 168
- J. O'Brien & D. Guinness, Great Irish houses and castles, Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1992, pp. 106–107
References edit
- ^ a b "Abbeville, Kinsealy, Fingal". National Inventory of Architectural Heritage. Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht. Archived from the original on 20 January 2015. Retrieved 1 May 2012.
- ^ a b McDonald, Frank (10 May 2012). "€7.5 million sought for Haughey mansion". The Irish Times. Archived from the original on 10 May 2012. Retrieved 10 May 2012.
- ^ "Co. Dublin, Abbeville". www.dia.ie. Retrieved 1 May 2024.
- ^ "Why I love Fingal and its people and places". independent.ie. Fingal Independent. 20 June 2006. Retrieved 1 May 2024.
- ^ "Abbeyville". logainm.ie. Retrieved 1 May 2024.
- ^ "Cooper, Austin | Dictionary of Irish Biography". www.dib.ie. Retrieved 1 May 2024.
- ^ "Doors close at Haughey's Abbeville for the last time". Irish Independent. 30 August 2008. Retrieved 1 May 2024.
- ^ "Cusack". landedestates.ie. Retrieved 1 May 2024.
- ^ "Reynolds, Augustus Percival Harald ('Percy') | Dictionary of Irish Biography". www.dib.ie. Retrieved 1 May 2024.
- ^ "Moves to develop palatial 250-acre former home of Charlie Haughey". independent.ie. Independent News & Media. 4 December 2017. Archived from the original on 4 February 2021. Retrieved 8 January 2021.
- ^ "Magnificent Malahide villa with link to Haughey for €7.5m". The Irish Times. Retrieved 1 May 2024.
- ^ "Emsworth, Bohammer, Kinsaley, Dublin". Buildings of Ireland. Retrieved 1 May 2024.
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