A Lovely Day at Lissadell
October/16/2008 Ireland Journal
On our last day in Sligo, we toured one of the most compelling stately homes I have ever visited: Lissadell House and Gardens, which only recently was saved from ruin by two lawyers from Dublin who are restoring it from the ground up, including purchasing many of the fabulous furnishings that had been sold off when the house was in decline. It is now the family home of Edward Walsh and his wife Constance Cassidy and their seven children. What they have accomplished in three year's time is remarkable. Although you can tour the public rooms of the mansion, photographs are not permitted because it is a private home. However, you can see excellent photographs of the marvelous restoration on the very interesting Lissadell website.
Lissadell was built in 1833 by Sir Robert Gore Booth, and it served as the Gore-Booth family home until 2003. The house fronts the Atlantic Ocean and is set among the Knocknarea mountains and majestic Ben Belben. Designed by Francis Goodwin, it is a magnificent country house built in the Greek revival style. Lissadell is famous as the childhood home of Constance Markievicz, her sister Eva Gore Booth, and her brother Josslyn Gore Booth. Constance was one of the leaders of the 1916 Rising, and eventually became the first woman to be elected to the Dail Eirean, the Irish legislature, and to the House of Commons in Westminster, where she declined to take her seat in protest against British policies toward Ireland. Eva was a poet of distinction and an active suffragist. Josslyn created at Lissadell one of the premiere horticultural estates in Europe, and that enterprise is now being recreated by the new owners. The home also served as an inspirational retreat for poet William Butler Yeats, who stayed at Lissadell in 1893 and 1894, and who immortalized Lissadell and the Gore Booth sisters in his poetry.
After our tour of the home, we headed for the newly restored Coach House, which is now home to the Heritage and Garden Shop.
We were met in the courtyard by "Honey," the family's Irish wolf hound.
Honey, quite clearly, is NOT a watch dog!
The Gift Shop not only features very appealing merchandise, it also is a wonderful resource for fresh vegetables grown in the restored gardens of the estate. We did our part in stimulating the local economy at this wonderful gift shop!
The adjacent Tea Rooms have seating for 80, including comfortable tables and banquettes that are cleverly fitted into Coach House box stalls.
In the Heritage Center's Markievecz Exhibition Hall, you can view a celebration of the fascinating life of Constance Gore Booth (Countess Markievecz), who was once sentenced to death for her part in the 1916 Easter Rising, but who went on to become the first women member of a legislature in a European democracy. I'm in the midst of reading the biography of this fascinating woman, and I am convinced that the story of her life and times would make a great Hollywood production.
Like her sister, Eva, Constance was an accomplished artist, and many of her paintings and drawings are on display at the Heritage Center. Other family artworks and those of local artists, including the outstanding work of Jack Yeats, brother of W.B. and that of their father, are lovingly preserved in the restored basement rooms of Lissadell House.
The house is surrounded by over 400 acres of land including picnic areas, a beach, and woodlands. As we were leaving the estate, we spied these two miniature horses, who came over to be petted. I suspect they must be part of the petting zoo that is being planned for children.
I expect to return to Lissadell House and Gardens again, as it was too rainy to visit the restored Alpine Garden and Kitchen Gardens. It will be a pleasure to see how much more the Walsh-Cassidy family have accomplished in their quest to restore this magnificent gem of history, architecture, horticulture and art. I enjoy every place I visit in Ireland, but there is something very special about Lissadell House and Yates Country. They are not to be missed!
Lissadell was built in 1833 by Sir Robert Gore Booth, and it served as the Gore-Booth family home until 2003. The house fronts the Atlantic Ocean and is set among the Knocknarea mountains and majestic Ben Belben. Designed by Francis Goodwin, it is a magnificent country house built in the Greek revival style. Lissadell is famous as the childhood home of Constance Markievicz, her sister Eva Gore Booth, and her brother Josslyn Gore Booth. Constance was one of the leaders of the 1916 Rising, and eventually became the first woman to be elected to the Dail Eirean, the Irish legislature, and to the House of Commons in Westminster, where she declined to take her seat in protest against British policies toward Ireland. Eva was a poet of distinction and an active suffragist. Josslyn created at Lissadell one of the premiere horticultural estates in Europe, and that enterprise is now being recreated by the new owners. The home also served as an inspirational retreat for poet William Butler Yeats, who stayed at Lissadell in 1893 and 1894, and who immortalized Lissadell and the Gore Booth sisters in his poetry.
After our tour of the home, we headed for the newly restored Coach House, which is now home to the Heritage and Garden Shop.
We were met in the courtyard by "Honey," the family's Irish wolf hound.
Honey, quite clearly, is NOT a watch dog!
The Gift Shop not only features very appealing merchandise, it also is a wonderful resource for fresh vegetables grown in the restored gardens of the estate. We did our part in stimulating the local economy at this wonderful gift shop!
The adjacent Tea Rooms have seating for 80, including comfortable tables and banquettes that are cleverly fitted into Coach House box stalls.
In the Heritage Center's Markievecz Exhibition Hall, you can view a celebration of the fascinating life of Constance Gore Booth (Countess Markievecz), who was once sentenced to death for her part in the 1916 Easter Rising, but who went on to become the first women member of a legislature in a European democracy. I'm in the midst of reading the biography of this fascinating woman, and I am convinced that the story of her life and times would make a great Hollywood production.
Like her sister, Eva, Constance was an accomplished artist, and many of her paintings and drawings are on display at the Heritage Center. Other family artworks and those of local artists, including the outstanding work of Jack Yeats, brother of W.B. and that of their father, are lovingly preserved in the restored basement rooms of Lissadell House.
The house is surrounded by over 400 acres of land including picnic areas, a beach, and woodlands. As we were leaving the estate, we spied these two miniature horses, who came over to be petted. I suspect they must be part of the petting zoo that is being planned for children.
I expect to return to Lissadell House and Gardens again, as it was too rainy to visit the restored Alpine Garden and Kitchen Gardens. It will be a pleasure to see how much more the Walsh-Cassidy family have accomplished in their quest to restore this magnificent gem of history, architecture, horticulture and art. I enjoy every place I visit in Ireland, but there is something very special about Lissadell House and Yates Country. They are not to be missed!