Knockdrin Castle
Knockdrin Castle ( Irish Caisleán Chnoc Droinne ) is a country house north of Mullingar in County Westmeath, Ireland .
etymology
The Irish name Cnoc Droinne refers to a hill ( cnoc ) on the estate. The second component is unclear, formally it means hump , i.e. humpback hill , an older spelling droighin indicates blackthorn. There is also a small lake on the property called Lough Drin ( Loch Droinne ).
description
Knockdrin Castle is primarily a 19th century neo-Gothic building. The current building is believed to have been designed by Richard Morrison and was built in place of High Park , an earlier 18th century mansion that stood there. The client was Sir Richard Levinge, 6th Baronet , (1785–1848), who probably had the house built in the 1810s.
history
Until the beginning of the 18th century, the main residential building on the property was a small castle from Norman times, often referred to as "King John's Castle" in the area. It was destroyed by fire. Most of the first country house on this site, High Park , was built by Sir Richard Levinge, 1st Baronet , Member of Parliament (1656-1724) around the beginning of the 18th century. The Levinges came to Ireland with the Williamites at the end of the 17th century. The first Sir Richard Levinge was Chief Justice of the Common Pleas and a member of the Lord Commissioners appointed by the British Crown to settle all property disputes arising after the Reconquest of Ireland , the Stuart Restoration and the War of the Two Kings had arisen. Levinge took advantage of his position to buy the Knockdrin Castle property from the Tuites , the Hibernon-Norman owners at the time . At that time the property was over 49 km², in contrast to today's 4 km².
During the Second World War , the country house served as accommodation for the troops; a unit of the 6th Infantry of the Irish Army was stationed there. The military left the country house in 1945 and returned it to the Levinges.
It belonged to the Levinges until 1946, although the last Sir Richard Levinge to live there and later a director of Guinness Ltd. hadn't lived there for a while. The property was sold to Paddy Dunne-Cullinan , who stayed there until 1961 and then sold it to Hans Freiherr von Prondzynski from Germany .
The property belongs to the Prondzynski family , but has been for sale since November 2017. The current owner, Professor Ferdinand von Prondzynski , was President of Dublin City University from 2000 to mid-2010 and then Principal and Vice Chancellor of Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen , Scotland . Professor Prondzynski has been criticized for failing to declare his position as director of the company on the family estate owned by Knockdrin Castle. The university did not impose a substantial penalty on him, but he later decided to quit his post to avert damage to the university's image.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Cnoc Droinne / Knockdrin . In: Logainm.ie . Irish Placenames Commission. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
- ^ Samuel Lewis: A Topographical Dictionary of Ireland . Library Ireland. 1837. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
- ↑ a b Massive estate totaling 1,140 acres to be sold with castle in Westmeath . Independent News & Media. November 20, 2017. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
- ^ Alistair Rowan, Christine Casey: The Buildings of Ireland - North Leinster . Yale University Press, London 1993.
- ↑ a b Madelein Lyons: Former DCU president's castle on sale for € 13.5m . Irish Times. November 16, 2017. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
- ↑ 1812 - Knockdrin Castle, Co. Westmeath . Archiseek. 2013. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
- ↑ Main Record - County Westmeath (Knockdrin Castle, County Westmeath) . In: Buildings of Ireland . National Inventory of Architectural Heritage. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
- ↑ a b Luxurious Westmeath castle goes on sale for € 13.5m . In: Breaking News . Landmark Digital. November 16, 2017. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
- ^ University principal to step down . In: BBC News . BBC. August 10, 2018. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
Web links
Coordinates: 53 ° 34 ′ 25 " N , 7 ° 18 ′ 54" W.