Clonyn Castle facts for kids
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Clonyn Castle, also known as Delvin Castle, is a grand Victorian country house located in Delvin, County Westmeath, Ireland. It's about 18 kilometers from Mullingar. This impressive building looks like a castle, with its square shape, two stories, and four tall, round towers at each corner. It's built from cut limestone. Inside, there's a large two-story hall with a gallery. Clonyn Castle was one of the very last Victorian castles built in Ireland.
Right behind the castle, you can find a golf course that is open to everyone. It's only 500 meters from the center of Delvin village.
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History of Clonyn Castle
Early Castles in Delvin
The story of castles in Delvin goes way back! An even older castle, which is now just a ruin in the middle of Delvin village, was probably built in 1181. It was built by Hugh de Lacy, Lord of Meath for his brother-in-law, Sir Gilbert de Nugent. Sir Gilbert came to Ireland from France in 1171 with Hugh de Lacy. He was given the important title of Baron of Delvin.
A second castle was built in 1639 by Richard Nugent, 1st Earl of Westmeath. This castle was on higher ground, looking over Delvin village. It was sometimes called Delvin Castle or Clonyn Castle. When Oliver Cromwell's army came close, Richard Nugent had the house burned down and escaped to Galway. His grandson later rebuilt the castle, and people lived there until 1860.
The Present Clonyn Castle
The Clonyn Castle you see today was built a short distance from the previous castle. It was built by Lord Greville and his wife, Lady Rosa. Lady Rosa inherited the land after her father, George Nugent, 1st Marquess of Westmeath, passed away in 1871. She had married Fulke Southwell Greville-Nugent, 1st Baron Greville, who added the Nugent name to his own in 1866.
This newest castle remained a home for the Nugent family until 1922. That's when Patrick Nugent sold it and moved to Scotland. After the Nugent family left, a group of nuns from Australia lived in the castle for a while.
A Home for Holocaust Orphans
After World War II, Clonyn Castle played a very special role. A kind man named Rabbi Solomon Schonfeld helped arrange for the castle to become a temporary home for Jewish children. Most of these children were orphans who had survived the terrible events of the Holocaust. A businessman from Manchester, Yankel Levy, was convinced to buy the castle and its land for £30,000.
About 100 children, aged between 5 and 17, lived at Clonyn Castle. They stayed there temporarily before they could rejoin their families or start new lives in places like England, America, or Israel. Sadly, helping these children meant that Yankel Levy lost all his money.
Today, Clonyn Castle is privately owned by Mrs. Dillon.
