Favour Royal facts for kids
Favour Royal is a historic estate and manor located in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It was once known as Portclare. This beautiful area is found in the townland of Favor Royal Demesne. It is about 3 miles (5 km) east of Augher, very close to the Irish border.
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History of Favour Royal
The land known as Portclare was given to Sir Thomas Ridgeway in 1613 by King James I. Sir Thomas was an important person during the time when many new settlers came to Ulster. His land grants were huge, covering about 3,000 acres (12 km²) of good farming land. This included the areas around today's towns of Aughnacloy and Augher.
In 1622, Sir Thomas Ridgeway sold Portclare to Sir James Erskine. Sir James was the younger son of Alexander Erskine of Gogar. Later, in 1665, King Charles II officially confirmed the manor of Portclare to the Erskine family. At this time, its name was changed to Favour Royal.
The large estate was later split between Sir James Erskine's two granddaughters. One part kept the name Favour Royal. The other part, located west of Augher, became known as Spur Royal or Augher Castle.
The Moutray Family and the House
The Moutray family became owners of Favour Royal when John Moutray married the Erskine heiress. They built the first house on the estate in 1670.
In 1816, a local boy named John Hughes worked briefly as a gardener's helper there. He later became a very important Catholic leader, the Archbishop of New York, in 1842.
The original house was sadly destroyed by an accidental fire in 1823. Captain John Corry Moutray, from Castle Coole, then built a new, much larger house. He hired the architect John Hargrave to design it. The new house was finished in 1825. It was built in a Tudor revival style, which looks like old English houses.
Captain Moutray also had a private chapel built on the estate. This chapel was made sacred on July 3, 1835. It is now the local church, St Mary's, Portclare. The Moutray family lived at Favour Royal until 1976. That's when the house, its private land, and everything inside were sold. People lived in the house until the 1990s, but now it is abandoned and falling apart.
The Estate and Nature
The private land around the house, called the demesne, was about 740 acres (3 km²). It was very good land for farming and was well looked after. It had many different types of plants and lots of trees.
The house is located next to the River Blackwater. It was built from a type of stone found on the estate that is easy to cut. The house has a fancy entrance with columns and beautiful details.
The estate also includes a pretty lake and a walled garden from the 1700s. It is listed on the Register of Parks, Gardens and Demesnes of Special Historic Interest. This means it is recognized for its special historical importance.
More recently, the Forest Service Northern Ireland has planted many cone-bearing trees (like pines) here. This area is now known as Favour Royal Forest. It is one of Ireland's Millennium Forest sites, which are special forests created for the new millennium.
There were plans to restore Favour Royal and turn it into a hotel and golf course. However, these plans ran out of time. In 2013, the house was put up for sale.
Images for kids
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St Mary's, Portclare, on the Favour Royal Estate
