Russborough House facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Russborough House |
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The front facade at Russborough
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| General information | |
| Status | Private dwelling house |
| Type | House |
| Architectural style | Palladian |
| Location | Russelstown, County Wicklow |
| Country | Ireland |
| Coordinates | 53°08′30″N 6°34′11″W / 53.14166°N 6.5696°W |
| Construction started | 1741 |
| Estimated completion | 1748 |
| Owner | Alfred Beit foundation |
| Technical details | |
| Material | granite |
| Floor count | 3 |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | Richard Cassels |
| Developer | Joseph Leeson, 1st Earl of Milltown |
Russborough House is a grand house located near the Blessington Lakes in County Wicklow, Republic of Ireland. You can find it between the towns of Blessington and Ballymore Eustace. It is a fantastic example of Palladian architecture, a style inspired by ancient Roman buildings.
The house was designed by Richard Cassels (also known as Richard Castle) for Joseph Leeson, 1st Earl of Milltown. It was built between 1741 and 1755. Russborough House is about 210 meters (690 feet) long, which might make it the longest house in Ireland! Inside, you can see beautiful plaster designs on the ceilings made by the Lafranchini brothers. They also worked with Castle on another famous house called Carton House.
Russborough House holds an amazing collection of European art. This includes furniture, silver, porcelain, and paintings. The house is open for people to visit. It sits on a 200-acre (81-hectare) estate. Many of its original 18th-century features are still there. These include a Walled Garden, an ice-house, a lime kiln, and winding lakes. There is also a restaurant, a shop, and a 2-kilometer (1.2-mile) maze for visitors to enjoy.
Contents
The Story of Russborough House
The Leeson family came from England and moved to Ireland in the late 1600s. They made a lot of money from brewing beer and building properties in Dublin. This wealth was passed down to Joseph Leeson. He bought the land where Russborough House now stands, which was then called Russellstown. Joseph became a Member of Parliament and was given the title Earl of Milltown in 1763.
Richard Castle designed Russborough House for Joseph Leeson. It took many years to build, from 1741 to 1755. While the house was being built, Joseph traveled around Europe. He wanted to buy impressive paintings, sculptures, and furniture for his new home. Back at Russborough, the best artists and craftspeople from Ireland and Europe helped Castle create a truly beautiful interior.
The house stayed in the Leeson family until the sixth Earl of Milltown. After his wife passed away in 1914, it went to her nephew, Edmund Turton. He did not stay there very often. When Turton died in 1929, his wife sold the house to Captain Denis Bowes Daly in 1931.
Between 1937 and 1940, the valley in front of the house was flooded. This created the Poulaphouca Reservoir, also known as the Blessington Lakes.
In 1952, Sir Alfred Beit bought Russborough from Captain Daly. He wanted a place to keep his large art collection. In 1976, he started the Alfred Beit Foundation. This is a charity that now manages the property. Russborough is known as Ireland's most beautiful Georgian house. The foundation opened the house and its collections to the public in 1978. Sir Alfred Beit died in 1994, and Lady Beit lived there until her death in 2005.
How Russborough House Was Built
Russborough House is a classic example of a Palladian villa. It has a main building in the middle with the most important rooms. On each side, there are two wings. These wings held the servants' quarters and the stables.
Richard Castle added many special features to his design. The building uses Greek architectural styles. For example, the columns connecting the wings to the main house are Doric. The columns at the main entrance are Corinthian. These columns support a grand porch decorated with flower designs. At the bottom of the granite steps, two lion statues greet visitors. These lions represent the Leeson family's coat of arms.
The main part of Russborough has seven important rooms on the ground floor. The largest room is the Entrance Hall, at the front of the house. The main living room, called the Saloon, is directly behind it. The other five rooms include two Drawing Rooms, two Dining Rooms, and a Music Room. All these rooms are arranged in a balanced way. The ceilings of several rooms and the main staircase have fancy plasterwork. This work is believed to have been done by Swiss-Italian artists Paolo and Filippo Lafrancini.
Amazing Art Collections
Russborough House has been home to two wonderful art collections. The first was the Milltown family's collection. The wife of the sixth earl, Lady Geraldine Milltown, gave this collection to the National Gallery of Ireland in 1902.
Sir Alfred and Clementine, Lady Beit, bought the house in 1952. Lady Beit was a cousin of the famous Mitford sisters. Sir Alfred brought his family's art collection to Russborough. This collection was started by his uncle, Alfred Beit. It includes works by famous artists like Goya, Vermeer, Peter Paul Rubens, and Thomas Gainsborough.
In 1976, Sir Alfred and Lady Beit created the Alfred Beit Foundation. This charity helps protect the house and its art for future generations. In 1987, they gave seventeen of their best paintings to the National Gallery of Ireland. Russborough opened to the public as a museum and visitor attraction in 1978.
Some of the treasures still at Russborough include beautiful 18th-century French and English furniture. There are also many important paintings from the 17th to 20th centuries. These include works by Jean-Baptiste Oudry, Adriaen van Ostade, and Claude-Joseph Vernet. Four paintings by Vernet, called 'Morning', 'Midday', 'Sunset', and 'Night', were painted for Russborough in the 1750s. They have stayed in the house for most of the last 260 years. The house also displays one of Ireland's best private collections of 18th-century silver and porcelain. This includes important pieces from Meissen and Sèvres.
The Russborough Park and Gardens
The Russborough estate covers 200 acres. It has many walking paths, gardens, and original features from the 18th century. From the very beginning, the estate was designed in a formal way. You can still see parts of the large lawn and terraces with a shaped pond to the north of the house. To the south, the land looks more natural. It has rolling fields, winding lakes, and old woodlands.
The park is a great example of an Irish country estate from that time. You can still see features like the Walled Garden, the ice-house, and the lime kiln. There is also a 2-kilometer (1.2-mile) maze. A craft courtyard has studios for local artists. You can also visit The National Bird of Prey Centre here.
A Fire at the House
On February 7, 2010, a fire badly damaged the west wing of Russborough House. Part of the roof fell in. Luckily, no art was damaged. The art and furniture had been moved out to allow for other repairs in the west wing. Early checks suggested the fire might have started from an electrical problem in the roof wiring.
Art Thefts at Russborough
Sadly, parts of the Russborough art collection have been stolen four times. These thefts happened in 1974, 1986, 2001, and 2002. Two paintings, Gainsborough's Madame Bacelli and Vermeer's Lady writing a Letter with her Maid, were stolen twice. The Vermeer painting was probably the most valuable one in the collection. Luckily, all the stolen paintings were later found and returned. For example, the Vermeer painting was recovered in 1993. Goya's Portrait of Dona Antonia Zarate was also found in the same year.
See also
- Poulaphouca Reservoir
