Danesmoate House (formerly known as Glensouthwell or Glen Southwell) is a Georgian house in

Rathfarnham Rathfarnham () is a Southside (Dublin), southside suburb of Dublin, Republic of Ireland, Ireland in County Dublin. It is south of Terenure, east of Templeogue, and is in the postal districts of Dublin 14 and Dublin 16, 16. It is between the Lo ...

County Dublin County Dublin ( or ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland, and holds its capital city, Dublin. It is located on the island's east coast, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. Until 1994, County Dubli ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

Location

Grange Road continues for nearly a mile to skirt the boundary wall of Marlay Park as far as the crossroads at Taylors Grange. On the right side of Kellystown Road is the entrance to Danesmoate. The Little Dargle River, a tributary of the

River Dodder The River Dodder () is one of the three main rivers in Dublin, Ireland, the others being the River Liffey, Liffey, of which the Dodder is the largest tributary, and the River Tolka, Tolka. Course and system The Dodder rises on the northern s ...

, rises near the

Ticknock Ticknock or Tiknock () is a townland in Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown, Dublin, Ireland. It is southwest of Sandyford, at the northeastern foothills of the Dublin Mountains. The townland of Tiknock is in the electoral division An electoral (c ...

rifle range.

History

The house was built in the 18th century by the Southwell family and in 1787 was the residence of Irish politician and soldier William Southwell. Throughout the following century it was occupied by the Ponsonbys, down to 1896 and later by Professor

Stanley Lane-Poole Stanley Edward Lane-Poole (18 December 1854 – 29 December 1931) was a British orientalist and archaeologist. Biography Lane Poole was Born in London, England, the eldest of three children (two sons and a daughter) of Edward Stanley Poole (1830 ...

, the author of a number of works on Oriental art and numismatics. For many years down to 1946 it was the home of Lieutenant Algernon Gainsford of the

Seaforth Highlanders The Seaforth Highlanders (Ross-shire Buffs, the Duke of Albany's) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, mainly associated with large areas of the northern Highlands of Scotland. The regiment existed from 1881 to 1961, and saw service ...

. In 1986, the house was the site of recording by

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

band U2 for their album ''

The Joshua Tree ''The Joshua Tree'' is the fifth studio album by the Irish rock music, rock band U2. It was produced by Daniel Lanois and Brian Eno, and was released on 9 March 1987 by Island Records. In contrast to the ambient music, ambient experimentati ...

''. Bassist

Adam Clayton Adam Charles Clayton (born 13 March 1960) is an English-Irish musician who is the bass guitarist of the rock music, rock band U2. Born in Oxfordshire, England, he lived in County Dublin, Republic of Ireland, Ireland after his family moved to ...

purchased the house in 1988. Clayton built a small watchtower beside the 20-bed mansion, apparently based on the Cruagh Tower.

Features

The Brehon's Chair

Within the grounds, is an ancient monument known as the Brehon's Chair, consisting of three tall slabs about nine feet high enclosing a small square space. There was formerly another large slab supported by smaller ones lying to the north east but this was destroyed about 1876 by blasting. The existing remains are apparently the portal portion of a dolmen type of tomb and the stones which were removed would have been part of the destroyed chamber. A similar type of portal can be seen on a dolmen at Haroldstown in

County Carlow County Carlow ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county located in the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region of Ireland, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. Carlow is the List of Irish counties by area, second smallest and t ...

Constructions

Beside the Little Dargle is the remains of a tall narrow tower of which only one wall is now standing. This building was about nine feet square and the remaining wall with its battlements is about twenty five feet high. One jamb of a doorway with a pointed arch remains. A little over a hundred years ago this tower was in much better preservation and was surrounded by the old walls of other buildings from which it has been suggested that this was the site of the original Grange of the Harolds. The existing portion however is of very light construction and quite unsuitable for a building of that period and location, whether intended for domestic or ecclesiastical use. It was probably built in the eighteenth century for the better enjoyment of the view over

Dublin Bay Dublin Bay () is a C-shaped inlet of the Irish Sea on the east coast of Ireland. The bay is about 10 kilometres wide along its north–south base, and 7 km in length to its apex at the centre of the city of Dublin; stretching from Howth He ...

. Beside the house is an octagonal building with a cellar underneath. It is now filled up with boughs and brushwood to prevent cattle falling through but is said to be elliptical in shape and was apparently an ice house. On the other side of the brook there is a fine arched gateway in cut stone leading into the pasture land.

External links

{{coord, 53.26523, N, 6.262449, W, type:landmark_region:IE, display=title Rathfarnham Houses in the Republic of Ireland