Galtee Castle was a
mansion
A mansion is a large dwelling house. The word itself derives through Old French from the Latin word ''mansio'' "dwelling", an abstract noun derived from the verb ''manere'' "to dwell". The English word ''manse'' originally defined a property l ...
that was situated on the foothills of the
Galtee Mountains
Galtymore or Galteemore () is a mountain in the province of Munster, Ireland. At , it is one of Ireland's highest mountains, being the 12th-highest on the Arderin list, and 14th-highest on the Vandeleur-Lynam list. Galtymore has the 4th-highe ...
at
Skeheenarinky in
County Tipperary
County Tipperary () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. The county is named after the town of Tipperary (tow ...
,
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 ...
approximately 10 km. from
Mitchelstown
Mitchelstown () is a town in the north of County Cork, Ireland with a population of over 3,740. It is situated in the valley to the south of the Galtee Mountains. Mitchelstown is 13 km south-west of the Mitchelstown Cave, 53 km nor ...
.
Origins
The original structure was built as a hunting lodge for the 2nd
Earl of Kingston
Earl of Kingston is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1768 for Edward King, 1st Earl of Kingston, Edward King, 1st Viscount Kingston. The Earl holds the subsidiary titles Baron Kingston, of Rockingham in the County of Rosc ...
around 1780. The 3rd Earl further remodeled it (c.1825).
In the 1850s, the Kingstons were forced to sell off vast amounts of their
landed estate
In real estate, a landed property or landed estate is a property that generates income for the owner (typically a member of the gentry) without the owner having to do the actual work of the estate.
In medieval Western Europe, there were two compe ...
due to debts, including the lodge and approximately surrounding it.
This became a new estate, the majority of which remained leased to
tenant farmers.
The building was remodeled and expanded c.1892 when its new owner
Abel Buckley inherited the estate from his brother
Nathaniel
Nathaniel is an English variant of the biblical Hebrew name
A name is a term used for identification by an external observer. They can identify a class or category of things, or a single thing, either uniquely, or within a given context. ...
, he had previously purchased sole ownership in 1873.
Destruction
The
Land Commission
The Irish Land Commission was created by the British crown in 1843 to "inquire into the occupation of the land in Ireland. The office of the commission was in Dublin Castle, and the records were, on its conclusion, deposited in the records tower ...
; a government agency, acquired the demesne and house in the late 1930s, after allocating the land between afforestation and farmers, the house was offered for sale. The commission accepted an offer from Fr. Tobin of
Glanworth, County Cork, who wished to use the stone and the slates to build a new church in his parish. The building was thus torn down and dismantled c. 1941.
Today very little is left on the site of the former house; some of the lower base foundations are all that remain. Nearby are some estate cottages and two gate houses. The woods and trails around the site have been developed as a public amenity area known as Galtee Castle Woods.
[{{cite web , title=Galty Castle, url=https://www.coillte.ie/sites/galty-castle/ , website=coillte.ie , access-date=5 January 2022]
Related
*
Mitchelstown Castle
References
External links
Galtee Castle Woods: tourist information
Castles in County Tipperary
Former castles in the Republic of Ireland