Tullynally Castle, also known as Pakenham Hall, is a

country house image:Blenheim - Blenheim Palace - 20210417125239.jpg, 300px, Blenheim Palace - Oxfordshire An English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a Townhou ...

situated some 2 km from

Castlepollard Castlepollard ( or ''Cionn Toirc'') is a village in north County Westmeath, Ireland. It lies west of Lough Lene and northeast of Lough Derravaragh and Mullingar. Name The name ''Castlepollard'' comes from the name of a castle or fortified m ...

on the Coole village road in

County Westmeath County Westmeath (; or simply ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It formed part of the historic Kingdom of ...

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 ...

. The Gothic-style building has over 120 rooms and has been home to the Pakenham family (now the

Earls of Longford Earl of Longford is a title that has been created twice in the Peerage of Ireland. History The title was first bestowed upon Francis Aungier, 3rd Baron Aungier of Longford, in 1677, with remainder to his younger brother Ambrose. He had previ ...

) for over 350 years. The house is surrounded by twelve acres of parkland and gardens, including

woodland garden A woodland garden is a garden or section of a garden that includes large trees and is laid out so as to appear as more or less natural woodland, though it is often actually an artificial creation. Typically it includes plantings of flowering shrub ...

s and

walled garden A walled garden is a garden enclosed by high walls, especially when this is done for horticultural rather than security purposes, although originally all gardens may have been enclosed for protection from animal or human intruders. In temperate c ...

s laid out in the early 19th century with a limestone grotto and ornamental lakes. In the 21st century, a Chinese garden with a pagoda and a Tibetan garden of waterfalls and streams have been added. The site entrance from the public road is situated 1.5 km outside

on the

Granard Granard () is a town in the north of County Longford, Ireland, and has a traceable history going back to 236 CE. It is situated just south of the boundary between the watersheds of the Shannon and the Erne, at the point where the N55 ...

road 20 km from

Mullingar Mullingar ( ; ) is the county town of County Westmeath in Ireland. It is the third most populous town in the Midland Region, Ireland, Midland Region, with a population of 22,667 in the 2022 census of Ireland, 2022 census. The Counties of M ...

, 80 km from

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

via the N4 or N3 roads. The grounds are open to the public from April to September.

History

In 1665 Henry Pakenham, a captain in the Parliamentary Dragoons, was granted land in lieu of pay arrears that included Tullynally. His grandson

Thomas Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the A ...

was created the 1st Baron Longford in 1756. Thomas's grandson, another

and 3rd Baron Longford, also inherited the superior title of 2nd

Earl of Longford Earl of Longford is a title that has been created twice in the Peerage of Ireland. History The title was first bestowed upon Francis Aungier, 3rd Baron Aungier of Longford, in 1677, with remainder to his younger brother Ambrose. He had previ ...

in January 1794 from his grandmother, The 1st Countess of Longford. The 2nd Earl remodelled the 17th-century house in the

Gothic Revival Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an Architectural style, architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half ...

style in the early nineteenth-century, adding towers and a moat. It was by then larger than any other castellated house in Ireland. Since then, the house has passed down through successive generations of Pakenhams to the present head of the family, The 8th Earl of Longford, and is the largest house in private hands in Ireland. The senior

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

commander,

General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

Sir Edward Pakenham Major general (United Kingdom), Major-General Sir Edward Michael Pakenham, (19 March 1778 – 8 January 1815), was a British Army officer and politician. He was the son of Edward Pakenham, 2nd Baron Longford, the Baron Longford and the brothe ...

, GCB, was born and brought up in the house. His elder sister, Kitty, was married to Major-General Sir Arthur Wellesley in 1806. Wellesley subsequently became

Field Marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army (in countries without the rank of Generalissimo), and as such, few persons a ...

The 1st Duke of Wellington.

Other Westmeath castles

Ballinlough Castle Ballinlough Castle is a 17th-century country house situated near the rural town of Clonmellon in County Westmeath, Ireland on a hill overlooking two of the Westmeath lakes. It is the home of Nicholas and Alice Nugent. History While a castle ...

* Delvin Castle *

Killua Castle Killua Castle, and the nearby Raleigh Obelisk, are situated near Clonmellon, County Westmeath, Ireland. The present house was built in about 1780 by Sir Benjamin Chapman and consisted of a hall, dining room, oval drawing room, breakfast parlo ...

* Knockdrin Castle *

Tyrrellspass Castle Tyrrellspass Castle is a medieval castle in Tyrrellspass, County Westmeath, Ireland. Dating back to circa 1411, it is the only remaining castle of the Tyrrells who came to Ireland around the time of the Norman Invasion. Architecture The cas ...

References

External links

Tullynally Castle and Gardens
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