Richhill Castle is a 17th-century Grade A listed country house in the large village of Richhill, in the townland of Legacorry, Armagh, Northern Ireland roughly halfway between Armagh and Portadown. It is a two-storey building with a gabled attic in the high pitched roof. It consists of a 5-bay central range flanked by two wings, all with Dutch-style gables.

History

The Legacorry estate was acquired in 1610 by Francis Sacherevall, a planter from Leicestershire, who constructed a house on the 1000-acre site. The property passed down to his granddaughter Anne, who had married Major Edward Richardson. The present house was constructed between 1664 and 1669 for Major Richardson, who served as MP for

County Armagh County Armagh (, named after its county town, Armagh) is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. Adjoined to the southern shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of and has ...

from 1661 to 1689 and was appointed

High Sheriff of Armagh The High Sheriff of Armagh is the Sovereign's judicial representative in County Armagh. Initially an office for lifetime, assigned by the Sovereign, the High Sheriff became annually appointed from the Provisions of Oxford in 1258. Besides his/her ...

for 1665–66. The estate and village then came to be known as Richhill. It was inherited by Edward's son

William William is a masculine given name of Norman French origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conq ...

, twice MP for Co. Armagh (1692–95 and 1715–27) and High Sheriff in 1690, who died without an heir in 1727. The property passed to his brother John and thence to John's grandson

, also MP for Co. Armagh from 1783 to 1798 and High Sheriff for 1777. He commissioned ornate gates and railings eighteen to twenty feet high topped with the Richardson family's Coat of Arms from the Thornberry Brothers of Armagh. These were removed in 1936 "for safe keeping" to

Hillsborough Castle Hillsborough Castle is an official government residence in Northern Ireland. It is the official residence of the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland,

, then the residence of the governor of Northern Ireland. William married twice and left three daughters, none of whom had children. The estate therefore passed in 1881 to the Richardson's of Rossfad House, Co. Fermanagh, inherited by Colonel John Mervyn Archdall Carleton Richardson, JP and Deputy Lieutenant and High Sheriff in 1888. Since that time there have been various owners, including Major Robert Gordon Berry, the Northern Ireland Education Authority and Sam Hewitt. Sam Hewitt sold it in 1959 to the Lyttle family, the present owners, who have restored much of the house and garden. There are plans to raise a trust fund and put the building into community use.

References

{{Places of Interest in County Armagh Country houses in Northern Ireland Buildings and structures in County Armagh Grade A listed buildings