The current Tandragee Castle,

Tandragee Tandragee () is a town in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. It is on a hillside above the Cusher River, and is overlooked by Tandragee Castle. The town is in the Civil parishes in Ireland, civil parish of Ballymore, County Armagh, Ballymore and t ...

County Armagh County Armagh ( ) is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. It is located in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster and adjoins the southern shore of Lough Neagh. It borders t ...

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

, was rebuilt in 1837 by

George Montagu, 6th Duke of Manchester George Montagu, 6th Duke of Manchester DL (9 July 1799 – 18 August 1855), known as Viscount Mandeville from 1799 to 1843, was a British peer and Tory Member of Parliament. Early life George Montagu was born at Kimbolton Castle, Huntingdo ...

as the family's Irish home. The 6th

Duke of Manchester Duke of Manchester is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain, and the current senior title of the House of Montagu. It was created in 1719 for the politician Charles Montagu, 4th Earl of Manchester. Manchester Parish in Jamaica was named aft ...

acquired the estate through his marriage to Millicent Sparrow (1798–1848).

Past and present owners

The past and present owners of Tandragee Castle are: * 1610: Sir Oliver St. John, 1st Viscount Grandison * 1630: Sir John St. John, 1st Baronet * 1648: Henry St John of Tandragee * Robert Sparrow *

Robert Bernard Sparrow Lady Olivia Sparrow (née Acheson) (1776–1863) was an Anglo-Irish landowner and philanthropist, widowed in 1805. She was a prominent evangelical, belonging to 29 societies engaged in related causes, and a friend of both Hannah More and William ...

* 1805:

Lady Olivia Sparrow Lady Olivia Sparrow (née Acheson) (1776–1863) was an Anglo-Irish landowner and philanthropist, widowed in 1805. She was a prominent evangelical, belonging to 29 societies engaged in related causes, and a friend of both Hannah More and William ...

* 1822: Millicent Sparrow &

(rebuilt the castle) * 1855:

William Montagu, 7th Duke of Manchester William Drogo Montagu, 7th Duke of Manchester KP (15 October 1823 – 22 March 1890), known as Lord Kimbolton from 1823 to 1843 and as Viscount Mandeville from 1843 to 1855, was a British peer and Conservative Member of Parliament. Early life ...

* 1882:

George Montagu, 8th Duke of Manchester George may refer to: Names * George (given name) * George (surname) People * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Papagheorghe, also known as Jorge / GEØRGE * George, stage name of Gior ...

* 1890:

William Montagu, 9th Duke of Manchester William Angus Drogo Montagu, 9th Duke of Manchester PC (3 March 1877 – 9 February 1947), styled Lord Kimbolton from 1877 to 1890 and Viscount Mandeville from 1890 to 1892, was a British peer and Liberal politician. He served as Captain of t ...

* 1940s:

Alexander Montagu, 10th Duke of Manchester Commander Alexander George Francis Drogo Montagu, 10th Duke of Manchester, OBE, RN (2 October 1902 – 23 November 1977) was a Royal Navy officer and British hereditary peer. From birth until February 1947, he was known by the courtesy title of ...

* 1955: Thomas Hutchinson

History

During the

Plantation of Ulster The Plantation of Ulster (; Ulster Scots dialects, Ulster Scots: ) was the organised Settler colonialism, colonisation (''Plantation (settlement or colony), plantation'') of Ulstera Provinces of Ireland, province of Irelandby people from Great ...

the castle at Tandragee became the property of Sir Oliver St John,

Lord Deputy of Ireland The Lord Deputy was the representative of the monarch and head of the Irish executive (government), executive under English rule, during the Lordship of Ireland and then the Kingdom of Ireland. He deputised prior to 1523 for the Viceroy of Ireland ...

. He rebuilt the original stronghold of the O'Hanlon Clan. During the

Irish Rebellion of 1641 The Irish Rebellion of 1641 was an uprising in Kingdom of Ireland, Ireland, initiated on 23 October 1641 by Catholic gentry and military officers. Their demands included an end to anti-Catholic discrimination, greater Irish self-governance, and ...

, however, the O'Hanlons attempted to regain their lands – the result was the castle being ruined; it remained so for two hundred years. Tandragee Castle underwent reconstruction around 1837, following its destruction during the Irish Rebellion of 1641, commissioned by George Montagu, the 6th Duke of Manchester. In 1928, Alexander Montagu, 10th Duke of Manchester, left the castle until the outbreak of World War II.

World War II

In 1943, Alexander Montagu leased Tandragee Castle to the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

for use during World War II. Reports suggest that General George S. Patton was a visitor to the castle in 1943. While inspecting troops in Northern Ireland, he was guest of honour at a dance in the castle.

Present day

The castle and estate were sold by Alexander Montagu, 10th Duke of Manchester (who was born at Tandragee) in the 1950s, and it was purchased by Thomas Hutchinson, a businessman from Tandragee who founded Tayto. Today, the castle houses offices for the Tayto

potato crisp Potato chips (North American English and Australian English; often just chip) or crisp (British English and Hiberno-English) are thin slices of potato (or a thin deposit of potato paste) that has been deep fried, baked, or air fried until c ...

factory and the park's

demesne A demesne ( ) or domain was all the land retained and managed by a lord of the manor under the feudal system for his own use, occupation, or support. This distinguished it from land subinfeudation, sub-enfeoffed by him to others as sub-tenants. ...

incorporates a golf course.

References

{{Places of Interest in County Armagh Houses completed in 1837 Castles in County Armagh Grade B1 listed buildings