Stackallen House Architectural Conservation Area
Historical Development
Stackallan House is one of the very few surviving classical Irish country houses from the early eighteenth century. ( c. 1716 ) and reflects both classical and northern European influences.
The house has important historical connections with Gustavus Hamilton a noted Protestant politician in Irish affairs during the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries. Hamilton commanded a regiment of Williamite soldiers at the Battle of the Boyne (1690) and later rose to become a Major General in the English Army and fought against Louis XIV of France. The lands of Stackallan formed the nucleus of the manor of Stackallan where, in the fiftenth century, Sir Barnaby Barnewall had constructed a castle and church. The castle was later absorbed into the present house.
Built form and materials
The demesne includes fine outbuildings of rubble stone with brick detailing, some with high pitched roofs and tall brick diamond shaped chimneystacks, a walled garden, gates lodges, entrance gates and demesne walls.
The current owners have carried out extensive work in recent years, in the conservation of the existing buildings and grounds, and of particular note is the introduction of new demesne features – a classical folly in the grounds, and a canal in the gardens.
Objectives:
- To preserve the character of the demesne, its designed landscape and built features, by limiting the extent of new development permitted within the demesne and requiring that any such development, both within the demesne and in the surrounding area, should not have an adverse affect on the special qualities of the demesne.
- To require that all works, whether of maintenance and repair, additions or alterations to existing buildings or built features within the demesne shall protect the character of those buildings and features by the use of appropriate materials and workmanship.