The evolution from fortified to country house in Ireland

Summary

The paper summarizes the new architecture in three areas of Ireland during the early seventeenth century: the Ulster plantation, the Midland plantations, and the large areas outside of the plantations. A new but a distinct architecture of semi-fortified plantation houses emerged in this period. These houses sometimes had mannerist classical details of entrances, but usually no overall classical design. However, increasingly, the major plantation houses were set in impressive symmetrical enclosures.  Remarkably, these changes took place across very different backgrounds of owners of estates, the incoming English and Scottish settlers, the Old English who had been resident in Ireland since Norman times, and descendants of Gaelic lords.  Starting during the Commonwealth, less defensible country houses emerged in a more classically inspired style, following the examples of English architects such as Hugh May. Ireland’s country house architecture ceased to have an authentic Irish style distinct from that in Britain.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Cultural transformations in early modern Ireland, an archaeological perspective   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2013

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Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): 736