Adare Manor is a 19th century manor house

Manor house

A manor house is a country house that historically formed the administrative centre of a manor, the lowest unit of territorial organisation in the feudal system in Europe. The term is applied to country houses that belonged to the gentry and other grand stately homes...

 located on the banks of the River Maigue

River Maigue

The River Maigue, rises in the Milford area of North County Cork, Ireland.It is joined by the small River Glen and the larger River Loobagh in south County Limerick. It then flows north through Bruree, after which it augmented by the River Morning Star...

 in the village of Adare

Adare

-General information:Adare's origin is as a settlement by a crossing point on the river Maigue. It is situated 16 km from Limerick City. Renowned as one of Ireland's prettiest villages, Adare is designated as a Heritage Town by the Irish government...

, County Limerick, Ireland, the former seat of the Earl of Dunraven and Mount-Earl

Earl of Dunraven and Mount-Earl

Earl of Dunraven and Mount-Earl was a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created on 5 February 1822 for Valentine Quin, 1st Viscount Mount-Earl. Quin was created a Baronet, of Adare in County Limerick, in the Baronetage of Ireland, in 1781, Baron Adare in 1800 and Viscount Mount-Earl in 1816...

, now a luxury resort hotel - the Adare Manor Hotel & Golf Resort.

Original Structure

The Quins, whose ancestors were Chiefs of the Clan Hy Ifearnan, gave their name to Inchiquin and also became Earls of Dunraven, and were one of the rare families of true Gaelic origin in the Irish peerage. Thady Quin (born 1645), who settled in Adare, was the ancestor of Valentine Quin who, between 1720 and 1730, built the first Quin manor at Adare by the River Maigue.

He was the grandfather of Valentine Richard Quin (1732–1824), 1st Earl of Dunraven. Windham Henry (1782–1850) married an heiress from Wales, Valentine Richard Quin, MP for Killmallock (1799–1800), who was created a Baronet of Great Britain in 1781 and was raised to the peerage in 1800 as Baron Adare. He was advanced to a Viscountcy in 1816 as Viscount Mount Earl and became Viscount Adare and the first Earl of Dunraven and Mount-earl on 5 February 1822. He had presumably chosen the title of ‘Dunraven’ in honour of his daughter-in-law, Caroline Wyndham, who had married his eldest son in 1810. His earldom lasted only two years and in 1824 his son, Windham Henry Quin

Windham Quin, 2nd Earl of Dunraven and Mount-Earl

Windham Henry Quin, 2nd Earl of Dunraven and Mount-Earl was an Irish Peer.The eldest son of Valentine Richard Quin, 1st Earl of Dunraven and Mount-Earl, he was styled Lord Adare from 1816 to 1822 and Viscount Adare thereafter until he succeeded to the Earldom on the death of his father in 1824.He...

, became the 2nd Earl of Dunraven and Mount-earl. The family name had officially become Wyndham-Quin in 1815. Gout prevented him from following the gentlemanly pursuits of fishing and shooting.

Current Manor

Instead, with his wife, the 2nd Earl of Dunraven rebuilt his home, turning it into a colossal Tudor manor. Begun in 1832, the magnificent structure provided labor for the surrounding villagers during the terrible potato famine that devastated the country during the mid-19th century. Though Lady Caroline went to great lengths to establish the myth that Adare Manor was planned entirely by her husband without an architect, it is fairly certain today that much of the design work was done by James Pain

James Pain

James Pain was born into a family of English architects. His grandfather was William Pain, his father James Pain and his brother George Richard Pain. James Pain served as an apprentice to the architect John Nash of London. James and George Richard were commissioned by the Board of First Fruits...

 who, along with Augustus Welby Pugin and Philip Charles Hardwick

Philip Charles Hardwick

-Life:Philip Charles Hardwick was a notable English architect of the 19th century who was once described as "a careful and industrious student of mediaeval art"...

, had been commissioned to design numerous public buildings and country homes. The actual construction was supervised by James Connolly

James Connolly (stonemason)

James Connolly, was an Irish stonemason, from Adare, County Limerick. He is best known for his work on Adare Manor in the 19th century.He supervised the construction of the building over a 21 year period...

, a local mason. An inscription on the east front of Adare Manor commemorates 'James Conolly of Adare, mason, faithful friend and servant of the Earl of Dunraven, from AD 1831 till his death in 1852'. The new house was built around the existing one, which was then demolished when the work reached its final stages. Sadly, Lord Dunraven did not live to see his dream Manor finished in 1862. Valentine's son, Edwin, 3rd Earl of Dunraven, a prominent archæologist, designed the garden.

1984 Sale

Thady Wyndham-Quin, 7th Earl of Dunraven and Mount-Earl (1939-2011), unable to bear the expense of maintaining Adare Manor, sold it and its contents in 1984 for a reputed 2 million. The house was purchased by Irish-American businessman Tom Kane and converted into the Adare Manor Hotel. Thady Quin, who was crippled by polio while a schoolboy, lived with his family in a nearby house called Kilgobbin House

Kilgobbin House

Kilgobbin House is a stately home in Adare, County Limerick, Ireland. It was the family home of Thady Wyndham-Quin, 7th Earl of Dunraven and Mount-Earl, who formerly owned Adare Manor....

. The house and its grounds were used for the 1977 comedy film The Last Remake of Beau Geste

The Last Remake of Beau Geste

The Last Remake of Beau Geste is a 1977 American historical comedy film. It starred and was also directed and co-written by Marty Feldman. It is a satire loosely based on the novel Beau Geste, a frequently-filmed story of brothers and their adventures in the French Foreign Legion. The humor is...

, starring Marty Feldman

Marty Feldman

Martin Alan "Marty" Feldman was an English comedy writer, comedian and actor who starred in a series of British television comedy shows, including At Last the 1948 Show, and Marty, which won two BAFTA awards and was the first Saturn Award winner for Best Supporting Actor for his role in Young...

, Ann-Margret

Ann-Margret

Ann-Margret Olsson is a Swedish-American actress, singer and dancer whose professional name is Ann-Margret. She became famous for her starring roles in Bye Bye Birdie, Viva Las Vegas, The Cincinnati Kid, Carnal Knowledge, and Tommy...

 and Michael York

Michael York

Michael York may refer to:* Michael York , English actor* Michael York * Michael York , Australian former field hockey defender* Mike York , ice hockey player...

.

The house is set on a 840 acres (3.4 km²) estate and now operates as a five star hotel, featuring the Adare Golf Club, Elemis Treatment Rooms, Townhouses and Villas on the rest of the resort. President Bill Clinton

Bill Clinton

William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...

 stayed in Adare Manor in September 1998. The Manor was voted Ireland's Leading Hotel in the World Travel Awards.

Golf

The Adare Golf Club, an 18-hole championship course designed by Robert Trent Jones, Sr.

Robert Trent Jones

Robert Trent Jones, Sr. was a golf course architect who designed about 500 golf courses in at least 40 US states and 35 other countries all around the world...

, was added to the resort in 1995, and was the venue for the Irish Open

Irish Open (golf)

The Irish Open is a professional golf tournament on the European Tour, currently played at the end of July or early August each year. The event has been played in many locations on the island; its current home is the Killarney Golf & Fishing Club in County Kerry in southwestern Ireland...

in 2007 and 2008.

The Adare Manor Golf Club, which was established in 1900, is not part of the Adare Manor Resort.

External links

• Adare Manor Hotel - official site
• Adare Golf Club - official site