Curraghchase Forest Park
| Curraghchase Forest Park | |
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Entrance
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  Ireland
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| Location | Kilcornan, Limerick, Ireland |
| Coordinates | 52°35′40″N 8°52′15″W / 52.59444°N 8.87083°WCoordinates: 52°35′40″N 8°52′15″W / 52.59444°N 8.87083°W |
| Area | 774 acres (3 km2) |
| Governing body | Coillte |
Curraghchase is a 774-acre (3 km2) forest park located in County Limerick. It is 20 km from the city of Limerick, between the towns of Adare and Askeaton. The land was the Hunt/de Vere family estate for 300 years (1657–1957), including the period of the de Vere baronets, also serving as the home of renowned poet and critic Aubrey Thomas De Vere.
In the park area there are 8 classified sites; 1 cairn, 2 enclosures, 3 ringforts, 1 standing stone and the 18th century house probably built on the site of Curragh Castle which is mentioned in Desmond Roll.
The park consists of mainly broadleaf and mixed woodland with some mature conifer stands, parkland with some of the area under water. The woods occur on low limestone ridges. Conservation of rare Yew (Taxus Baccata) core area has also been ongoing together with other conservation initiatives including the development of a new Summer Bat Roost area for the Lesser Horseshoe Bat.
Curragh House (Curraghchase explained below) was built in 1657 by Vere Hunt, an officer in Oliver Cromwell's army and a descendant of the Earl of Oxford, who traced their lineage to Aubrey de Vere I, a tenant-in-chief in England of William the Conqueror in 1086. Hunt was granted the land, which consisted of 380 acres (1.5 km2) originally owned by John Fitzgerald, as one of the Cromwellian plantations.
The estate remained home of the Hunt/De Vere family for over 300 years. The existing house dates from the early nineteenth century, rebuilt by Sir Aubrey (Hunt) de Vere, 2nd Baronet.
The estate was originally called Curragh (meaning 'marshy plain' in Irish). When the 2nd Baronet changed his surname by royal licence to de Vere in 1833 to reflect his de Veres of Oxford lineage, he also changed the name of the property from Curragh to Curraghchase. The 2nd Baronet was a noted poet, and his third son, Aubrey Thomas De Vere, is a renowned poet and critic.
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