Monivea Castle
| Monivea Castle | |
|---|---|
| Monivea, County Galway, Ireland | |
| Coordinates | 53°22′00″N 8°41′00″W / 53.36667°N 8.683333°W |
| Type | Tower house |
| Site information | |
| Open to the public |
Yes |
| Site history | |
| Materials | Stone |
| Events | Commemorative Mass in Mausoleum, 22 April, annually (anniversary of Robert Percy's death) |
Monivea Castle is a former O'Kelly tower house, located near Monivea in County Galway, Ireland. It was acquired by the ffrench family, one of the fourteen Tribes of Galway, who developed it further, enhancing the lands and building the Monivea Castle—all increasing the fortification around the original Norman tower.
Monivea Castle in its prime in 1876, occupied 10,121 acres of land, including the features of the tower house ruins, Monivea Castle itself, the ffrench Mausoleum and Monivea Woods. The demesne lands surrounding Monivea Castle were worked directly for the benefit of the landlord. Further outlying lands were rented out for farming. Estate farmers and domestic servants lived in the surrounding region, the town of Monivea taking shape from this initial population, homes and servicing merchant posts.
Monivea Castle resides in the midst of extensive woodlands, encompassed by a stone fence and five rows of enormous beech trees. Monivea Castle has two gate-lodges, one to the right of the main gate entry, where staff screened or welcomed visitors.
Set in a clearing amidst the trees of Monivea Wood, the ffrench Mausoleum and chapel was commissioned by Kathleen ffrench in honour of her late father, Robert Percy ffrench. In 1914, the Pope granted an indult, permitting official mass celebrations on special occasions and under special circumstances. Designed by architect Francis Persse (younger brother of Augusta Gregory), the mausoleum took four years to construct, at a cost of £10,000 (near two million in today's economy). Built of rough-granite blocks quarried in Wicklow, the structure resembles a small castle, approximately 25-feet-wide by 30-feet-high, with crenellation along the roofline, and featuring a back, left turret. Stone steps lead up to a gothic-archway and heavy oak door secured with decorative rod iron hinges.
Entering into the ffrench Mousoleum, strategically placed stained glass windows provide the only source of light and create a serene atmosphere. The building has no electricity. A central window, depicting the Resurrection, is set into the stone wall, behind the black and white marble altar bearing a carved Maltese cross. The east-facing triple-lancet stained-glass window is positioned so the rising sun lights upon the memorial sculpture. On each side wall, Munich-style stained glass windows illustrate twelve of the fourteen Tribes of Galway. All of the intricately designed windows were created by Franz Mayer & Co.—a famous German stained glass design and manufacturing company based in Munich. Mayer of Munich, still in business today, was the principal creator of stained glass for Roman Catholic churches constructed during the nineteenth and early twentieth century, including St. Peter's Basilica in Rome.
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Wikipedia