Almost every county in Ireland has a Big House that was once home to local landlords. These houses were surrounded by large estates that were rented to tenants. The majority were built around the 18th and 19th centuries.
In the early 19th century the majority of land in Ireland was owned by a small number of landlords who lived in these large homes and these buildings became the symbol of colonisation in the country.
During the War of Independence and the Civil War, a large number of these ‘colonisation symbols’ were burned or destroyed and only a few remain fully intact.
Across five episodes from tonight, Nationwide will cover the story of Big Houses of Ireland with Donal Byrne visiting one such house in Wexford; Ballyrankin House, Bunclody Co. Wexford.
Donal spoke to Alan on Morning Mix today and said that the house in Bunclody will feature tonight and it will tell the story of the owners Walter Clarmount Skrine and his wife Agnes. The house was burnt down during the War of Independence on 8th July 1921 as Walter, Agnes and the family watched.
The family then bought a nearby residence and called it “New Ballyrankin”.
Other houses that feature on the series include Castletown House, Co. Kildare and Moore Hall Co. Mayo.
The Big Houses series will shown on Nationwide tonight AT 7PM, Monday 6th November and again on the 8th, 10th, 13th and 15th on RTE One.
