Tullynally Castle

Welcome to Tullynally Castle, an architectural marvel nestled in the heart of County Westmeath. As you stand before this imposing facade, you are looking at the largest house in private ownership in Ireland. …

Stepping inside, we find ourselves in the Great Hall, a room that serves as the intellectual and social spine of the castle. This space is characterized by its lofty ceilings and an array of family portraits that gaze down from…

As we move into the Dining Room, the atmosphere shifts to one of formal elegance and theatrical display. This room was designed specifically to impress the guests of the Earl of Longford. …

The Drawing Room offers a glimpse into the gendered social customs of the Georgian and Victorian eras. Following the strict etiquette of the time, the ladies would 'withdraw' to this room after dinner, leaving the men in the…

Venturing into the Victorian Kitchen, we enter the engine room of the castle. In the 1840s and 50s, this space was at the forefront of domestic technology. …

The Laundry at Tullynally is an extraordinary survival of industrial-scale domestic labor. This was not a simple chore but a full-scale operation required to maintain the standards of a hundred-room castle. …

Finally, we step outside into the magnificent gardens, which today are as famous as the castle itself. Thomas Pakenham, the current Earl, is a renowned arboriculturist, and the estate is home to a fabulous collection of rare and…

As our journey through Tullynally Castle concludes, we are left with a profound sense of the continuity of Irish history. This is a place where the enlightenment values of science and progress, represented by Richard Lovell…