Monkstown, Dublin
Encyclopedia
Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown
Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown is a county in Ireland. It is one of three smaller counties into which County Dublin was divided in 1994. Located to the south-east of Dublin city, its county seat is the town of Dún Laoghaire. It is one of the four constituent parts of the Dublin Region...
County, Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
. It is on the coast, between Blackrock and Dún Laoghaire
Dún Laoghaire
Dún Laoghaire or Dún Laoire , sometimes anglicised as "Dunleary" , is a suburban seaside town in County Dublin, Ireland, about twelve kilometres south of Dublin city centre. It is the county town of Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County and a major port of entry from Great Britain...
. The DART
Dublin Area Rapid Transit
The Dublin Area Rapid Transit is part of the suburban railway network in Ireland, running mainly along the coastline of Dublin Bay on the Trans-Dublin route, from Greystones in County Wicklow, through Dublin to Howth and Malahide in County Dublin.Trains are powered via a 1500V DC overhead catenary...
stations of Seapoint and Salthill and Monkstown serve the area.
The lands of the Carrickbrennan estate form the greater part of the civil parish of Monkstown.
Monkstown is part of the Dáil Éireann
Dáil Éireann
Dáil Éireann is the lower house, but principal chamber, of the Oireachtas , which also includes the President of Ireland and Seanad Éireann . It is directly elected at least once in every five years under the system of proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote...
constituency of Dún Laoghaire
Dún Laoghaire (Dáil Éireann constituency)
Dún Laoghaire is a parliamentary constituency represented in Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Irish parliament or Oireachtas. The constituency elects 4 deputies...
.
History
In 1539, King Henry VIII awarded the Monkstown lands to Sir John Travers, Master of the Ordnance in Ireland. John Travers lived in his Castle at Monkstown from 1557 to his death in 1562 and buried in the Carrickbrennan Graveyard where the property fell to James Eustace 3rd Viscount Baltinglass through his marriage to Mary Travers. In 1580, the Castle was used as a rebellion stronghold, after which it was awarded to Sir Henry Wallop, Vice-Treasurer of Ireland. The lands were later returned to Mary, the widow Baltinglass, who later married Gerald Alymer. On her death in 1610 the Castle was transferred to the Chevers family through the marriage of Mary Travers's sister Catherine to John Chevers, and the property passed directly to his second son Henry Chevers, who married Catherine, daughter of Sir Richard Fitzwilliam. Henry and Catherine Chevers lived here with their four children (Walter, Thomas, Patrick, Margaret).Upon the death of Henry in 1640, the castle and lands were passed to Walter Cheevers. Walter and family were given command to vacate Monkstown in 1653 by the Cromwellian Commissioners, and transplanted to Killyan, County Galway
County Galway
County Galway is a county in Ireland. It is located in the West Region and is also part of the province of Connacht. It is named after the city of Galway. Galway County Council is the local authority for the county. There are several strongly Irish-speaking areas in the west of the county...
. In 1660, Walter Chevers was restored to his estate at Monkstown Castle, until his death in 1678.The Shivers family of America trace their lineage to Thomas Chevers brother of Walter Chevers of Monkstown, through the Cromwellian warrant, authorized on 26 November 1653 for Captain John Whittey to transport the Thomas Chevers family to America.
Monkstown was later purchased by Bishop of Armagh Michael Boyle
Michael Boyle (the younger)
Michael Boyle, the younger , archbishop of Armagh, eldest son of Richard Boyle, Archbishop of Tuam, and nephew of the elder Michael, was born about 1609....
where his son Murragh, Viscount Blessington
Viscount Blessington
Viscount Blesington, in the County of Wicklow, was a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created on 23 August 1673 for Murrough Boyle. He was the son of Michael Boyle, Archbishop of Armagh, eldest son of Richard Boyle, Archbishop of Tuam. He was created Baron Boyle, in the County of Wicklow, at...
enlarged the castle making it one of the finest residences.
Until about 1800, Monkstown was a rural area of open countryside, dotted here and there with large houses owned by the merchants of Dublin. The Monkstown Church (Church of Ireland)
Monkstown Church, Dublin
Monkstown Church is a church of the Church of Ireland located in Monkstown, County Dublin, Ireland.-History:The original church on this site was opened in 1789 and was a very simple church. In 1825 it was decided to rebuild the church and the architect John Semple of the Board of First Fruits was...
had been built - but was smaller than the present church. Two rivers met in the area now called Pakenham Road. The river known as Micky Briens originated in Sallynoggin. A lake beside Monkstown Castle had one small island. The coastline was ragged and rocky, with a harbour stretching over 100 yards inland at the mouth of the aforementioned rivers, adjacent to the area now occupied by the West Pier. Dun Laoghaire (then called Dunleary, and later Kingstown) was then a small group of houses in the area of the Purty Kitchen, and the present area of Dún Laoghaire was an area of rocky outcrops and later, quarries.
Wednesday, November 18, 1807 was South Dublin's night of disasters. In an horrific storm, two sailing ships, the Rochdale and the Prince of Wales were blown on to the rocks, one at Seapoint and the other at Blackrock. About 400 lives in total were lost on that night, many of them washed up on the shore at Monkstown. The disaster was one of the factors which led to the building of Dun Laoghaire Harbour. Most of the victims were buried in Carrickbrennan Churchyard
Carrickbrennan Churchyard
Carrickbrennan Churchyard located on Carrickbrennan Road, Monkstown, County Dublin, Ireland is a graveyard that can still be seen today, but is no longer in use. It is notable as the burial place of many people who perished in local maritime disasters...
.
The building of Dun Laoghaire harbour gave an impetus to the area, and Montpelier Terrace was the first of many terraces built in the area. The coming of the railway in 1837 had a much greater impact. Firstly, it changed the topology of the coast, and secondly, it led to Monkstown becoming a commuter suburb of the city of Dublin. Most of the houses along Monkstown Road and the avenues north of that road were constructed over the next 30 years. The maps of 1870 show this phase completed, but the rest of Monkstown consists of mansions surrounded by extensive gardens. For the following 50 years there was little change. The post-war developments of Castle Park, Richmond, Windsor, etc. and the more recent developments of Brook Court, Monkstown Valley, and Carrickbrennan Lawn mean that there is little opportunity for further development.
Documentary references
- Monkstown is first mentioned in 1450; Tenants Cistercians at Carrickbrennan, Villa Monachorum.
- Carrickbrennan, or "Carigbrenna", features on the 1598 map "A Modern Depiction of Ireland, One of the British Isles" by Abraham OrteliusAbraham Orteliusthumb|250px|Abraham Ortelius by [[Peter Paul Rubens]]Abraham Ortelius thumb|250px|Abraham Ortelius by [[Peter Paul Rubens]]Abraham Ortelius (Abraham Ortels) thumb|250px|Abraham Ortelius by [[Peter Paul Rubens]]Abraham Ortelius (Abraham Ortels) (April 14, 1527 – June 28,exile in England to take...
. - Records of the Abbey of the Blessed Virgin Mary 1640.
- Forfeiting Proprietors under the Cromwellian Settlement 1657.
- In James Joyce's "The Dead," Gabriel Conroy and his wife Gretta live in Monkstown.
Noted buildings
Church of Ireland
The Church of Ireland is an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. The church operates in all parts of Ireland and is the second largest religious body on the island after the Roman Catholic Church...
(1831) and Saint Patrick's Catholic Church (1866), both on Carrickbrennan Road. Also established in the modern era are Saint John's Church of the Society of Saint Pius X located at Gamble's Hill, the Kingdom Hall of the Jehovah's Witnesses at Monkstown Farm, and the Meeting Hall of the Society of Friends at the junction of Packenham Road and Carrickbrennan Road. There is also the Friends Burial Ground (Quaker)
Friends Burial Ground, Dublin
The Friends Burial Ground is a Quaker burial ground located at Temple Hill, Blackrock, Dublin. It opened in 1860 and is the only Quaker burial ground in Dublin.-History:...
located at Temple Hill just off Monkstown Road.
Monkstown Castle, which was probably built in the 12th or 13th centuries, was erected by the monks of the abbey of the Virgin Mary, near Dublin.
Monkstown is also noted for its beautiful coastline, which displays many historical buildings of the Georgian and Edwardian periods. One of the most notable buildings of the Salthill and Monkstown area is a Martello Tower
Martello tower
Martello towers are small defensive forts built in several countries of the British Empire during the 19th century, from the time of the Napoleonic Wars onwards....
, located at Seapoint beach.
Sports
Monkstown Lawn Tennis Club was founded in 1877. It was the first tennis club in Ireland.Monkstown Football Club
Monkstown Football Club
Monkstown Football Club is an Irish rugby club based in Dublin. They currently play in Division One of the Leinster League.In addition to the First XV, they also have Second , Third and Fourth XV's, a mini rugby section and a Golden Oldies team.-History:The club was founded in 1883 in Monkstown...
was founded in the village in 1883 before moving to Sandymount
Sandymount
Sandymount is a coastal seaside suburb in Dublin 4 on the Southside of Dublin in Ireland. It is in the Dublin South East Dáil constituency and the East Pembroke Ward. It was once part of Pembroke Township, which took its name from the fact that this area was part of the estate of the Earl of...
in 1901.
Monkstown (Dublin) Boxing Club was founded in 2004, their gym is situated in the newly built Mounttown Community Centre in Fitzgerald Park, in the Monkstown Farm Area.
Farm Utd Football Club was form in 1935, and uses part of the Monkstown Community Centre as its dressing rooms.
Culture
Monkstown has a locally known puppetPuppet
A puppet is an inanimate object or representational figure animated or manipulated by an entertainer, who is called a puppeteer. It is used in puppetry, a play or a presentation that is a very ancient form of theatre....
theatre named Lambert Puppet Theatre
Lambert Puppet Theatre
The Lambert Puppet Theatre & Museum is a puppet theatre located in Monkstown, County Dublin, Ireland. It is a family run business established in 1972 by Eugene Lambert, and hosts an international puppet festival annually. It used to produce children's television series on Radio Telefís Éireann,...
, a family-run business. Every year the puppet theatre hosts an international puppet festival. It used to run series on national television, RTÉ. Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
once saw a puppet show in this theatre.
Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann
Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann
Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann is the primary Irish organisation dedicated to the promotion of the music, song, dance and the language of Ireland. The name of the organisation is often abbreviated to Comhaltas or CCÉ...
, an organisation promoting Irish culture (particularly Irish traditional music
Folk music of Ireland
The folk music of Ireland is the generic term for music that has been created in various genres in Ireland.-History:...
), has its headquarters in Monkstown, as does BirdWatch Ireland
BirdWatch Ireland
BirdWatch Ireland is the current name of the organisation that used to be known as the Irish Wildbird Conservancy.BirdWatch Ireland is the leading voluntary conservation organisation in the Republic of Ireland, devoted to the conservation and protection of the Republic of Ireland's wild birds and...
.
Education
A multi-denominational primary school, Monkstown Educate Together National School (METNS), a fee paying Congregation of Christian BrothersCongregation of Christian Brothers
The Congregation of Christian Brothers is a worldwide religious community within the Catholic Church, founded by Blessed Edmund Rice. The Christian Brothers, as they are commonly known, chiefly work for the evangelisation and education of youth, but are involved in many ministries, especially with...
School, CBC Monkstown Park, and Holy Family National School are located in the Monkstown area. A Gaelscoil
Gaelscoil
A gaelscoil is an Irish-medium primary school in Ireland, of a sort found outside the traditionally Irish-speaking regions, especially in urban areas....
is also located in Monkstown, Scoil Lorcáin
Scoil Lorcáin
Scoil Lorcáin is an all-Irish voluntary primary gaelscoil which is located in Monkstown, County Dublin, Republic of Ireland. It prides itself in the Irish culture and teaches all subjects except English through the means of the Irish language. The school is financed by resources from the Department...
, teaching all classes through Irish
Irish language
Irish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people, as well as being a second language of a larger proportion of...
.
St. Oliver Plunkett N.S is a school for children with a Specific Learning Difficulty (SLD). This school caters for children from a wide catchment area.
Christian Brother's College
C.B.C. Monkstown
Christian Brothers College, Monkstown Park is a voluntary fee-paying Catholic school and Independent Junior school, founded in 1856 in Monkstown, Dún Laoghaire, County Dublin, Ireland. The school fees are approximately €4,700 per annum. The college arrived at Monkstown Park in 1950 from Eblana...
consists of two schools; an Independent preparatory school with over 200 students and a secondary school with more than 500 students. CBC caters for boys from junior infants through sixth year. It is to be demolished and rebuilt in the coming years.
Transport
An AircoachAircoach
Aircoach is a Republic of Ireland based subsidiary company of the United Kingdom based FirstGroup. It provides airport bus express coach services from Cork, Greystones, Bray, South Dublin and Dublin City Centre to Dublin Airport. It also operates contracted bus service for airport car parks...
service starting in Dalkey links the area with Dublin Airport 24 hours a day.
People
Sir William Parsons, 3rd Earl of RosseWilliam Parsons, 3rd Earl of Rosse
William Parsons, 3rd Earl of Rosse, Knight of the Order of St Patrick was an Irish astronomer who had several telescopes built. His 72-inch telescope "Leviathan", built 1845, was the world's largest telescope until the early 20th century.-Life:He was born in Yorkshire, England, in the city of...
(1800–1867) lived at 1 Eaton Place, and built several telescopes, including the world's largest telescope in 1845 which remained the world's largest for the rest of the century. Using this telescope he saw and catalogued a large number of galaxies.
Alfred Gresham Jones (1824?-1913) was an Irish architect who designed Merrion Hall on Merrion Street Lower, now the Davenport hotel, in 1862 and designed the villa Verona in Queen's Park in 1873. He lived at Queen's Park House from 1869-1872, at Clifton Lodge on Seafield Ave 1873-1876, at Villa Carlotta on Queen's Park 1886-1888, after which he emigrated to Australia.
Richard Pigott (1835-1889) lived at 7 De Vesci Terrace. He was an Irish journalist, best known for selling the Pigott forgeries.
Sir Howard Grubb
Howard Grubb
Sir Howard Grubb FRS was an optical designer from Dublin, Ireland. He was head of a family firm that made large optical telescopes, telescope drive controls, and other optical instruments...
(1844-1931) was a designer and maker of telescopes. He lived at De Vesci Terrace, and from 1925, at 13 Longford Terrace, which now bears a plaque.
- The Edge.
- Chris DeBurgh.
- Sinéad O'ConnorSinéad O'ConnorSinéad Marie Bernadette O'Connor is an Irish singer-songwriter. She rose to fame in the late 1980s with her debut album The Lion and the Cobra and achieved worldwide success in 1990 with a cover of the song "Nothing Compares 2 U"....
. - Paul McGuinnessPaul McGuinnessPaul McGuinness is the main shareholder and founder of Principle Management Limited: an artist management company based in Dublin, Ireland, which has managed U2 from the start of their successful career...
. - Malcolm ArnoldMalcolm ArnoldSir Malcolm Henry Arnold, CBE was an English composer and symphonist.Malcolm Arnold began his career playing trumpet professionally, but by age thirty his life was devoted to composition. He was ranked with Benjamin Britten as one of the most sought-after composers in Britain...
. - Gary MasonGary MasonGary Mason was a British boxer who was based in Chatham, Kent. He was born in Jamaica.Mason fought at the heavyweight level and became the British heavyweight champion in 1989...
. - Bláthnaid Ní ChofaighBláthnaid Ní ChofaighBláthnaid Ní Chofaigh is an Irish TV presenter, Gaeilgeoir and all-round personality. She has presented Echo Island, The Afternoon Show and Charity ICA Bootcamp. She was a judge in The All Ireland Talent Show and participated in Celebrity Bainisteoir.-Career:Ní Chofaigh is an accomplished...
- Tim Pat CooganTim Pat CooganTimothy Patrick Coogan is an Irish historical writer, broadcaster and newspaper columnist. He served as editor of the Irish Press newspaper from 1968 to 1987...
- D.J. Carey
- John O'Shea (humanitarian)John O'Shea (humanitarian)John O'Shea is founder and CEO of GOAL, an Irish non-governmental organization devoted to assisting the poorest of the poor. His first career was as a sports journalist and GOAL retains significant links to the sporting community, especially in Ireland.O'Shea was shortlisted in the top 40 of 2010...
See also
- List of towns and villages in Ireland