The Co Laois house where Princess Margaret came for tea
Asking price: €1.4mAgent: Thomas Byrne & Sons (059) 9132500In times of Empire, a pending royal visit to an Irish aristocrat’s home caused as much alarm as it did pride. Rare royal sleepovers didn’t involve just a tidy up and a lick of paint, but costly renovations that often left the incumbent on the brink of bankruptcy. All this, despite the fact that finicky royals were apt to cancel at the last minute.A comprehensive reworking of Powerscourt House in Enniskerry took place before King George IV visited in 1821. It hit the Le Poer family coffers hard. But at least he showed up.Instructed of a coming visit from George II, Lord John Talbot of Malahide Castle promptly demolished his 12th Century home and rebuilt it as a neo-Gothic castle at vast expense. The king cancelled and the family’s fortunes ended up on the rocks.The front door of Heath House, Ballacolla Road, Abbeyleix, Co LaoisMeantime, the 1870s renovation of Loftus Hall in Wexford for an expected visit by Queen Victoria (she didn’t show up either) is believed to have contributed to the Loftus family’s bankruptcy.Following independence, visiting royals switched to a low-key approach for Irish visits. So for the De Vescis at Abbeyleix House, a remortgage was not on the cards for the arrival in 1965 of the flamboyant Princess Margaret and hubbie Antony Armstrong-Jones (The 1st Earl of Snowdon).Princess Margaret (centre) and her husband Lord Snowdon (left) during their visit to Abbeyleix House in the 1960s. Photo: NPA/Independent collectionWhile the couple initially stayed at Abbeyleix House to visit the De Vesci family (Snowdon’s sister was Lady Susan De Vesci) local resident Carole Lalor Ryder says they also popped in for a visit to her own long time home, Heath House at Abbeyleix, which was then the De Vescis’ second property in the locale. The royals then went on to stay at Birr Castle where Snowdon’s mother was the Countess of Rosse.Carole Lalor RyderHeath House is a substantial 4,000 sq ft property with six bedrooms that was built by the De Vescis in 1727, close to the gates of Abbeyleix House. It remained in the family until 1988, which is when now retired physiotherapist, Lalor Ryder, from Co Laois acquired it.The hallway of Heath House, Ballacolla Road, Abbeyleix, Co LaoisIronically, Lalor Ryder’s ancestors were bitter rivals of the De Vescis. She’s a descendant of James Fintan Lalor, the Irish revolutionary and journalist, the prominent member of the Young Ireland movement of the 1840s. His writings attacked the landlord class and asserted the sovereign right of the Irish to the land. His father, Patrick ‘Honest Pat’ Lalor was an MP active for Catholic emancipation and, as a leading figure in the anti-tithe campaign of the 1830s, was the political rival of the De Vescis.The kitchen of Heath House, Ballacolla Road, Abbeyleix, Co LaoisLalor Ryder was attracted to Heath House because of that family heritage. “I was returning to my roots because the Lalors had been big landowners in Co Laois. My great-great-grandfather, Patrick Lalor, had owned 1,000 acres in the locality, and there was always a bit of a competition between the Lalors and the De Vescis,” she explains.She describes the building as a “wreck” when she first bought it. “Part of the roof was missing and you could actually see the sky. Some of the rooms had dry rot and needed a complete renovation, but I only realised just how much work was involved once I’d moved in.”A reception room in Heath House, Ballacolla Road, Abbeyleix, Co LaoisParts of it were gutted and a new roof installed. The original sash windows were replaced with double glazed ones, but the wooden shutters were kept. Most of the flooring was also replaced and the electrics updated. The original wooden staircase had been located at the back of the house and she had this removed and a new teak staircase installed towards the front. It’s now accessed from the long main hallway.The staircase of Heath House, Ballacolla Road, Abbeyleix, Co LaoisThe original coving and ceiling roses had to be replaced in the study but remained intact in the main hallway, the drawing room, the living room, the dining room and the music room, which she calls “James Fintan’s room” in a nod to her ancestor. The chimney pieces throughout the house are all original.In the kitchen, with a pantry and a utility room off it, bespoke units, made of lime oak, were installed and the floor was tiled. The existing Aga stove was replaced with a more modern version, which she keeps on at all times. “I fill it up with fuel at night and it gives out great heat in the morning,” she explains. There’s also another set of stairs originally for staff, that leads upstairs.The sitting room of Heath House, Ballacolla Road, Abbeyleix, Co LaoisUpstairs, all of the six bedrooms are spacious double rooms with ensuite bathrooms and there’s a main bathroom too.Lalor Ryder had worked as a physiotherapist in Carlow town before marrying Englishman Alan Millard, then the state solicitor for Carlow. They enjoyed entertaining in Heath House. “We threw the most brilliant parties and had wonderful barbecues outside. The gardens gave us so much freedom,” she recalls.One of the rooms in Heath House, Ballacolla Road, Abbeyleix, Co LaoisThe gardens were designed by the notable horticulturist, Gertrude Jekyl VMH, and include a secret walled garden with a pond which has tall poplar trees and 300-year-old Irish and English yew trees.Heath House has 14 acres, 10 of which are forested. “The woodlands are predominantly oak, beech and Norwegian pine, and I’ve had offers to buy it,” Lalor Ryder says. “Another neighbour would like to buy the orchard. It’s something that might be considered by someone purchasing the house.”One of the bedrooms in Heath House, Ballacolla Road, Abbeyleix, Co LaoisAfter moving in, she had a tree-lined avenue leading up to the house laid down. “The house is very private. At the top of the avenue, there are double gates leading to a courtyard and a stables and a paddock, or you can take the bend around to the front of the house,” she says.The garden of Heath House, Ballacolla Road, Abbeyleix, Co LaoisAbbeyleix is 10 minutes walk away and there’s a school in the village. Portlaoise, which has a direct train line to Dublin, is 11km away and can be reached by car in about 15 minutes. “I used to commute to Carlow every day for work and it’s very doable. You can be in Dublin in less than an hour.”She’s currently living in France and has just placed Heath House for sale. “I will be terribly sad when it comes to handing over the keys, but it’s become too much for me now,” she says. “It would, however, make a wonderful family home.”Thomas Byrne & Sons seek €1.4m.
