FRANKFORT AVENUE WHERE I AND COUNTESS MARKIEVICZ ONCE LIVED
I attended national school in Donegal but I had to move to Dublin to attend secondary school so I lived with my grandmother for two years at her home on Frankfort Avenue. I really liked the area and always have.
The most outstanding house on the street is No 1 and my grandmother told me that it was owned by Cornelius Ryan.
Ryan (5 June 1920 – 23 November 1974) was an Irish-American journalist and author known mainly for writing popular military history. He was especially known for his histories of World War II events: The Longest Day: 6 June 1944 D-Day (1959), The Last Battle (1966), and A Bridge Too Far (1974).
Born and raised in Dublin, Ireland, he began working as a journalist in London in 1940. He became involved in covering World War II and travelled with troops in Europe. After the war, he covered the establishment of Israel. He immigrated to the United States in 1947 to work for Time. In 1951 Ryan became a naturalised US citizen and lived there for the remainder of his life.
You can imagine my surprise when I discovered, a few years ago, the house in question was once home to Constance Gore-Booth, who on her marriage to the Polish painter Count Markievicz adopted the title Countess Markievicz. In 1903 they moved into the villa on Frankfort Avenue, which was a wedding present from her mother. They lived there with the count’s son Stanislaus from a previous marriage, and their daughter Maeve. She was an artist, like her husband, and her studio built at the side of the house remained intact before it was destroyed by fire.
My grandmother would not have made such a mistake so I often wondered why she told me that the house was owned Cornelius Ryan … maybe she disapproved of the Countess.
Rathgar is situated in south Dublin. It lies beside Rathmines, Terenure, Dartry and Harold’s Cross. Other nearby suburbs are Ranelagh, Rathfarnham, Milltown, Kimmage and Crumlin. The Grand Canal flows to the north of Rathgar. The majority of Rathgar lies within the jurisdiction of Dublin City Council and straddles the postal boundary of Dublin 6.
Rathgar, in the Middle Ages, was a farm belonging to the Convent of St Mary de Hogges, at present-day College Green. At the Dissolution of the Monasteries, Rathgar was granted to the Segrave family: they built Rathgar Castle, ownership of which subsequently passed to John Cusacke, who was Lord Mayor of Dublin in 1608. The castle remained in the possession of the Cusack family for over a century, but gradually decayed and was a ruin by the end of the eighteenth century. No trace of it remains today, though it is thought to have been located at present day 44-49 Highfield Road.
In 1649 the Duke of Ormonde commander of the Anglo-Irish Royalist army established his camp at Rathgar during the Siege of Dublin. He was then routed at the Battle of Rathmines nearby by English Republican forces under Michael Jones.
The village began to develop in the eighteenth century. Rathgar Avenue may be the oldest street, while Highfield Road was developed in 1753. Zion Church and Christ Church Rathgar were built in the 1860s.
upper garville avenue, streets of dublin, D6, Rathgar, ireland, april, 2021, william murphy, infomatique, fotonique, Zeiss, Batis, 25mm lens,
Rathgar is situated in south Dublin. It lies beside Rathmines, Terenure, Dartry and Harold’s Cross. Other nearby suburbs are Ranelagh, Rathfarnham, Milltown, Kimmage and Crumlin. The Grand Canal flows to the north of Rathgar. The majority of Rathgar lies within the jurisdiction of Dublin City Council and straddles the postal boundary of Dublin 6.
Rathgar, in the Middle Ages, was a farm belonging to the Convent of St Mary de Hogges, at present-day College Green. At the Dissolution of the Monasteries, Rathgar was granted to the Segrave family: they built Rathgar Castle, ownership of which subsequently passed to John Cusacke, who was Lord Mayor of Dublin in 1608. The castle remained in the possession of the Cusack family for over a century, but gradually decayed and was a ruin by the end of the eighteenth century. No trace of it remains today, though it is thought to have been located at present day 44-49 Highfield Road.
In 1649 the Duke of Ormonde commander of the Anglo-Irish Royalist army established his camp at Rathgar during the Siege of Dublin. He was then routed at the Battle of Rathmines nearby by English Republican forces under Michael Jones.
The village began to develop in the eighteenth century. Rathgar Avenue may be the oldest street, while Highfield Road was developed in 1753. Zion Church and Christ Church Rathgar were built in the 1860s.
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