A Future for Irish Historic Houses - Irish Heritage Trust

Castle Leslie, Glaslough, Co. Monaghan
Castle Leslie, formerly known as Glaslough, is located on the outskirts of the village
of Glaslough in County Monaghan. Ownership of the house is held in a trust, at
present managed by Ms. Samantha Leslie whose family has been associated with the
area since the seventeenth century:
- Castle Leslie is a Victorian house built around 1870 by Sir John Leslie, 1 st
baronet, to the design of Sir Charles Lanyon and William Henry Lynn. It
is, therefore, one of only a very few country houses built after the Famine
by Irish landlords (as opposed to houses such as Kylemore, St. Anne’s,
and Farmleigh built by industrialists, merchants, bankers and so on.)
- Amongst its chief architectural features is an Italian Renaissance cloister
said to have been copied from Michelangelo’s cloister at Santa Maria in
Florence.
- The decorative work on the ceilings of the dining-room and the drawingroom
and the Della Robbia chimneypiece in the drawing-room are all
impressive features.
- The house contains a very important collection of original contents.
- The Leslies were related to the Churchills through marriage: Sir John
Leslie’s wife, Leonie Jerome, was the sister of Sir Winstons Churchill’s
mother, Jennie. Sir Winston’s christening robes are on display in Castle
Leslie.
- It is the ancestral home of Sir Shane Leslie, author, playwright, Gaelic
Leaguer and Celtic Revivalist.
- The very important and extensive family archive has recently been sold to
the National Library of Ireland.
The house is located on a 500-acre estate, which is let on conacre. The house is run by
Samantha Leslie as a restaurant and country house hotel. In this way, it is a major
81