Description:

Detached single-bay, single-storey structure built in the1740s and in use as a Church of Ireland church until c. 1870 after which the nave was removed and chancel retained to serve as a mortuary chapel. Its vaulted ceiling features plastered panels. It was repaired by the Irish Georgian Society in the 1960s and again c. 2009 by members of the Ponsonby family. Maurice Craig suggests that the structure forms part of an earlier building that was “elegantly refurbished in 1749” Mausolea Hibernica, (1999). It houses monuments and memorials of various members of the Ponsonby family including a memorial of the 1^st Earl of Bessborough and his wife by William Atkinson (d. 1767) and two monuments by Willam Kidweell (d. 1736) to William Ponsonby, Viscount Duncannon. and his wife Mary.

Grants Awarded:

2023: €3,500 grant through the IGS London Chapter towards the preparation of a building report. Conservation architect, David Sheehan.

2024: €2,500 grant through the IGS London Chapter towards the repair of roof and rainwater goods. Architect, David Sheehan; contractor, Thomas Everett; painter, Eddie O’Connell; surveyor of Murphy GeoSpatial.

NIAH Listing:

https://www.buildingsofireland...

References in IGS Bulletins & IGS Journals:

‘The classical taste of William Ponsonby, 2nd Earl of Bessborough (1704-1793)’
Author: Rachel Finnegan
Irish Architectural and Decorative Studies Vol VIII — 2005
https://search.igsjournal.ie/single-search?rule1=and&terms1=fiddown&field1=all&from_pub_year=1958&to_pub_year=2024&pdf_type=Select+publication+type&pdf_id=112

‘Houses Open to the Public’
Irish Georgian Society Bulletin XI 1968 Issue 2
https://search.igsjournal.ie/single-search?rule1=and&terms1=fiddown&field1=all&from_pub_year=1958&to_pub_year=2024&pdf_type=Select+publication+type&pdf_id=384

‘Irish Georgian Diary’
Irish Georgian Society Bulletin X 1967 Issue 1
https://search.igsjournal.ie/single-search?rule1=and&terms1=fiddown&field1=all&from_pub_year=1958&to_pub_year=2024&pdf_type=Select+publication+type&pdf_id=380

‘Call for volunteers’
Irish Georgian Society Bulletin IX 1966 Issue 2
https://search.igsjournal.ie/single-search?rule1=and&terms1=fiddown&field1=all&from_pub_year=1958&to_pub_year=2024&pdf_type=Select+publication+type&pdf_id=378

‘The Irish Georgian Society’
Irish Georgian Society Bulletin VIII 1965 Issue 4
https://search.igsjournal.ie/single-search?rule1=and&terms1=fiddown&field1=all&from_pub_year=1958&to_pub_year=2024&pdf_type=Select+publication+type&pdf_id=376