A truly spectacular and historical property built around 1465 with stunning views over the surrounding countryside and enjoying a most striking setting in the heart of county meath.

Dardistown Castle is located a short distance from Julianstown village in County Meath. It is situated on the River Nanny which flows into the sea at Laytown about 3km away. Julianstown, in line with much of Eastern Ireland and Bettystown in particular has become a popular location for commuters to Dublin, Drogheda and Dundalk. Julianstown is well placed for a variety of sporting activities in the surrounding area, being positioned with in the Louth Hunt, Meath Hunt and Ward Union Hunt country, giving easy boxing distance to most meets. There are also a number of superb golf courses within close proximity including Julianstown Golf Club, Bellewstown Golf Course and South Meath Gold Club.

HISTORY

Dardistown Castle was built in 1465 by John Cornwalsh with a British Government grant of £10. In the mid 1400's the English were fully occupied in the Hundred Year's War. To compensate for their military absence from Ireland, a limited number of government grants of £10 were made available to landowners in The Pale for the building of fortified houses. John Cornwalsh obtained a £10 grant in 1465 for the building of Dardistown Castle. The first extension to the castle, forming part of the present house, was built before 1582, when Dame Genet Sarsfield (widow of Sir John Plunkett of Dunsoghly) came to reside here, made a new entrance doorway and built a further addition. The historic battle of Julianstown of 1641 is said to have taken place on the front lawn of Dardistown, though at that time separated from the house by the road. Richard Talbot was then in occupation of the castle. Three new rooms were added to the castle about this time. The present front hall, drawing room and dining room date from around 1750. The upper floors were added in two stages, the back about 1800 and the front in 1860. Around 1800 the road (main Drogheda – Dublin road at that time) was moved so that, instead of passing the front door, it now curves several hundred yards from the Castle, enclosing the area which is now picturesque parkland.

1n 1827 Mr Henry Osborne of Dardistown bred the horse Abd-El-Kader, which won the Grand National on two consecutive occasions from 1850. Dardistown is a huge fortress like structure. The plan of the castle basically consists of an oblong with a quadrangular turret at reach corner. These turrets differ slightly in size. Including the turrets, each side of the building is about 44 ft long above the base batter. The main entrance, an arched doorway on the north side, is now blocked up and there is a ruined machicoulis above it at roof level. The present entrance is on the southside. Dardistown is an excellent example of a large fifteenth century manor house and was surely built by a wealthy and ambitious landowner. A church dedicated to the Virgin Mary used to stand on its grounds and the Civil Survey recorded the castle, a stone house and two mills on the estate.

The lands around Dardistown Castle extend to some 30 acres of gardens and grounds with superb pasture lands to the front and sweeping driveway. The Courtyard is as impressive as the main house itself with magnificent stone work on the buildings. There are massive opportunities to use these building for extra accommodation and already the current owners have converted two units into self-catering accommodation that can be rented out quite easily as holidays homes.