Belleek Castle
Belleek Castle is a hotel in Ballina, County Mayo in the west of Ireland, build on the site of a former manor and thirteenth century castle. The current building was built between 1825 and 1831 in a neo-Gothic style.[1] The 4-star hotel has 10 rooms with views of the forest,[2] Belleek Woods, owned by Coillte.[3] The hotel contains a museum in its basement, including Grace O'Malley's bed [4] and the largest private collection of fossils and armoury in Europe, and a bar made from wood salvaged from a sunken Armada ship.[5]
History
[edit]The hotel is built on the site of a 13th-century tower house castle. The castle was the ancestral home of the Earls of Arran, before passing to the Baronets of Belleek Manor. The current building was built by Sir Francis Knox-Gore, 1st Baronet. The building stayed in the family until 1942 when rising costs made them sell. Between 1942 and 1961, the lands changed hands multiple times, eventually ending up in the possession of Mayo County Council in 1961.[1] It was eventually bought by Marshall Doran, a retired sailor, raconteur and adventurer he bought Belleek Castle in 1961 and set about making it into a home for himself and his family and his extensive collection of medieval treasures.[4]
Facilities
[edit]The hotel has ten rooms, each unique as well as the aforementioned bar, a café and restaurant.
See also
[edit]Citations
[edit]![[icon]](/wiki/File:Wiki_letter_w_cropped.svg){kind=small} | This section is empty. You can help by adding to it. (October 2024) |
References
[edit]- ^ a b "Our Story - Belleek Castle, Ireland". belleekcastle.com. Retrieved 23 October 2024.
- ^ "Hotel Belleek Castle Ballina (Mayo), Ireland - book now, 2024 prices". belleek-castle.ireland-hotels.net. Retrieved 23 October 2024.
- ^ https://www.coillte.ie/site/belleek/
- ^ a b "BELLEEK CASTLE". IrelandsHiddenGems.com. Retrieved 23 October 2024.
- ^ "Belleek Castle, an iconic castle hotel near Ballina, Co. Mayo". www.irelands-blue-book.ie. Retrieved 23 October 2024.