St Alban’s House on Battery Road was constructed in 1860 for army officers in the garrison town of Longford. The road takes its name from the artillery barracks that was established there by the British army in the 18th and 19th centuries.

Currently it's home to Antoinette Higgins, who purchased the property in 2000. In the intervening period she ran the property as a successful guesthouse for three years "in order to put the three kids through college".

“When we bought St Alban’s it was in a state. We had to strip it all out to get it back to its original condition,” says Higgins, who is downsizing from her late Georgian home.

Winter Nights

The house, extending to 290sq m (3,130sq ft), is a fine elegant country home but its location in the town is a major attraction as it allows the owners to walk everywhere. “It feels more like a retreat, despite being so close to everything,” says Higgins, who works as a teacher at Lanesboro community school.

The listed property, now restored to its former glory, has elegant formal reception rooms located to the front overlooking the parkland front gardens. These are especially beautiful when the line of cherry blossoms is in full bloom.

A mixture of French limestone and original wooden flooring helps to retain the period feel inside, along with original fireplaces and an Aga in the country-style kitchen.

The gardens are particularly generous for a house located in the town, the reason being that when the house was constructed there needed to be room for military residents to keep horses on the site.

Extending to 1.7 acres, the grounds comprise a walled garden, which could be reinstated for vegetable growing, and a host of mature shrubs.

Of interest are the 72sq m (775sq ft) cut-stone mews buildings which would have housed horses and ostlers in times gone by. They have enormous potential to be converted (they have been re-roofed for preservation) into further accommodation or indeed a home office or art studio.

The property was last on the market in 2019 when it was listed at €950,000. It has now been reduced to €695,000 and is for sale through Property Partners Quinn.

St Alban’s House, Battery Road, Longford: €695,000

Description: Elegant four-bedroom period property on 1.7acres in Longford town – 290sq m (3,130sq ft) plus mews 72sq m (775sq ft)

Agent: Property Partners Quinn