CO CORK: €1.75m:Elegant Georgian house has views of Blackwater valley
IT’S RUMOURED that Bonnie Prince Charlie hid from crown forces at Rockforest House near Mallow, Co Cork, an elegant six-bed mansion on seven acres asking €1.75 million through agent Michael H Daniels.
The main section of the house is early Georgian, built by Sir James Cotter, whose grandfather was granted the lands in 1652. His design incorporated an earlier, 16th-century house, built by the original owners, the Anglo- Norman Roche clan, Barons of Fermoy.
The house, which is a protected structure, remained in the family until 1916 when it was sold by the fifth baronet. It overlooks the Blackwater River and is 5km from Mallow. The main reception rooms are all in the mid-18th century part of the house and have big sash windows and 16ft ceilings on its ground floor.
There’s a sitting room with a marble fireplace, dado rail and ceiling cornice, a drawing room with an open fireplace, a frieze and ceiling rose, a dining room with a carved stone fireplace and full- height sash windows, a kitchen/ breakfast room and a utility room. The fine staircase off the hall is lit by a Venetian window rising to a galleried landing with a vaulted ceiling. Four of the bedrooms are en suite including the main bedroom with 180-degree views of the Blackwater valley. Outside there’s a gazebo, an all-weather tennis court, a pond and a fountain.
Rockforest House, Mallow, Co Cork
A 500-year-old house on seven acres with six bedrooms
Agent:Michael H Daniels
