Give us this day our daily tee: Monkstown Demesne home every Golfer's dream

No 9 The Demesne has beautiful harbour views and a golf course next door

Sat, 29 Jul, 2023 - 20:45

Catherine Shanahan. Pictures: John Roche

Monkstown, Cork
€930,000
Size	263 sq m (2830 sq ft)
Bedrooms	4
Bathrooms	3
BER	Pending

NICHE setting” is a phrase beloved of estate agents. It has a ring of exclusivity, which buyers like. While often over-used, it’s entirely accurate in the case of the house featured here No 9, The Demesne, Monkstown. How many homes do you know that are part of a woodland, harbour-side, former great estate, bookended by old stone arches, with a 17th century castle slap-bang in the middle? The good news for niche-hunting house buyers, is that this one’s for sale.

The “demense” in the name refers to land once part of Monkstown Castle estate, a semi-fortified stronghouse, built in 1636 by one Anastasia Archdeacon as a welcome-home-from-the-wars-John surprise for her husband. The surprise backfired when John fired on it from the harbour, believing enemies had conquered and built on his lands. Fortunately, just one canon ball hit the target and husband and wife were re-united.

Old Ironside’s men moved in during Cromwell’s marauding days, followed by various luminaries, before the Shaw family took up residence in the 19th century — Bernard Robert Shaw, related to the dramatist George Bernard. In the 20th century the castle fell into disrepair, but had a change of fortune when bought by local man Niall Fitzgerald, a New Zealand-based engineer, who has ploughed serious money into restoring it to first-fix level. It’s been up for sale for a while, with Stephen Clarke of REA O’Donoghue Clarke, who has shown it to “billionaires, writers, artists, wedding planners, you name it”.

Restored Monkstown Castle is on the market for €800,000 Picture: Denis Scannell

Back at No 9, the feel is more colonial than castle, thanks to a very large, very well-positioned balcony, which delivers on the brochure promise of panoramic harbour views.

Accessed off the main bedroom and also off the landing, it’s deep, with good roof cover. It’s a terrific feature, looking down over extensive, landscaped gardens, rich with hydrangea right now, and on out over the water.

The house nearly came without that splendid balcony view. When the owners bought the land it is built on in 1991 from a chap who had bought a lot of land around Monkstown Golf Club and was selling it off in lots, it had outline planning permission for a bungalow. The family, from Rochestown Road, successfully reapplied with their own design. Having previously built two properties by direct labour, they directly managed this build too.

They were passionate about the garden and wildlife and hired a landscaper initially to help organise the 0.8-acre site. It’s fully mature now, with lovely specimen trees and shrubs spread over various levels. As it faces south east, it gets the best of the sunshine. It comes with a rear patio.

The view, the extensive gardens, the woodland/waterside setting, the proximity to Monkstown Golf Course (the garden forms a boundary, you can literally see a green) and the uniqueness of the Demense itself are what make this house so desirable (not so much the interior, which needs a good upgrade).

The current owners loved the seclusion and believe it will appeal to a range of buyers, due to site size, location and privacy. They say buyers passionate about golf “will need to take time to view this property in person”.

Sam Kingston Jr of Casey & Kingston is the selling agent and he brings No 9 to market with an AMV of €930,000. While comparing the homes within the demesne is like comparing apples and oranges, what can be said is that they sell well. Stephen Clarke conducted a private sale of a Demense home called Sandy Lane which sold this year for €975,000 and he also sold a nearby site on which planning permission had expired for €480,000. Estate roads and common areas are maintained by a management company, which residents pay for.

Sandy Lane, the Demesne, sold for €975,000 earlier this year

Mr Kingston says the 263 sq m four-bed is a “superb home... in an idyllic woodland setting”. Moreover it’s within a short walk from pretty Monkstown village, where there is much on-water activity. Douglas village is 15 minutes by car and Cork City is 15km away.