Walled Garden

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

A former estate garden of approximately 7 ½ hectares and completely enclosed by a high wall with curved corners. It is set at the W shore of Inisherk Island on Crom Castle Estate. All walls are of brick; those to N and W are faced with limestone rubble. That to S has mostly been reconstructed. There is a ha-ha along S and E sides.

N face is abutted by a three lean-to outbuildings, formerly potting sheds. All have monopitched natural slate roofs sloping to N. Half-round metal rainwater goods. All walls are random limestone rubble with advanced brick eaves. All windows and doors have brick heads.

Block One (W end): This comprises two bays and has a yellow brick chimney at party wall with walled garden. N face has a timber tripartite window to left bay and a door to right bay. Left and right cheeks each have a doorway (that to right is infilled). No internal features of interest with the exception of a sunken metal boiler to right bay.

Between blocks one and two is a sliding timber doorway into the garden.

Block Two (Centre): This comprises five bays and formerly had an internal upper floor (now gone). From W-E, rooms have the following openings to N face: two windows; door; door; window + door; window + door. No frames survive to openings. Left cheek is blank. Right cheek has a door opening and a window.

Between blocks two and three is a cast-iron water tank supported on a tubular steel frame.

Block Three (E end): This is four rooms wide. From W-E the openings to rooms are as follows: window + door + window; door; open front supported on three timber posts; window + window + door. Left cheek has a window to ground floor and a loading door to upper floor. Right cheek has a doorway to upper floor.

At E end of this area, enclosed to form a nursery garden, is an ornate pair of wrought-iron gates. They are described under HB12/02/011A.

E face of main garden wall is of hand-made brick (badly weathered) with external pilasters and central entrance flanked by two square-in-section piers with pyramidal caps. Wall has oversailing brick coping. The entrance gate is highly decorative cast-iron scroll and leaf design.

S face is detailed as E but is currently being rebuilt. To centre is a highly decorative wrought-iron gate consisting of scrolls radiating from a central axis. There is a wider entrance towards W end (with no gates).

W face has been faced with rubble limestone masonry (brought to courses) to exterior. It has no openings.

Along the N wall, inside the garden, was originally a row of glass-house of which only one remains (at W end). It is a low structure (sunken within) with the vestiges of a pitched roof (S pitch is much longer) over a brick base wall. Most glass has now gone. Internally it contains the remains of a full length draining-bench constructed of a series of decorative cast-iron plates along S wall. Each elevation has two large cast-iron pipes. Planting beds are of brick with stone coping. N garden wall has ghost marks of a series of potting sheds. To centre of garden is a circular pond enclosed by an octagonal brick wall (recently rebuilt) with openings to N and S. It is now overgrown but was previously covered with an octagonal glass-house.

Setting:
The garden is set close to the W shore of Inisherk Island on Crom Estate. It is accessed from the mainland by White Bridge (HB12/02/008).

Historical information

A formal garden laid out by John Crichton, third Earl of Erne, in 1832 (around the same time as the castle was being built). The potting sheds were added in 1833-34, and are shown, along with the garden, on the 1834 OS 6” map. The hot houses (now gone) were added in 1835 and a lime kiln (also now gone) in 1876. All but one of the greenhouses were demolished several decades ago.

Secondary sources:
1. Terence Reeves-Smyth, Crom Castle Demesne (National Trust, 1990).

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
J. Setting
K. Group value

Criteria for listing: historic interest

Y. Social, Cultural or Economic Importance
X. Local Interest

Evaluation

A massive walled garden which, although no longer in use, retains its original scale and form. It incorporates two particularly attractive entrances . It enjoys an attractive island setting overlooking Lough Erne and, having played a particularly significant part in the running of the estate, is an important part of Crom’s building stock. Walled gardens such as these are now comparatively rare in N. Ireland.

General comments

This record was previously numbered HB12/02/011A and HB12/02/011C.