Inside Annesgrove, Michael Collins’ tragic last safe house stopover

Annesgrove, Aherla Beg, Co Cork Asking price: €2.5m Agent: Joint agents Sherry FitzGerald Gleeson (0504) 22997 and Cohalan Downing (021) 4277717

Chaos ensued after the shooting of Michael Collins at Béal na Bláth on the night of August 22, 1922. Friends and comrades rushed to his aid, quickly bandaging his head wound, bundling him on to an armoured car and they headed for Cork. Amid the confusion and panic in what was enemy territory, the convoy lost its way on the back roads as they sought out Canon Tracey of Crookstown to give the last rites.

Minutes earlier as the first shots were fired, Emmet Dalton had shouted “Drive like hell!” But the Big Fellow decreed that the convoy hold firm and fight it out. Perhaps he believed the big Vickers machine gun of the Rolls Royce armoured car accompanying could see off their assailants. But tragically for the party, it jammed and contributed nothing to the fight that followed.

Soon after leaving the scene they transferred Collins into Dalton’s arms in the touring car and continued. But they took a wrong turn and ended up at the home of Fr Timothy Murphy in Cloughduv. When the priest saw Collins’ body, he turned back into the house to get oils to anoint him. It was taken the wrong way by Collins’ comrade, Sean O’Connell, who drew his pistol and shot at the cleric. But Emmet Dalton intervened and tipped the gun upwards, saving the priest’s life.

Dalton would late recall the “nightmare journey” as they set off once again in search of Fr Tracey. Unfamiliar with the roads, which were often blocked, they cut through land and farms along the way. Records posted at the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage say they halted again at Annesgrove at Aherla Beg. Local sources assert that the party laid Collins out here temporarily, taking time to regroup before opting to continue on to Shanakiel Hospital in Cork.

Annesgrove belonged to the Barter family of Anglo landholding stock. Seven years earlier, Richard Barter, the only son of Richard and Elizabeth, and a member of the Irish Guards, was himself killed in battle in France during the First World War. The 24-year-old Richard was buried in Bethune Town Cemetery in France and a memorial tablet was placed in the local church in his honour. The laying out in their home of the bloodied Collins would have been a surreal experience for the bereaved Barters.

The estate was subsequently bought by Mr and Mrs John Kenneally whose son Colm became one of the best-known hoteliers in the country. The young entrepreneur took over Cruises hotel in Limerick in the early 1960s and Annesgrove was his home. Cruises, reputed to be the oldest hotel in the country, was a favoured stop of Collins when in Limerick.

Kenneally died in 2019 and Annesgrove Estate has just been placed on the market. It has been uninhabited for a few years so is in need of full restoration. Of more interest to many than the house is the 258 acres that comes with it. It has been subject to a conacre agreement for a number of years, with 180 acres under tillage and the balance made up of a quarry, a small forestry plantation and some low-lying lands.

There is a small farmhouse on the land that is currently tenanted, as well as a derelict stable yard, disused sheds and a separate farmyard to the south-west of the estate. The grandeur of the main house is evident from the minute you pull up to the cast iron gates set in limestone plinths. According to the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage, the house was built over phases. The original building dates from 1720 and was extended around 1800, and again in 1872.

A finely carved plaque states credits Mrs Anne C Barter in 1872, quoting proverb 14:1, ‘Every wise woman buildeth her house’. Clearly a strong woman for the times she lived in, who believed that her family’s prosperity depended on her diligence and care.

The 3,500sq ft ivy-clad house is set over two floors and has plenty of scope for another extension, subject to planning, of course. It is entered through the garden room which leads into the large hallway. There is a reading room just off the hallway to the right, with the kitchen, pantry and utility room beyond this. To the left are three reception rooms that are adorned with flock wallpaper, glass chandeliers and marble fireplaces, giving a clear sense of the entertaining that has gone on in the house over the decades. Upstairs there are five bedrooms and a bathroom, which could be easily reconfigured to make less and larger rooms.

It is the surrounding land and outbuildings that are in need of the most attention. The derelict farmyard has its own separate entrance, so could be ideal for anyone who’s looking to set up a self-catering business, with a range of stables, outbuildings, as well as the aforementioned farmhouse, all crying out for redevelopment. The eight-acre former quarry is located on the eastern boundary and is currently being backfilled.

A drive into Cork that once took all night takes 25 minutes today. The property is guiding €2.5m through Sherry FitzGerald Gleeson in Tipperary and Cohalan Downing in Cork.