Mornington
Set among a rural and scenic region in an unexplored corner of Co. Westmeath, Mornington is a charming 19th century country house with five guest rooms, traditional country house cooking and friendly hospitality.
Mornington has been the home to the O'Hara family since 1858 and is renowned for its peace and tranquillity, and for the warm welcome extended by the present owners, Warwick and Anne. There has been a house at Mornington since the early 17th century, but this was very much enlarged in 1896 to form a comfortable family home in the Arts and Crafts manner, a style extremely fashionable at the period, and the interiors completed at that time have all survived intact.
Guests to Mornington enjoy a wonderful dining experience. Anne is a member of Euro-Toques, the international fraternity of chefs, and has earned a reputation for delicious meals that feature traditional Irish country house cuisine, while her husband Warwick is renowned for his delicious breakfasts.
The grounds of Mornington are an attraction onto their own! Mornington is surrounded by a historic walled garden, thought to be under continuous cultivation since at least 1710. Walking among these well manicured gardens makes for a fabulous sojourn. A pathway leads to nearby Lough Derravaragh, famous in Irish folklore as the lake where Children of Lir spent 300 years of their 900 year exile. The resident dogs Caspar and Cleo would be all to delighted to show you the way!
Mornington is hidden away in the midst of a scenic and dramatic landscape with rolling hills, green pasture, forests with ancient, heavy timber and sparkling lakes, deep in an unexplored corner of County Westmeath. Nearby are ancient churches, castles and abbeys, and delightful small villages.
Anne and Warwick share their intimate knowledge of the region surrounding Mornington, an area rich in anquities. The 'holy' Hill of Ushnagh, the centre of Ireland in pagan times, the Neolithic passage tomb at Loughcrew, early Christian sites at Inchcleraun on Lough Ree and the 9th century church of St. Fechin at Fore; Trim Castle, the largest Anglo-Norman castle in the country; splendid 18th century houses at Belvedere and Ledwithstown; Wilson's Hospital School, one of rural Ireland's finest Palladian complexes, and the perfect landlord's village at Tyrrelspass are all well worth seeing, as are the gardens at Belvedere, Loughcrew and Tullynally Castle.
