Aras an Uachtarain [2] (/ ɑː r ə s ə now ə ə r xt ɑː nj /), formerly the Viceregal Lodge , the official residence of the President of Ireland. It is located in the Phoenix Park on the northside of Dublin .Byggnaden, which has ninety-five rooms, was designed by Nathaniel Clements and ended in 1751st

Origins

The original house was designed by the park ranger and amateur architect Nathaniel Clements, in the middle of the eighteenth century. It was bought by the administration of the British Lord Lieutenant of Ireland to become his summer residence in the 1780s. His official residence was in the Viceregal Apartments in Dublin Castle. The house in the park later became theViceregal Lodge , the ‘off season’ residence of the Lord Lieutenant (also known as Viceroy), where he lived for most of the year, from the 1820s onwards. During the social season (January to Saint Patrick’s Day in March), he lived in state in Dublin Castle.

Phoenix Park once contained three official state residences. Viceregal Lodge, the Chief Secretary and the Secretary of State’s Lodge Lodge. Chief Secretary Lodge, now called Deerfield, is the residence of the US Ambassador to Ireland. The Secretary of State’s Lodge, now demolished, served for many years as apostolic NUNCIATURE.

Some historians have argued that the garden front portico of Áras an Uachtaráin (which can be viewed by the public from the main road through the Phoenix Park) was used as a model by the Irish architect James Hoban, who designed the White House in Washington, DC But the technician was not part of Hoban original design and was, in fact, a later addition by Benjamin Latrobe.

Phoenix Park murders

In 1882, its grounds became the site of two famous murder. The Chief Secretary for Ireland (the British minister with responsibility for Irish Affairs), Lord Frederick Cavendish and his state secretary (chief administrative officer), Thomas Henry Burke, was stabbed to death with surgical knives while walking back to the residence from Dublin Castle. A small rebel group called the Invincibles was responsible for the deed. Lord Lieutenant, the 5th Earl Spencer, heard the victims screaming from a window in the ground floor auditorium. [ Citation needed ]

Residence of the Governor General of the Irish Free State

In 1911 the house underwent a large extension for the visit of George V and Queen Mary. With the creation of the Irish Free State in 1922, was the office of Lord Lieutenant abolished. The new state planned to place the new representative of the Crown, the Governor General Tim Healy, in a new, smaller home, but because of death threats from anti-treaty IRA, he installed in the Viceregal Lodge temporarily. The building was at the time the nickname “Uncle Tim cottage” after him, in imitation of the famous American novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin avHarriet Beecher Stowe. [3] It remained the residence of the Governor General of the Irish Free State until 1932, when the new Governor General, Domhnall Ua Buachalla, was installed in a specially hired private mansion in the Southside of Dublin.

Residence of the President of Ireland

The house was empty for some years, until the office of President of Ireland was created in 1937. In 1938, the first president, Douglas Hyde lived there temporarily while plans were made to build a new presidential palace due.The outbreak of World War II saved the building, which had been renamedÁras an Uachtaráin (meaning house or residence of the President of the Irish), from demolition, plans for the demolition and the design of a new residence were put on hold. By 1945 it had become too closely identified with the presidency, Ireland demolished, but its poor condition meant that extensive demolition and rebuilding of parts of the building was necessary, especially the kitchen, servants’ quarters and chapel. Since then, further restoration work carried out from time to time.

President McAleese greets US President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama at the Aras an Uachtarain May 23, 2011.

The first president Douglas Hyde lived in the residential areas on the first floor of the main building. Later presidents moved to the new residential wing attached to the main building which had been built for the visit of King George V in 1911. In 1990, Mary Robinson moved back to the older main building. Her successor, Mary McAleesebodde in the 1911 wing.

While Aras an Uachtarain are perhaps not as palaces as other European royal and presidential palaces, with only a handful of state rooms (the state drawing room, large and small dining rooms, the president’s office and library, a large ballroom and a presidential corridor lined with the busts of former presidents ( Francini corridor), and some fine eighteenth and nineteenth century bedrooms above all in the main building), it is a relatively comfortable state.

All Taoisigh and ministers receive their seal of office by the President at the Aras an Uachtarain, as well as judges, Attorney General, the Comptroller and Auditor General, and senior officers in the armed forces. It is also the venue for meetings Presidential Commission and the Government.

Aras an Uachtarain also houses the headquarters of the Garda mounted unit.

The Office of Public Works provides completely private quarters Áras an Uachtaráin for the presidential family. [4]

Visitors

The main gate to Aras an Uachtarain is adjacent to the Phoenix Monument, in the middle of the park

May 17, 2011 Elizabeth II became the first British monarch to visit Áras (Viceregal Lodge) for 100 years, during his state visit to Ireland. [5] She was welcomed by President McAleese, inspected a guard of honor, signed the guest book and planted a Irish Oak planta.Olika visiting British monarchs stayed at the Viceregal Lodge, notably queen Victoria and George V.American presidents hosted here include Presidents John F. Kennedy, Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, and Barack Obama, all part of Irish descent. Other famous visitors to Aras an Uachtarain was Princess Grace of Monaco and her husband, Prince Rainier III; King Baudouin of Belgians; King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia, Pope John Paul II; Prince Charles and Prince Philip.

Guests do not normally stay at Aras an Uachtarain. Although it has ninety-five rooms, many of these are used for storage of presidential files, for household staff and official staff, including military aide-de-camp , a secretary to the president (something equivalent to chief of staff of the White House, except that it is a permanent public management position) and a presstjänst.År 2001, the Irish government opened a guest residence nearby in Farmleigh, a former Guinness family mansion.

On 1 May 2004, during Ireland’s six-month Presidency of the European Union, Aras an Uachtarain was the site of the European Day of welcome (the date) in which ten new members joined the EU. All 25 heads of government attended the flag raising ceremony in the gardens of the palace. A major security operation involving the Gardai and the Irish Defence Forces closed the Aras and Phoenix Park.

Aras an Uachtarain is open for free tours every Saturday.

References

  1. Jump up ^ “Outline History Áras an Uachtaráin”. Aras an Uachtarain.Retrieved January 7, 2013.
  2. Jump up ^ Aras an Uachtarain translates as the “President’s residence,” and sometimes written “Arus an Uachtaráin”.
  3. Jump up ^ Ayto, John & Crofton, Ian (2005). Brewer UK and Ireland.Weidenfeld and Nicholson. p. 873. consultant 5 April 2014.
  4. Jump up ^ “Mammoth task of moving out done in military style.” Irish Independent. 10 November 2011. Retrieved 10 November 2011.
  5. Jump up ^ “The Queen lays wreath on Ireland’s state visit”. BBC News.17, 2011. Retrieved 17 May 2011.