Off to France, but leaving a listed Georgian is very hard

Co Meath KateMcMorrow visits a couple about to swap their Meath home for a chateau in France

By Christmas, Siobhan and Derek Madden and their children, Frank and David, expect to have settled into a new home in the south of France, their lovely Georgian house in Co Meath just a fond memory.

An aviation lawyer with a city firm, Siobhan had a job offer she couldn't refuse in Toulouse.

The opportunity to spend more time with the children and realise their dream of living in France was too good to pass up, so they decided to put Balrath House on the market. There will be a few pangs, however. The couple have spent the past five years restoring the former miller's residence to perfection.

On the plus side, Derek is salivating at the prospect of finding a similar property in southern France to do up. Derek tackled much of the restoration of Balrath House single-handed, winning plaudits from local conservationists for his attention to original detail. He also restored an old cottage on the estate, which the family will keep as an Irish base.

Joint agents Ganly Walters and Dillon Auctioneers are guiding €1.4 million for Balrath House and 20 acres, which will come under the auction hammer on October 8th.

It includes a range of cut-stone stables, a coach house, a barn and a row of henhouses. Permission has been granted to convert the stableyard. The ivy-covered skeleton of the original mill stands in one of the fields close to the house.

The Maddens are the third family to own Balrath House since it was built in the early 18th century. Listed inside and out, its heritage is treasured by the local community.

It is believed that the plasterwork and magnificent Adam fireplaces were carried out as a "nixer" by Italian artisans working at nearby Somerville, the great house of the area.

Musical instruments run as a theme through the ceiling cornicing and over-doors, with violins, horns and lyres running riot along the borders. Although three-storey over garden, the house is not vast at 297 sq m (3,200 sq ft) and the well-proportioned rooms are a comfortable size. The original front door still has its brass lock box, operated from the inside only, as was traditional in the days of servants.

To the left is the blue drawingroom, with tall sash and shuttered windows looking out on the front garden. The fireplace here is believed to be either Bossi or Adam and the ceiling and over-door plasterwork is magnificent.

Across the hall, the formal diningroom has a traditional black marble fireplace and a decorative alcove which was used as a mass altar in penal times. A door in the corner opens to a butler's pantry.

The maple summer kitchen at the back of the house was installed for convenience next to a walk-in larder and bathroom. Pratt Conservatories transformed a walled courtyard into a long timber sun room, which opens to a terrace and the working courtyard. Down the back stairs is the everyday living area. A flagged country kitchen was re-created by Derek, using reclaimed wood, old free-standing cupboards and a Belfast sink. He also built bench seating into the window alcove.

Across the passage is a family sittingroom, with a wood-burning stove set into a brick inglenook. A toilet and washbasin have been installed in the old vaulted coal store.

The bedrooms take up the top two floors. Like the rest of the house, these rooms have been replastered and the wide-plank flooring sanded and polished. Most have fine period fireplaces. The main bedroom stretching from front to back has a dressingroom next door. Also off this landing is the former music room with its beautifully decorated fireplace. Another double bedroom overlooks the back.

The prettiest rooms are on the top floor, where the Maddens have decorated the two front bedrooms with toile de joie fabric. One of these bedrooms has a large en suite bathroom. Scarcely visible on the window glass are names and a tiny face etched by children from a previous generation. Another double bedroom and the family bathroom with a power shower and are also at this level.

Gardener Paddy McLouglin, who owns 10 all-Ireland medals for vegetable growing, has tended the gardens at Balrath House for 63 years.

The front lawn is bounded by tall specimen trees and shrubberies, with holly and yew trees planted by the gate for luck. An old pets' graveyard is tucked into a small copse.

There is also a spring bulb garden, a walled organic vegetable patch and a flower garden near the house. Yellow and pink roses, wisteria, hydrangea and clematis cover Balrath's walls with summer colour.

Left: a disused former miller's tower on the property is being kept by the O'Neills