Tales of kings and commoners

Siochain agus Fairsinge (peace and plenty) is the motto over the front door of Borris House, ancestral home of former kings of Leinster, the McMurrough-Kavanaghs. The sheaf of wheat above the crest is "a bit bockety" according to current chatelaine Tina Kavanagh, and every penny is spent on the house, but peace is almost tangible in this picturesque corner of Co Carlow.

Tina came to Borris from Dublin when she married Andrew Kavanagh, great-great grandson of the legendary Art McMurrough-Kavanagh. Twenty-six years and five children later, Tina still gets a thrill from the "wide-lens" view over to Mount Leinster, Mount Brandon and the Blackstairs from the front lawn of Borris House.

Just 600 acres were left out of an original 40,000 after the Land Commission in the 1920s, says Tina. "To hold on to their lands, the eldest son always took the oath of allegiance. Conserving the land was considered more important than religion, which I'm inclined to agree with! Thomas Kavanagh was the richest commoner in Ireland because he wouldn't accept an English title. The family fluctuated between Catholicism and Protestantism, but nobody knows exactly how many times they changed."

"The old avenue of limes is over there and we have huge areas of oak woods down by the river. This is a working farm. We raise sheep, breed thoroughbred horses and grow Christmas trees." says Tina. "The house uses up all our money - one wonders why one does it. These big houses were built with the back-up of thousands of acres. That's why they could survive. We got a very generous grant from the National Heritage people for restoration work, but we're having to put up most of it ourselves. Still . . . I couldn't see myself living anywhere else."

Inside the house, paintings by up-and-coming Irish artists hang side by side with portraits of the Kavanagh ancestors. The clash of traditional and modern gives this elegant 19th century house a comfortable up-to-date feeling. Adventurous colour schemes and decorative finishes are mostly thought up by Tina. The entrance hall with its eagle-topped pillars and curved walls has a Gothic look. It's a welcoming, brightly-painted room with a central table, rugs and a pair of green sofas. "I chose the yellow and lobster colours. It's a bit like a lobster bisque," she laughs. In the inner hall, Art McMurrough-Kavanagh's famous saddle is unceremoniously tied on to a Victorian rocking horse which has been used by generations of Kavanagh children. The legendary Art refused to let the fact that he had no arms or legs prevent him from riding and sailing - he regularly sailed down the Barrow and across the Irish sea to Westminster, where he was a Member of Parliament.

Old wills and testaments dating back to the 17th century, stuffed into drawers around the house, make absorbing reading. Some of the younger sons went to France and Austria and did well. A Charles Kavanagh became a governer of Prague.

Family portraits hang on the yellow-washed staircase walls, restored in the original "faux pierre" style by Dublin artist Peter Fitzgerald.

"That portrait of Andrew's great-great grandmother Suzanne is the spitting image of our youngest daughter, Rowline, and Arthur's daughter Mary is like our eldest daughter," says Tina. A striking Barrie Cooke painting at the top of the stairs is a favourite of Tina's. "Barrie used to drive over with his boat when he farmed nearby. We once bartered a load of hay for a lovely sketch of a cow and he drove home with the boat full of the hay," says Tina.

"We have so many rooms I can't count them! People often say why don't you open the house as an upmarket guesthouse, but I think it would lose something. We do have guided tours by appointment, local history societies, schools and the Irish Countrywomen's Association," she says.

The library on the first floor is the most architecturally important room in the house, taking up two floors and lined with beautiful leaded bookcases. The leather-bound tenants' records and the maps of the old estate with all the fields numbered are a fascinating read. A very precious hand-painted book derived in part from the Annals of the Four Masters chronicles the family from pre-Christian times.

Saint Moling, patron saint of cattle, was one of the earlier McMurrough-Kavanaghs. The family sent Saint Moling's book to Trinity College for safe-keeping during the '98 rebellion and it is still there. "The book is conservatively valued at £12 million," says Tina.

The kitchen was moved from below stairs to the original breakfastroom on the ground floor for convenience. Its ceiling has the kind of decorative plasterwork not usually associated with informal rooms. An enormous antique dresser at the far end houses Tina's collection of Nicholas Mosse bowls and mugs and the usual family paraphernalia. Her avocado plant, grown from seed, is so tall it almost blocks one window.

The chapel, still used for services and special occasions, is lovingly maintained by the Kavanaghs. The family worshipped in the gallery, entering through a door which at one time led into the house. Spectacular modern stained glass windows designed by artist Peter Young were commissioned in memory of a cousin who donated money for the upkeep of the church.

There is a strong sense of belonging in Borris House. Of people who fought battles and compromised with the powers of the day to keep the house in the family. "Andrew inherited the house from his mother, not his father. His father had to change his name to Kavanagh when they married," says Tina Kavanagh.