While it is immortalised in Patrick Kavanagh’s poem On Raglan Road, the tree-lined street dating from 1857 is actually named after FitzRoy Somerset, Lord Raglan, British commander-in-chief of the Crimean War, and former aide-de camp to the Duke of Wellington, as outlined by Patrick Comerford, whose eponymous website is a marvellous resource on Dublin’s streetscapes.
Today, while his name is associated with one of the finest residential roads in the capital, Lord Raglan will be remembered for one of the most infamous blunders in military history: the Charge of the Light Brigade. At the Battle of Balaclava, 170 years ago, as a result of a misunderstanding of Raglan’s orders, the Light Brigade charged at the wrong ammunition lines into what became known as the Valley of Death, suffering heavy losses to the Russian army in the process.
Running between Pembroke and Clyde Roads, Raglan Road is home to several embassies and ambassadors’ residences – including the Mexican embassy at number 19, where Patrick Kavanagh lived between 1940-1943. It has always had an illustrious list of residents, and initially when homes here were first developed, the street attracted well-heeled former residents from the capitals’ nearby Georgian squares of Merrion and Fitzwilliam.
Number 49, an elegant Victorian midterrace house, dates from 1860, shortly after the road was built, and lies at the Clyde Road end, close to a host of amenities.
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When the current owners purchased the property about 17 years ago, much of the refurbishment had been executed by former owners who were architects, one of whom specialised in conservation.
The current owners had little to do, and added their own design flair over the years – installing new electrics and plumbing, updating the bathrooms and kitchen while also fully renovating and restoring shutters and ceiling roses. And the plasterwork details in this 350sq m (3,750sq ft) house are incredible – especially in the front hall where the use of grasscloth wallpaper adds a contemporary texture in contrast to craftsmanship from 164 years ago.
The owners kept the layout of the previous owners, with the kitchen at hall level. While many other properties on the road have the kitchen in the basement, here it “really connects all the house, given that it is so tall,” say the owners, who are downsizing locally.
They say they fell for the house as soon as they walked through the doors almost two decades ago, and they love the views from the kitchen. Here, streamlined units surround an electric Aga where the original fireplace would have been. As there are no upper cabinets, it allows period details to shine through to a design by Wicklow-based company Peter Bernard Kitchens of Distinction. To the front is the diningroom, warmed by an open fire with limed-oak flooring beneath, which also flows throughout this and the floor below.
At garden level lies a double study to the front (with more cabinetry by Peter Bernard) while a beautiful contemporary livingroom lies to the rear, opening out to a stunning Victorian garden executed by Damian Costello, who owners say “worked his magic” and did justice to the era of the property by creating an elegant townhouse garden. It now has formal plantings with neat Buxus hedging framing granite pathways through three distinct levels: a family patio, a middle lawn and a dining area to the rear, which gets the best of western light, so it is a wonderful place for birdsong and a coffee.
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Lying on the first floor, the principal bedroom is a movable feast – as is the whole house really. It lies to the front of the house so it gets the rising sun beaming through two tall sash windows. Here, as shutters have been restored, it negates the need for curtains, though simple roller blinds provide shelter from morning sun if required. This floor also has a superb livingroom – so essentially it is a bedroom suite occupying an entire level. A home office with a feature arched sash window lies on the return.
Three bedrooms, one of which is en suite, lie on the second floor alongside the main bathroom.
Besides its turnkey condition, lovely mid-century decor that allows period details to shine and the impressive 120ft-long rear garden, it will be the location of this flexible house that will attract prospective buyers. Although close enough to the city for accessing most amenities on foot, when you’re in the back garden you feel a million miles from everything.
Ber-exempt, with new insulation and working shutters, this lovely home is on the market though Sherry FitzGerald, seeking €3.95 million.
