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Town in western County Wicklow, Ireland
Photo: Leslie Noelle Sullivan, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Blessington is a small town in County Wicklow, with a population in 2022 of about 5600. It's west of the Wicklow mountains and this part of the county is low-lying and rural. It's just on the edge of County Kildare and County Dublin. In the Middle Ages it was the boundary of "The Pale", the territory around Dublin under direct rule of the English monarchs. The main visitor attraction is 18th-century Russborough House, with a rich art collection.
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Grand Palladian mansion built 1741-51 to a design by Cassells, who also designed Powerscourt. It was the Leeson family pile for almost 200 years then passed to Sir Alfred Beit, of the de Beers diamond mining company. He inherited his uncle's huge big-name art collection and installed it here, where it suffered from serial robbery: by the IRA in 1974, by a Loyalist gang in 1984, then by other gangs in 2001 and 2002. Remarkably, most of these hauls were recovered. Some of the collection has been donated to the National Gallery, with others loaned in return.
A riot of colour in gardens surrounding old farmstead buildings.
Extensive gardens and woodlands, the personal creation of Jimi Blake (brother of June Blake, since you were wondering). Assistance dogs only.
Pleasant welcoming B&B.
Scenic lakeside golf hotel, great comfort, service and food. Often caters for weddings and conferences.
Friendly B&B.
Driving from Dublin, take N81 off M50 heading southwest towards Tullow.
Read in the guideBus 65 will get you to the gardens, and occasionally to Russborough House. You need wheels to reach Punchestown or explore the mountain valleys.
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