Hillsborough Fort, County Down has been considered here before (see Hillsborough Fort « The Irish Aesthete) but on that occasion the Irish Aesthete was unable to gain access to the building at its centre. Completed c.1650 by Colonel Arthur Hill, the little square forthouse was Gothicised just over a century later, perhaps to the designs of Christopher Myers and, having been a place of defence became instead a place of delight, used for entertainments. Inside, the ground floor consists of a narrow entrance hall with vaulted ceiling, doors to front and rear, and a number of small rooms on either side. A staircase in one of the flanking towers leads upstairs to a great chamber occupying the entire space, lit by three arched windows and with a high flat roof. At the moment, the building sits empty but there plans are afoot for its restoration and reuse.
That looks like a musket rack above the dado rail?
Yes indeed, the fort has its own militia: the Hillsborough Fort Guard, originally established by Royal Charter in 1660…
Did Colonel Hill buy the property or as you have often said it came into his possession for services rendered.
The first of the family to arrive in Ireland was Moyses Hill who in 1573 accompanied the Earl of Essex on his expedition here…
Thank you for your reply.