The residence of the President of Ireland

The building was designed by Irish politician and financier Nathaniel Clements who also served as a park caretaker, the construction of the building began in 1751 ^[1] . In the 1780s, the building was acquired by the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland to accommodate his summer residence. His official residence was in the apartment of Lord Lieutenant in Dublin Castle . From the 1820s, the building became the residence of the viceroy of Ireland, where he spent most of the year, with the exception of the so-called “public season” (from January until St. Patrick's Day — March 17), when he lived in Dublin Castle .

In Phoenix Park, there were three official state residences: the residence of the viceroy, the residence of the Chief Minister for Ireland Affairs and the residence of the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland . The residence of the Chief Minister for Ireland (now Deerfield) is the residence of the US Ambassador to Ireland. The residence of the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland is now destroyed, for many years as the residence of the Apostolic Nunciature .

Some historians claim that the appearance of the residence building was used as a model by Irish architect James Hoban to design the White House project in Washington .

In 1882, the Chief Minister for Ireland Affairs, Lord Frederick Cavendish, and his deputy, Thomas Henry Burke, were assassinated on the territory of the residence by a group of fighters for the independence of Ireland.

With the creation of the Irish Free State in 1922, Governor-General Timothy Healey became the de facto head of state and representative of the British monarch. Initially, the governor-general was supposed to be placed in another building, smaller in size, but because of threats of reprisals from the IRA , he was housed in the former residence of the viceroy. This building remained the residence of the Governor-General until 1932, when the last Governor-General, Donald Buckley , was housed in a specially rented private mansion in the southern part of Dublin.

Prior to the adoption in 1937 of the Constitution of Ireland , which introduced the post of president of the country, the mansion was empty. In 1938, the first Irish President Douglas Hyde settled in it, who planned to demolish the building and build a new presidential palace in its place, but this plan was not implemented due to the outbreak of the Second World War . The building was renamed Áras an Uachtaráin (which means “president’s house” in Irish). By 1945, the President of Ireland became so identified with this building that it was decided to keep the mansion, despite the great wear and tear. Since then, from time to time restoration work has been carried out in the mansion.

The first president of Ireland, Douglas Heid, lived in residential premises on the first floor of the mansion. Subsequently, the living quarters for the president and his family were placed in an extension to the main building, which was built during the visit of King George V in 1911. In 1990, President Mary Robinson was again housed in the old building, and her successor, Mary McAleese, returned to the 1911 annex.

The interior of the mansion is not as luxurious as in many other European royal and presidential palaces, but at the same time the mansion is a relatively comfortable residence of the head of state. It houses the state reception, large and small dining rooms, the presidential apparatus, a library, a large hall and the presidential corridor, along which busts of presidents of Ireland (the Franchini corridor) are located, as well as several bedrooms decorated in the style of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.

At the presidential residence, the prime minister is given a seal, as well as all Irish ministers, judges, the attorney general, the controller and the auditor general, as well as senior officers of the Irish army . It also hosts meetings of the Presidential Commission and the State Council of Ireland and the headquarters of the Irish Mounted Police.

The Office of Public Works is fully engaged in arranging the life of the family of the President of Ireland ^[2] .

• Áras an Uachtaráin website
• Virtual tour of the state rooms
• Visiting information at Heritage Ireland