Tandragee Castle

Tandragee Castle stands in the small town of Tandragee in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. The present building dates from 1837 when the sixth Duke of Manchester rebuilt it as his Irish home. Before that, the site held a stronghold of the O’Hanlon clan, destroyed in the 1641 rebellion. Sir Oliver St John acquired the castle after the Plantation of Ulster and rebuilt it once. For two centuries after 1641 the castle lay in ruins until the 19th century reconstruction. The castle’s history includes visits from notable figures. General George S Patton stayed there in 1943 while inspecting American troops in Northern Ireland. The tenth Duke of Manchester leased the castle to the United States Army during the Second World War. In the 1950s the estate passed to Thomas Hutchinson, founder of Tayto crisps, whose company still occupies the castle today. Visitors find the castle surrounded by a demesne that includes a golf course. The building itself houses offices for the Tayto factory, so the grounds remain open to the public. The parkland offers long views across County Armagh’s gentle countryside. A quiet town and a working crisp factory give the place a practical, everyday character.