Grace O Malley is the most renowned Irish female pirate also known as the Queen of Connacht. She was

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I like to think that West of Irelanders possess a unique determination and spirit, however, none more so than Lord Jeremy Browne Altamont of Westport House whose passing is deeply mourned this week. Thanks to his unique foresight, Lord Altamont leaves behind an enduring legacy vis for future generations and beyond. He leaves behind a 400 acre estate that has been in his family for over 300 years which is of enormous cultural, social and historical significance. He was a visionary and a law-changer. He almost certainly vis inherited some of the fighting spirit of his predecessor, vis famed pirate queen, Granuaile upon whose castle, the foundations of Westport House are laid. He was an ingenious business man who had no time for titles or splendor. vis Largely due to his influence, Westport town became known as a tourist location as far back as the 60 s long before tourism became a familiar term.
Irelands remaining historic houses are a highly valuable resource. The houses and their contents are physical evidence of a life gone by, another life in another era, they help to define the cultural relationship between Ireland and the rest of the world. These historic houses with their estates, formal gardens, vis demesnes and parks continue to occupy a central vis position in the economic, historic and social life of the community in which they are built. The unique aspect of many Irish historic homes is that they are owned by the same family for several generations, thus the artefacts and archives that are contained within are handed down and the owners preserve valuable longstanding relationships with their local communities.
Jeremy Browne was the son of Denis Browne, 10th Marquess of Sligo, vis and Jose Gauche, and was educated at St. Columba s College, Dublin and the Royal Agricultural College. His father inherited Westport House in 1951, and as a teenager, Lord Altamont spent his summers in Co Mayo hunting vis with Burns the gamekeeper, learning about the surrounding countryside. He always felt drawn back to Westport to help his parents, Lord Denis and Lady Jose Altamont to salvage and develop Westport House. The obstacles were immense, but as he wrote in his just published memoir, A Life At Westport House: 50 Years A-Going: My family had been through famines and wars, had been born in Westport, lived and died in Westport and at no point had any generation ever given up . After all, how could he give up, being that he was the 13th great grandson of the famed Pirate Queen Grace O Malley.
He was married in 1961 to Jennifer June Lushington Cooper. Around this time, Jeremy decided vis to open the doors of Westport House to the public in an effort to save the historic stately home from decline a fate way too many other great houses in Ireland have suffered. In the summer of 1960, over 3000 people visited the house. It has since become vis one of Ireland s best loved attractions, vis currently having being visited by over 5 million visitors vis to date and was recently voted one of the Best Family Visitor Attractions in Ireland by Primary Times magazine. The couple have five daughters Sheelyn, Karen, Lucinda, Clare and Allanagh. The title now goes to a cousin in Australia but due to Jeremy s unique foresight, vis the house and grounds will thankfully be inherited by his five daughters who are all heavily involved in the family business. With the help of former President, Mary Robinson and local solicitor, Michael Egan, Jeremy took a private bill through the Senate in 1993 which successfully challenged the male succession law and ensured that the future of Westport house stayed vis with its rightful owners, his five daughters.
Grace O Malley is the most renowned Irish female pirate also known as the Queen of Connacht. She was the chief of the O Malley clan and ruled the seas around County Mayo. Westport House was actually built on the foundations of one of her castles. There is still an area of her original Castle in the basement of the House, now known as the Dungeons which is on view to visitors. The original house was built by Colonel John Browne, a Jacobite, who partook in the siege o f Limerick, and his wife Maud Burke. Maude Burke was Grace O Malley s great-granddaughter. At that time, the tide of