My ancestors - Humphrys - Contents

36 Ailesbury Rd, Dublin

References:

History of 36 Ailesbury Rd (or via here), French Embassy, Dublin.
Deed, dated 23 June 1921, registered 14 July 1921, [LR] book 48, no.82.

36 Ailesbury Rd.
The S front.
See larger and full size.
Photo 2007 courtesy of Lisney property. Used with permission.

36 Ailesbury Rd, on one of the very best roads of Dublin,
was built by the widowed Nell Humphreys 1920.
The builder was the republican Batt O'Connor, built for £8000, about £1m in today's money.
Nell originally had plans for a much larger house on a site on Shrewsbury Rd, but this was never built.
[Deed, 1921] sets the ground rent on the site of £28/year, to be paid by Nell to the estate of the 15th Earl of Pembroke, payable for 150 years from 25 Mar 1920.

Nell's family were wealthy supporters of the Irish revolution, and the house was built with a secret room on the 1st floor to hide fugitives.
Perhaps the last house in Ireland built with a secret room.

It was used as a safe house in the War of Independence 1920-21, sheltered many IRA fugitives.
Cathal Brugha, Minister for Defence in the underground government, used it as his HQ, and slept in secret room.
The house was used for Cabinet meetings of the underground Republican Government 1920-1, meetings of Republican Courts, and meetings of IRA HQ staff.
[French Embassy history] says it was also used for meetings of the Dáil itself (or those members who could attend).
Arthur Griffith, Michael Collins and Eamon de Valera were frequent visitors.
Despite many British raids the secret room was never discovered.
Brian Hogan tells a joke: "What did they find when they raided the Humphreys' house?" "They found Maud Gonne .."
Raid by the British in 1920: Two Volunteers, one called Moore, arrived 6pm, nowhere to stay.
Sighle went to look for safe house in Donnybrook, couldn't find one, they would have to stay the night.
They had two revolvers. Emmet hid them under the house, didn't go in any distance.
Dick was out on motorcycle trial in Dublin mountains, home very late, all worried.
After 10pm there were footsteps on the gravel, noise at door, British outside. Emmet rushed the two boys up to secret room. Nell tried to stall them at door. "How many men are in the house?" "Only two sons".
British searched the place, looking for hiding place, watching Anno's face in mirror, seeing if getting near. Couldn't find it, but went under house, found guns, arrested Dick and Emmet.
British went away. Family didn't let boys out, good thing too because British crept round the back to wait for them.

The family was on the Republican side in Civil War, secret room still used to shelter fugitives.
Batt O'Connor went over to the Free State, but didn't tell [Mac Eoin, 1980].
However the Free State side found out anyway.
It was raided by the Free State in the Civil War, Nov 1922, when there was a shootout, Anno seriously injured, whole family arrested.

After the Civil War, the die-hard republican Sighle remained an opponent of the Free State.
Ailesbury Rd raided, Sighle arrested 10th May 1928 on charges of influencing juries.
Ailesbury Rd raided, Sighle arrested 16th Dec 1931 for membership of (the now illegal) Cumann na mBan.

Nell died there 1939.
Nell left Ailesbury Rd to Anno while she lived, then after that to Dick (50 percent), Sighle (25 percent) and Emmet (25 percent).
Anno O'Rahilly died there 1958.
Emmet Humphreys then lived there (he bought out Dick and Sighle's shares),
Emmet living there as at c.1963, listed there in [Thom's, 1965] to [Thom's, 1969].
Emmet sold it 1968 to French Embassy.

French Embassy had acquired the spectacular 53 Ailesbury Road as their embassy in 1930.
[Thom's, 1971] shows new French Embassy offices at 36 Ailesbury Road.
[French Embassy history] says when the floors were lifted to install central heating, a hiding place was found under the floor which contained a bayonet.
Humphrey Langan met a lady who worked at the Embassy. She said that when they were having the wiring done, they took up floorboards, found guns and revolvers underneath.

36 Ailesbury Rd is now the Chancery and Consular Service of the French Embassy (i.e. the working embassy).
Across the road is the official Embassy, 53 Ailesbury Road, where the French Ambassador lives.
The secret room, between the bathroom and hot press, "in what is now the washroom", is preserved by the French Embassy.

In Jan 2008, France put up for sale both of its properties - 36 Ailesbury Rd (offered at €20 m)
and 53 Ailesbury Rd (offered at €60 m, the most expensive house ever put on sale in Ireland).
See Irish Times, 17 Jan 2008 (and property).
See 36 Ailesbury Rd and 53 Ailesbury Rd sales sites.
36 Ailesbury Rd is described as 9 bedroom, 3,700 square feet, standing on 1 Acre in Dublin 4.
As at June 2008 they are still unsold.

Location of 36 and 53 Ailesbury Rd.
53 Ailesbury Rd is prominent green-roofed building standing on its own on S side of road.
36 Ailesbury Rd is across road, on N side, 2 houses to the right, the first black-roofed building to the right of the red-roofed building, with a little car park at rear left.
Click to toggle map/satellite view. Click to zoom in/out. Drag to move.
From Google Maps.

36 Ailesbury Rd after the raid in 1922.
The S front. Note no LHS extension.
From 1922 newspaper.