Skip to main contentSkip to footer

Sarah Ferguson's Irish family home is twice the size of Royal Lodge – inside

The Duchess of York's ancestors previously lived at Powerscourt Estate

sarah ferguson
Bridie Wilkins
Senior Health & Fitness Writer
Share this:

Sarah, Duchess of York, lives in the Royal Lodge in Windsor with her ex-husband Prince Andrew, complete with 30 rooms and 21 acres, but her family actually has Irish roots.

SEE: Sarah Ferguson and Prince Andrew's home to welcome first grandchild is epic

Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie's mother is the great-granddaughter of Mervyn Wingfield, the eighth Viscount Powerscourt. Her grandmother formerly lived at Powerscourt Estate, which is now an attraction in Ireland and boasts a 68-room mansion and 47-acre gardens, voted third best garden in the world.

Want to have a peek inside? Sarah regularly shares peeks inside her current home, but rarely reveals much of her ancestral property – until recently. In March, she posted a series of photos from the grounds in honour of St Patrick's Day.

WATCH: Sarah Ferguson reveals magical garden at the Royal Lodge

Located in Enniskerry, County Wicklow, the grounds include a stone tower named the 'Tower Valley', Japanese gardens, winged horse statues, a 'Triton' lake, a pet cemetery, a 'Dolphin' pond, walled gardens, the 'Bamberg Gate' and the 'Italian Garden'.

MORE: Sarah Ferguson gives unprecedented access inside royal home with fun videos

The outdoor space underwent extensive renovations under the instruction of Lord Powerscourt, who inherited the home at the age of eight in 1844. Said works took a total of 20 years, and were finished in 1880.

Sarah captioned her images: "Happy St. Patrick's Day. I love the gardens at Powerscourt, where my grandmother is buried as it was her childhood home. This poem from 1827 by Charlotte Elizabeth Tonna, sums up the magic of the Emerald Isles."

 Powerscourt House in Ireland outside view© Eye Ubiquitous/Getty
Powerscourt House in Ireland

MORE: Why Princess Anne ditched £1,300/month London flat after a few months

She went on to recite the words of the poem, beginning: "From the region of zephyrs, the Emerald isle. The land of thy birth, in my freshness I come. To waken this long-cherished morn with a smile. And breath o'er thy spirit the whispers of home."

Inside, the 13th-century castle originally had three storeys and boasted an entrance hall of 18 metres long and 12 metres wide. The main reception rooms were also located on the first floor, as opposed to the ground floor.

Powerscourt House and Gardens, A fountain and pond in the Walled Garden.© Eye Ubiquitous/Getty
The fountain in the walled garden is so beautiful

The home is still as large today, though it has since been renovated several times – once in the 18th century, and again after the house was destroyed by a fire in 1974, and subsequently renovated in 1996. 

READ: Royal homes looking surprisingly normal: Princess Anne, Princess Beatrice and more

Make sure you never miss a ROYAL story! Sign up to our newsletter to get all of our celebrity, royal and lifestyle news delivered directly to your inbox.

More Homes

See more