Abbey gate lodge & gates, Rosemount House, Greyabbey, Newtownards, Co. Down, BT22 2QA

Abbey Gate Lodge and Gates, Rosemount House, Greyabbey

A small, single-storey rubble-built Georgian Gothick gate lodge of circa 1815–20, situated at the north or Abbey entrance to the Rosemount estate near Greyabbey. The lodge was built shortly after William Montgomery inherited the estate from his father Hugh in 1815.

The lodge is constructed in coursed basalt rubble with a mainly hipped roof covered in Bangor blue slates. A central rubble-built chimney rises from the main roof, with a later red brick chimney to the rear. The north façade is dominated by a canted bay with three pointed arch windows featuring Y-tracery frames and stone dressings. The front entrance, to the left of this bay, comprises a plain sheeted timber door with stone dressings, set within a lean-to extension with a corrugated iron roof. The west façade is rendered and contains a single sash window with Georgian panes. The south façade is blank and rendered but includes a small lean-to projection (probably a toilet) to the right, with a tiny two-pane window on its west face. The east façade is blank and rendered, merging with a high yard wall.

The matching gate screen adjoins the north-west corner of the lodge. It consists of a rubble wall with four large square pillars, each topped with tall pyramidal pinnacles. Between the two inner pillars are decorative cast iron gates with Gothick detailing. Between the inner and outer pillars on each side are castellated walls, each containing a pointed arch pedestrian entrance with matching gates.

The Gothick features of both structures reflect a style particularly popular in the Ards and Strangford area during this period, as seen at Rosemount House itself, the ancillary buildings at Mount Stewart, and Castle Ward. The design may also have been inspired by the nearby ruins of Greyabbey. It has been suggested that the masons responsible for this lodge also worked on gate lodges at Mount Stewart.

The coursing of the stonework in the lean-to section does not match the main building, suggesting it was added at a later date, possibly in the late 19th century. The lean-to now has a corrugated iron roof and there is a small projection to the rear. It is uncertain whether this was the original entrance to the estate. As of 24 February 2003, the building was completely burnt and survives as a shell.