Mausoleum, Downhill Demesne, Castlerock, Co. Londonderry

Mausoleum, Downhill Demesne

This free-standing Neo-classical mausoleum, built in sandstone ashlar, was erected between approximately 1780 and 1784 on an elevated site to the east of Downhill Palace, north of Mussenden Road, within what is now the Downhill Demesne on the north Londonderry coast. It was commissioned by Frederick Hervey, Earl of Bristol and Bishop of Derry, and designed by Michael Shanahan. Although it is captioned as a mausoleum on the first edition Ordnance Survey map of 1831 and on all subsequent editions, it contains no human remains and might more properly be described as a memorial or cenotaph. It was built to commemorate Frederick's elder brother George Hervey, the second Earl of Bristol and Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, who died in March 1775.

The design is closely modelled on the Roman tomb of the Jules family at Saint-Rémy-en-Provence, a well-known ancient monument that the Earl Bishop is likely to have known at first hand. It has been suggested he may also have encountered the young John Soane's designs for a similar monument while visiting Rome. Shanahan submitted a cost estimate in 1779 and proposed incorporating an ice-house into the structure, though this idea was never carried out. Stone quarrying and hewing was undertaken by James McBlain in 1778–79, and work was clearly progressing by 1783, when Shanahan attempted to persuade the Earl Bishop to install the statue in the lower part of the building. Plans were still being produced at that stage, and it appears the mausoleum was not fully completed before 1784.

The structure is three stages in height and square on plan. It sits on a rough-hewn basalt base. The lowest stage, or pedestal, is built in coursed sandstone ashlar with roll moulding to the base, Greek-key framed panels to each elevation, and a cornice above. The middle stage is arcaded, with a round-headed arch to each elevation. The archivolts are fluted and rise from fluted and dentilled impost mouldings, supported on paired Ionic pilasters with roundels in the spandrels. Engaged Ionic columns frame each elevation and carry an architrave and frieze bearing lead lettering that runs continuously around all four sides. The inscription is taken from Virgil: 'Ille meas Errare Boves ut cernis, et ipsum Ludere quae Vellem Calamo permisit agresti', which translates as "He gave me his word that my oxen should roam, as you see, while I myself play what I please upon my rustic reed-pipe" — an apparent allusion to the life of leisure and opportunity that George Hervey's generosity made possible for his younger brother. The frieze is surmounted by a modillioned cornice.

Above this, the upper stage originally comprised a drum base with continuous swag mouldings, carrying eight Corinthian columns arranged in a colonnade and supporting a cupola. Within the colonnade stood a life-size marble statue of George Hervey, commissioned from the celebrated Dublin sculptor van Nost in 1778. The statue was modelled from a print, and the work was supervised by Frederick's daughter Elizabeth Foster, who later became the Duchess of Devonshire following her well-known involvement in a ménage à trois with the Devonshires in the 1780s.

In 1839 the monument was severely damaged by the so-called "Big Wind", a hurricane that swept across Ireland causing widespread destruction and several hundred deaths. The cupola, its supporting Corinthian colonnade, and the statue of George Hervey were all brought down. The attic bases of the columns and the pedestal of the statue survive at the upper stage, and several column shafts remain lying on the ground to the west elevation. The sculpted body of the Lord Lieutenant was at one point placed behind the Bishop's Gate. The head of the statue has not been positively identified, but may be among the "Downhill Marbles" now on display at Hezlett House.

The background to the commission reflects the depth of Frederick Hervey's personal and practical debt to his brother. George had been appointed Lord Lieutenant of Ireland in 1766 and, although he held the post for only a year and never visited Ireland, used his position to secure for Frederick the Bishopric of Derry, the wealthiest ecclesiastical living on the island. George also left Frederick £10,000 in his will. His death without issue meant his earldom passed first to another brother, Augustus, who also died without issue in 1779, at which point Frederick inherited the title as well, becoming Earl Bishop — a combination not recorded since the time of William the Conqueror.

The mausoleum is of exceptional quality in terms of its style, proportion, ornamentation, and plan form, and forms a striking feature in the coastal landscape of the Downhill Demesne. It has group value with the other listed structures on the Downhill site. The monument was listed in 1977 and was formerly recorded as HB03/12/014.