The Stamer Baronetcy, a title in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom, was created on December 15th, 1809, for William Stamer, lord mayor of Dublin in 1809 and 1810, of Beauchamp House in Shankill, and after whom Stamer Street in Portobello is named.
Beauchamp, a Georgian gentleman's residence, is tucked away in verdant gardens on Dublin Road in Shankill and has been home to Cleo Rowan's family since 1932, when her grandfather purchased the house and lands to run Rowan Seeds, his horticultural company, and to make Beauchamp their family home.
Rowan now wishes to downsize and has placed her home and gardens on the market to be auctioned on May 7th through Lisney with an AMV of €1.5 million.
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The house, built circa 1803, is a protected structure, and, like a butterfly, if folded in two has perfect symmetry.
Inside the portico with original encaustic tiling is a lovely vestibule with egg and dart cornicing, and a staircase leading to the first return framed by intricate fluted pillars.
An extension was built to the rear in the late 1800s, which is evident from the inserts in the balustrade, and two bedrooms and bathrooms were added to the property, bringing the total floor area to 401sq m (4,322sq ft)
Two graceful reception rooms – a drawing room and dining room – flank each side of the hallway and have high ceilings, original fireplaces, statue alcoves and bow windows looking out on to the lawns.
Behind these rooms are a breakfast room, a smoking room, a large kitchen and a host of smaller rooms which would have been sculleries and maids’ quarters in the 1800s.
Oldest Aga
The kitchen according to Rowan, has one of the oldest Agas in the country dating from 1918, which the family changed from anthracite to Kerosene.
On the first floor, a wide hallway opens on to a veranda, and houses four principal bedrooms, two of which have private chambers used by the family as dressing rooms.
Beauchamp is a fine example of a Georgian gentleman’s residence, but its jaded elegance is in need of upgrading. The house itself has no central heating in contrast to the intricate heating system that Rowan’s grandfather installed for his nursery, the remnants of which still exist.
There is no planning permission to build on the land as the property lies in a green belt but the coach house and potting sheds, inside a walled garden, are roofed and could be transformed to separate accommodation subject to planning.
What Beauchamp needs is a new owner with an appreciation for Georgian craftsmanship who will preserve and protect this bastion of our architectural heritage.
