Coolattin or Coollattin, as it is variously spelled, is a former landed estate owned by the powerful Fitzwilliam family. It once extended across around 90,000 acres, or one fifth of the surrounding Wicklow countryside. As you explore this area, consider that much of what you see is the product of centuries of landscape management.
The rolling hills and rich farmland suggest that the quality of the land was at least part of the reason for the centre of the estate being here. Thick brown soils developed on deposits left by the glaciers at the end of the last ice age. These soils were then improved by the estate over time. At the heart of the estate is the now privately owned Coolattin House. Coolattin Golf Club sits on what were once the house gardens. Here, the natural landscape style still shows evidence of the typical estate garden design from the 1800s. Clumps of trees dotted across the landscape drew a visitor’s gaze out to the wider estate. It is in the story of the wider estate that we find Coolattin’s most lasting impact: 6,000 tenants were paid to leave their homes here and emigrate to Canada during and after the Great Irish Famine.
Nearby Shillelagh offers lots to see. The churchyard features an impressive example of a rare cork oak tree, estate workers’ cottages line the streets, and a heritage trail guides you through the town. Click here for more