2.0 UNDERSTANDING THE PLACE
Garden Squares
The form of the urban square has its antecedents
in the Greek agora and Roman forum, resurrected
during the Renaissance in Italy and later in the rest of
Europe during the seventeenth century. There were
many variations in form and purpose, but the model of
the garden square is particular to Britain and Ireland.
Amongst the earliest were those of Covent Garden
and St. James’s Square in London that date from the
mid-seventeenth century. St. Stephen’s Green also
dates from this period, pre-dating Merrion Square by
one hundred years, albeit re-developed largely with
brick townhouse terraces during the early Georgian
period. A number of key characteristics evolved in the
garden square typology. These include - residential
Fig.4 Portrait of John Claudius Loudon. (RHS)
use, metal railings enclosing private gardens, simple
planting schemes and path layouts surrounding
open lawns, statuary and memorials using classical
precedents, together with continuity combined
with restraint in the architectural treatment of the
townhouses to give an overall coherence.
John Claudius Loudon writing in his Encyclopaedia of
Gardening of 1822 describes the main characteristics
of squares, emphasizing the importance of an
uninterrupted promenade, preferably close to and
parallel to the boundary railings. He also advocated
Fig. 5 T. Richardson Four Alternative Layouts for Lincoln’s Inn Fields
1790 (Longstaffe-Gowan from Soane Museum Collection)
5
Early History
Merrion Square sits on what was once farmland
on the shore of the Liffey where it broadened into
an estuary discharging into Dublin Bay. From the
fifteenth century, the Fitzwilliam family had their
principal seat at Merrion Castle some five kilometres
to the south, and these lands formed part of an
estate of extending to some 1,377 acres4. The city
started to expand beyond its medieval walls in the
latter half of the seventeenth century, with the most
fashionable developments located to the north side
of the river. Sir John Rogerson built a long stone quay
on the south side of the estuary in the early 1720s
when the slob lands behind the wall, to the north of
what is now Merrion Square were reclaimed over
the following decades5. The development of this area
intensified after the building of Kildare House in 1745
by James Fitzgerald, the first Duke of Leinster. Richard
Castle, the foremost architect of the period, designed
the ducal palace in the form of a country mansion,
despite its location on the edge of the city. Fitzgerald
correctly judged that his move to the south of the city
would result in the rest of the aristocracy following as
they abandoned their north side houses6. Part of the
lawn to the east side of the house was leased from
the Fitzwilliam estate, and its uninterrupted view of
the bay and estuary soon became a contentious issue
between these rich and powerful families.
Fig. 6 Extract from J. Barker map of 1762 showing site of square prior to
it being subdivided into lots.
Fig.7 Barker’s plan of 1762 showing first plots being laid out.
wide open spaces so that parents looking from
their windows may not long at a time lose sight of
their children, and open and shaded walks to suit the
changing seasons. Resting places were important, and
shelter from showers, statues of eminent public men
were considered obvious and appropriate decorations
for squares.
As can be expected, the gardens have not been as
resistant to change as bricks and mortar, and have
in many cases been redesigned to conform to
contemporary taste, or redeveloped with buildings
for new uses. Another feature of the parks was that
they were originally designed to be for the sole private
use of the subscribers or keyholders who used the
garden to socialise and to promenade among their
peers detached from the busy surrounding streets.
Fig. 8 View from Rocque’s map of 1757 showing Kildare (now Leinster)
House with the undeveloped square in the background.
6
Fig. 9 Barker’s 1764 drawing showing proposed new square with gable-fronted terraces and Fitzwilliam St. continuing past east end.
Merrion Square
As their estates on the south side of the river had
become ever more fashionable, the Fitzwilliam family
identified a valuable development opportunity,
and started to lay out fine terraced houses along
Merrion Street. The design of the square, which
was to follow, has been attributed to John Ensor,
who succeeded Castle after his death in 17517, and
completed some of his projects. In 1762 a survey
by Jonathan Barker shows the newly-built houses to
either side of Merrion Street along with proposals for
new streets to the east. A plan drawn up by Barker
depicts an ambitious scheme for a rectangular central
space with narrow plots occupied by parapet and
gable-fronted townhouses on the remaining three
sides of the square. The park is shown laid out as
a wide, open lawn with tree-lined pathways around
its perimeter. The Fitzwilliams were determined
that the architecture of the townhouses would be
consistent, and set out simple rules for the individual
developers that allowed some variation within a
generally harmonious streetscape8. This approach
followed established precedents throughout the
city. They resisted attempts to build houses along
the square that would be larger and closer in scale
to Leinster House. Ninety-two narrow-fronted
houses were eventually built, many by those from
the merchant, professional and artisan classes rather
than the aristocracy. Building materials were sourced
from nearby stone quarries and brickfields offering
discounted rates. It is clear from an estate survey
by Patrick Roe of 1774 that only the north side of
the square had been laid out at that time, and these
houses looked over the same fields as shown in a
survey of 1762.
7
was lagging some way behind. By 1791 the residents
obtained an Act of Parliament that provided for the
enclosure of the park and by 1794 the planting and
wrought-iron railings were in place9.
The Dublin Chronicle of 11 June 179110 records that
Benjamin Simpson, a nurseryman with an address
at 1 College Green, won the competition for laying
out the park. He was one of sixty entrants in the
competition and benefitted from the assistance of that
very ingenious artist Mr James Barralet. He oversaw its
implementation in 1792, at the same time that the
Rutland Memorial was built to the west side of the
park to the designs of Francis Sandys11. A map dating
from 1798 first shows Simpson’s park layout, which
corresponds to the informal English-style garden
shown on nineteenth-century maps rather than the
more formal planting scheme shown on Barker’s
plans of 1762 and 1764. This simple layout is shown
in more detail on a survey plan prepared by John
Roe in 1822 with some additions. A fringe of trees
aligns the boundary to provide privacy and enclose a
large central lawn that dips towards the centre. This
hollow could be a natural feature, or the result of
excavations over the decades as the houses fronting
the square were built. It does not appear that
the designer altered the ground levels; limiting the
ambition of the landscape scheme. A wide straight
path runs along the northern edge, with gently
curving pathways forming the other boundaries.
Fig. 10 Portrait of the 6th Viscount, Richard Fitzwillliam 1711-1776.
Later maps record how the park landscape was
gradually altered over the nineteenth-century.
Interlocking pathways were installed to connect the
entrance gates on the north and south side, and
Fig. 11 Roe’s map showing extent of Fitzwilliam Estate in Dublin in 1774.
A further survey by Roe in 1789, undertaken with
his son John, shows the square completed with an
adjustment to its north-eastern corner to allow
Antrim House (designed by John Ensor) to terminate
the magnificent vista along Fitzwilliam Street. The
drawing does not show the central garden in any
detail. While the square was a distinctly urban space
on the edge of the city when constructed, lands to the
south and east remained as fields with tenant farms,
workers cottages and small villas, which were soon to
be replaced by expanding development. Some thirty
years after the first houses were built, it seems likely
that the civil works and landscaping of the square
Fig.12 Roe’s map of 1789 showing extent of development.
8
for the fashionable and praise the good taste of its
shrubberies and gravel walks. At this time, the park
was enclosed with a plain, neat, iron palisade 12 that
was fitted with lamps that lined a granite-flagged
footpath. The retention of the natural topography
was noted as creating a pleasing variety, and avoided
a very considerable expense. Wright describes the
interior pathways as being fourteen feet wide13, but
map evidence suggests this was to the north side only,
which would correspond to the summer promenade
along the south-facing pathway that runs parallel to
Merrion Square North.
Ordnance Survey Maps
The series of Ordnance Survey maps dating from the
middle of the nineteenth-century up to the present
day show how the original scheme essentially remains
Fig.13 Extract from Wilson’s 1798 map showing square fully enclosed
and planted.
formed an elegant ellipse at the centre of the park.
The new paths created five open areas laid out as
lawns with curved blocks of planting appearing
periodically within the perimeter pathway. These are
most dense at the corners and created an interesting
series of ever changing vistas along the promenade.
Interestingly the central ellipse is shown fully planted
with a large dense elliptical copse. It is unclear
whether these alterations followed Simpson’s design
intentions, or whether the paths followed established
desire lines that were incorporated into a more
complex landscape scheme.
Historic Accounts
Descriptions of the park in the decades following its
completion provide interesting insights into how the
garden appeared and was used at that time. The
History of the City of Dublin by Warburton, Whitelaw
& Walsh (1818) and An Historical Guide to the City of
Dublin by G.N. Wright (1825) were two publications
aimed at the educated visitor to Dublin. Both
provide historical background and descriptions of
the main attractions of the city giving prominence
to Merrion Square within their accounts of the main
city parks. Warburton, Whitelaw & Walsh describe
Merrion Square as being superior to St. Stephen’s
Green in every respect other than size, and consider
it among the finest squares in Europe. Both
publications describe the popularity of the footpath
to the north side of the square as a promenade
Fig.14 Extract from J. Roe’s map of 1822 showing original planting.
Fig.15 Extract from Wilson’s map of 1833 showing paths being laid out.
9
Fig.16 Extract from 25-inch scale Ordnance Survey map of 1847.
street level, a drop of over two metres in places. The
map includes contours that show how the park is
lower than street level on the south and east sides,
with a hollow area in the centre aligned along an
east-west axis. There are planting beds or stands of
trees located within the corners and intersections
of the paths, however, open prospects are for the
most part retained across the parkland. The beds
are informally planned, within a variety of shapes
including - stars, crescents, circles and tear drops. The
northern pathway is twice as broad as the others
emphasising its use as a popular, sunny south-facing,
promenade. An additional gate has been installed to
Merrion Square East.
intact, albeit altered and partially obscured by later
additions. On the 25-inch Ordnance Survey map
of 1847 from the layout is consistent with the one
shown in 1822 with the addition of looping pathways
intersecting in the centre of the park to create the
large oval shaped planting bed. These paths were
established to create routes across the park that also
provided a geometrical framework that allowed the
introduction of greater variety through later Victorian
planting schemes within the park. The Rutland
Memorial has been extended to the rear to provide a
park lodge, which is visible on early photographs, with
steps leading down from a masonry podium. Steps
are also shown leading down into the park from the
10
The next edition of the map dates from 1889, by
which time tramlines have been installed on three
sides of the square. There now appears to be paths
running to each side of the Rutland Memorial but it is
not clear whether these were used as park entrances
as the area behind the monument remains enclosed
by railings. Two new pathways have also been installed,
linking the remaining gates on the north and south
sides directly to the central area creating a loose
tripartite grid with an oval centrepiece the latter of
which has now been cleared of planting. The other
planted areas remain intact, and what appears to be
a small building (perhaps a public convenience) has
been installed amongst the trees to the northwest
corner where the playground is found today.
Fig.18 Late 19th c. photograph from north west corner showing cobbled streets, trams & low trees screening garden. (NLI)
By the date of the next edition in 1908, a third
entrance has been created on the east side, bringing
the total number to eight. A fountain and rockery
similar to those found in St. Stephen’s Green and
other parks of this period, have been installed beside
the central oval. Although the planting areas remain
largely similar to the original layout, they have started
to extend on the south side so that more of the
promenade path is enclosed with trees to both sides,
cutting off the southern views over the park. The
neo-classical substation has also been added to the
north-western corner of the park, with direct access
to it from the street. By 1936, the small building in
the trees has been removed and another building of
similar scale has been installed beside the substation.
Fig.19 Late 19th c. photograph looking over Leinster Lawn towards
garden, with Merrion Square East visible in far distance. (NLI)
Fig.17 Extract from 1908 edition map.
By this time, the park had been purchased by the
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Dublin for the sum
of £10,000 as a site for a new cathedral. Under that
agreement the residents retained use of the park for
the remainder of their leases that expired in 1938.
There is an extensive archive in Archbishop’s House
containing correspondence in relation to the use of
the park and its maintenance. This confirms that a
head gardener lived in the park lodge behind the
Rutland Memorial14. The eastern end of the park
continued to be used by the residents for lawn tennis,
which was also played in nearby Fitzwilliam Square
and Mountjoy Square on the north side of the city.
There are requests from government departments
such as forestry and defence for temporary use of
the park and in 1939 at the outbreak of the second
11
Fig. 20 Aerial view taken in 1931 by Air Corps showing layout intact.
world war air-raid shelters were erected in the park.
Popular history relates that a large underground
shelter was installed in the south-western corner of
the park, with a capacity of up to 1,100 people. The
grassy hill that survives today is generally held to have
been the entrance. However, it is more likely to be a
spoil heap left after the removal of concrete shelters
located above ground. During a Dáil Eireann debate
in November 1939 to discuss the finance bill, the Fine
Gael leader, General Richard Mulcahy stated - Just as
we have been plunged into expense on an unnecessary
black-out and on the erection of air raid shelters in
Merrion Square and other places, here we are being
plunged into a much more serious expense.
Historic Images
Some of the best historic views of the park feature the
Rutland Memorial rather than the park or the square
itself. The Lawrence Collection contains images of
the park dating from the late-nineteenth century.
The earliest illustration to survive is an aquatint of the
Rutland Memorial, by the painter John James Barralet
that was dedicated to the Duchess and stating its use
for the Poor of the City of Dublin. Barralet is also
recorded as collaborating with Benjamin Simpson in
winning the competition for the landscape design of
the park in 1791. Although it shows granite plinths
supporting brightly coloured wrought-iron railings
with cast-iron finials and elegant globe lights, these
may not represent the railings that were eventually
installed. A late-nineteenth century photograph
shows a much simpler, square section railing type that
by then extends across the fountain and memorial
with the fountains removed from use. The railings
around the square were deliberately intended to
keep everyone other than key-holders out of the
private realm of the garden. Aerial photographs
In the diocesan archive there are also letters from
key holders concerning issues of anti-social behaviour
and maintenance. Later, in the early 1970’s, there
was a concerted campaign for the park to be made
available for public use. The church resisted initially,
as they continued to pursue the realisation of their
ambitions for a new cathedral15.
12
Fig. 21 Aerial view from BKS survey of 1963 showing tennis courts and lodge to rear of Rutland Memorial.
13
taken by the Air Corps in 1931 held in the Diocesan
Archives confirm the map evidence of open parkland,
bordered by trees with the wider path to the north
side and the sinuous gravel path layout that had
evolved. The grass looks patchy, this might indicate
areas of shorter grass that were being used for
lawn tennis. A photograph of the Rutland Memorial
taken by Maurice Craig in the 1950s16 shows a
chimney smoking from the lodge to the rear. Other
photographs feature the trams on cobbled streets. It
is also interesting to note that the much lower tree
canopy allowed the architecture of the surrounding
square to be better appreciated from within the
gardens. Another aerial photograph from the BKS
Aerial Survey collection held in the Irish Architectural
Archive dates from 1963. The fine detail of this
photograph shows a total of eighteen tennis courts
lined out on on the open lawn surface in roughly the
same locations as the earlier view. The roof of the
lodge behind the Rutland Memorial is visible, along
with the mound. The extent of the planting remains
close to that shown on the nineteenth century maps,
Fig. 24 View of central hall of Great Industrial Exhibition on Leinster
lawn in 1853 (NLI).
with the views and screening as originally intended.
Many of the townhouses still retain their back gardens
and mews, and the square is ringed with parked cars.
A photograph taken at the ceremony to mark the
opening of the park to the public also shows how
open the view was to the brick-lined terraces that
surround the garden.
Leinster Lawn
Immediately to the west of the park is Leinster Lawn,
separated from the park only by the considerable
width of Merrion Street and their railed enclosures.
Leinster House, built by James Fitzgerald the Earl of
Kildare, later the first Duke of Leinster, was more
as a country mansion in an urban setting than a
townhouse. Its rear lawn had prospects to the
east over the fields that would very soon after be
developed as Merrion Square. Part of the lawn was
leased from the Fitzwilliam estate17, which along with
the new houses they built along the street, frustrated
and inhibited the Fitzgeralds in the full enjoyment of
their city residence. Plans for the development of the
square always included it as an important reference
point, but the square was not laid out on the axis of
the house and its south-facing rear garden. When the
Royal Dublin Society purchased Leinster House in
1815, they used the lawn to host their popular Spring
Show and Horse Show. In 1853, the vast central
hall of the Great Industrial Exhibition was set in the
garden with a 100m frontage addressing Merrion
Square. Images of this building show an arcaded and
domed structure looming over the bustling square,
with the Rutland Memorial visible in the foreground.
Over time the RDS embellished the site with the
development of the National Gallery and the Natural
Fig. 22 Aquatint by Barralet of Rutland Memorial from 1791 (NLI).
Fig. 23 Photograph of Rutland Memorial taken by Maurice Craig in
1950s showing lodge roof behind.
14
Park Today
During the period when the archdiocese was
considering the merits of a new cathedral and
the suitability of the proposed location, the park
continued in the sole use of the key holders. Since
the opening of the park to the public in 1975, Dublin
City Council have maintained the square, introduced
new planting schemes, new buildings and sculptures.
The historic path layout was largely retained with
the exception of the perimeter circuit, the southeast
corner of which was removed to accommodate the
installation of a range of depot buildings that are
screened by dense planting. To link the interrupted
perimeter circuit a new path was laid out running
diagonally across the lawn cutting off the southeast
corner. Two sets of gates and steps were removed
on Merrion Square East, leaving only the central
entrance, which is the widest and only vehicular
entrance leading into the park. The lodge at the rear
of the Rutland Memorial was removed some time
ago, and a cobbled podium created in its place. A
programme of conservation work to the memorial
was carried out in 2009. A playground was installed
into a hollow in the northwest corner, which is now
quite dated and is due to be replaced. Since opening
to the public, a collection of sculpture by leading Irish
sculptors has evolved. This currently numbers ten
pieces depicting famous cultural and political figures.
A national memorial to the defence forces was
installed in 2008 to Merrion Square West along with
a new, wheelchair accessible entrance from this side.
Fig. 25 Photograph from IAA dated 1981 showing extent of planting.
Fig. 26 Recent view south across central lawn.
History Museum flanking the north and south sides
of the lawn. The RDS inherited a garden planted in
the English style with a pathway running around the
edge of a thickly planted belt of trees on three sides,
with the fourth open to the street. Following the
exhibition, a more formal geometrical layout was
installed with fountains, statues and monuments that
formed part of this important cultural institution
that was founded in the eighteenth century. In 1924
Leinster House was purchased by the new Irish
government for use as the Houses of the Oireachtas,
after which the garden layout was kept essentially the
same. However, the statue of Prince Albert in the
centre of the garden was relocated to make way for
a cenotaph honouring Arthur Griffith, Michael Collins
and Kevin O’Higgins. This was subsequently replaced
by a granite obelisk in 1950. Up until recently, for a
period of about ten years, much of the lawn was used
for parking spaces, which have now been removed.
Regrettably the original wrought-iron railings have
been replaced with painted galvanised steel to a
simple pattern similar in form, if not detail, to the
original design. Fortunately the original granite plinth
stones have been retained. Every Sunday, the square
is enlivened when the railings on three sides are used
as an open-air gallery. Visitors and locals walk around
the perimeter of the park admiring the work on
show. The pitches are marked out simply using brass
numbers installed in the footpath. Other changes
to the overall character of the park during the last
forty years relate mainly to the planting schemes and
maintenance. While the grass and flowerbeds are
well maintained, trees and shrubs are now much more
prominent than was originally intended. To the north
15
Fig.27 View from upper storey of Irish Architectural Archive looking west over dense tree canopy.
side a large heather garden has been established,
which along with the central displays, do not adhere
to the original design, but nonetheless remain popular
with visitors. Currently the largest lawn is located at
the east end, albeit now divided into three separate
areas by the intersecting paths. This area is used for
public open-air events; and together with the central
space, is the most popular during lunchtime for sitting
out and admiring the flower displays. The west side,
like the perimeter and linking pathways, is mostly
in deep shade due to the overgrowth of trees and
shrubberies and the planting of an arboretum on
the former lawn situated in the north west corner.
Open areas at this end of the park now have the
appearance of outdoor rooms, separated from the
perimeter pathways by dense planting.
In 2013, an area to the south of the central space was
cleared of its undergrowth cleared to create the site
of an art installation to commemorate the European
Presidency. The settings to the more popular
memorials have also been cleared of undergrowth
and overhanging vegetation. This is part of an ongoing strategy of clearance in the park during the
winter months that will introduce more light to
improve biodiversity, as well as exposing the beautiful
mature London Plane trees that had previously
been largely concealed. The clearances will improve
legibility and spatial connectivity, while creating views
into and out of the park so that the architecture of
the square can be better appreciated from within,
and the gardens more enticing from outside.
16