Birr Castle's Parsons family marks 405th anniversary of arrival in town

Birr Castle Demense's Parsons family are celebrated the 405th anniversary of the arrival of Sir Laurence Parsons to Birr, the first member of the Parsons family to come to the town on Monday (July 7).

The family has since spanned 14 generations with each member contributing significantly to various fields, including contributions and achievements in astronomy, botany, photography and much more.

The Parsons family arrived at Birr in July of 1620 and acquired the ruined fortress of Birr.

The 19th century saw the castle become a great center of scientific research when William Parsons, 3rd Earl, built the Great Telescope.

His wife, Mary, whose fortune helped him build the telescope and make many improvements to the castle, was a pioneering photographer and took many photographs in the 1850s. Her darkroom, a total time capsule preserved in the castle, has now been relocated to the Science Centre.

Their son, Laurence, the 4th Earl, continued the astronomical work at the castle, and the Great Telescope was used until the beginning of the Second World War. His son, William, the 5th Earl, had a keen interest in agriculture and visited Denmark in search of more modern and successful farming methods.

Sir William Parsons (1800–1867), 3rd Earl of Rosse of Birr Castle in Kings County (Offaly) was an avid scientist, a passion he shared with his wife, Mary Rosse, and is best known for building the 72 inch reflective telescope, 'The Leviathan of Parsonstown,’ the world's largest telescope. From 1845 - 1917, it held the title of the world's largest telescope.

Charles Parsons (1854–1931) was the youngest child of William, 3rd Earl, and his wife Mary. He went on to become a renowned inventor and engineer, best known for creating the steam turbine, a revolutionary development in power generation, and also contributed to the first turbine-powered ship, Turbinia.

Now living in the castle are the Earl and Countess of Rosse, Brendan Parsons, the 7th Earl of Rosse, and his wife Alison.

To find out more about the Parsons family history and Birr Castle Demense, go to: https://birrcastle.com/