Bantry House situated on beautiful Bantry Bay in West Cork became the seat of the Earls of Bantry in the late eighteenth century when Richard White (later the 1st Earl of Bantry) was elevated to the title in recognition of his services in alerting the British authorities to the presence of a French armada off the coast of Bantry in 1796.
His quick action prevented the French invasion, culminating in White’s ennoblement along with that of his family home. There has been a dwelling on the site from the early eighteenth century. The house had two previous incarnations as Seafield and Blackrock House, it remains today in the hands of the descendant family, and is still known as Bantry House.
The Grand Tour and the Irish Grand Tourist 