The Hellfire Club
The building there was erected in 1720 by the Speaker of the Irish House of Commons, William Connolly, as a residence during the hunting and shooting seasons. It was built with the stones of an old cairn which had stood on the same spot. Shortly after, the roof was torn off in a storm. In 1735, James Worsdale, the painter, and Richard Parsons, first Earl of Rosse, bought the building and made it the head-quarters of the Hellfire Club of Ireland. Before that the meetings had been held in the Eagle Tavern on Cork Hill, Dublin. The club was believed to be a place of debauchery and blasphemy, and among its rules was one which required that a member be able to consume 10 glasses of whiskey before dinner, one quart after dinner, after which he was able to find his own way home. Failure to perform this feat meant instant dismissal from the club. Many weird tales have been told about the Hellfire Club. Night after night the surrounding district echoed to the roars and screams that came from the building. There was a weird belief that Satan himself presided at the club meetings and some local inhabitants claimed to have seen Satan returning from those meetings. Tradition has it that a popular beverage among the Club members was Scaltheen, made by brewing whiskey and butter together. A special Scaltheen maker from the locality was employed. When the man learned too much of the activities of the Club, the story goes, he was forced to drink himself into stupidity. The other members then tossed him into a blazing fire and the man was burnt to death. Local stories say that his ghost has been seen among the ruin’s of the Hellfire Club. |
