Urban legend has it that the plans for Marlborough Barracks in Dublin got mixed up in the war department of London in the 1800s with the designs for a barracks in India. The pitched roofs and long ornate chimneys give the building, which is now known as McKee Barracks, a distinctive colonial character, which isn’t in keeping with designs of other former British military buildings around the capital. It’s highly unlikely that the war department would allow such an error to go unnoticed, but many locals still enjoy telling the tale.
In 1922, the complex was handed over to the Irish Free State, at which point it was renamed after Dick McKee, who was a prominent member of the Irish Republican Army. Today, a disused single-arch stone railway bridge separates the site and the terrace of 13 houses at Marlborough Road. These late-Victorian-era properties were built for the officers of the British army who were stationed at the barracks. The road, just off the North Circular, is now a quiet cul-de-sac that has the Phoenix Park to one side, the barracks behind it and Stoneybatter straight ahead.
Number 7, which is situated halfway along the terrace, has come on to the market through Sherry FitzGerald seeking €1.25 million. The four-bedroom redbrick has a floor area of 187sq m (2,013sq ft), and has been upgraded and restored over the years.
The current owners, who were looking to trade -up in the area, loved the location of Marlborough Road and the quietness of the cul-de-sac. Number 7 had already been fully renovated and extended in 2018, so it was just a case of redecorating when the owners moved in three years ago.
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With the help of designer Suzanne Hourican, the couple chose bold, strong colours for the living areas and created an imaginative space in the centre room downstairs, that in now a library with extensive shelving on all walls.
The mature wisteria wrapping around the front of the house is a warm and welcoming sign as you walk up the tiled driveway. The entrance hall has retained the original coving, centre rose and arch, with a newly tiled floor leading down to the kitchen.
To the left is the livingroom, painted in Reading Room Red by Farrow and Ball, which contrasts with the original deep cornicing in white. Pocket doors from here open into the library where the walls are painted in a rich green with feature wallpaper on one wall behind a piano.
This opens out into the kitchen extension which has high ceilings with two light wells. The solid timber kitchen units are by Dillon Kitchens and have recently been painted in Fisherman’s Boat green by Curator Paints to match the library walls. Appliances include a fridge-freezer, dishwasher and a Rangemaster oven with gas hob. The original fireplace has been retained and is fitted with a stove, and there is also a small utility space and a larder.
Upstairs, there is a double bedroom on the first-floor return with cast-iron fireplace. On the first floor the principal bedroom has a bay window looking out to the road and original features such as the fireplace, coving and ceiling rose. The en suite bathroom has marble tiling and there is a walk-in wardrobe.
There is a third double bedroom on the first floor and the fourth bedroom is on the second floor with an en suite shower room.
The landscaped rear garden has a patio area outside the kitchen with granite steps up to a lawn that has been laid with artificial grass with bountiful borders on each side. At the back is a shed that has a children’s playhouse on the roof.
All the recent upgrades have brought the energy rating of the late 1800s house up to an impressive B1. It uses gas-fired central heating and there is underfloor heating in the extension.
The owners are moving to the other side of the city to be closer to family but will miss the convenience of the Dublin 7 location, with Stoneybatter and its cafes, restaurants and pubs only five minutes away on foot via Oxmantown Road, and the Phoenix Park also a five-minute walk down the North Circular.
