Welcome to Hodson Bay Hotel...
Welcome to Hodson Bay Hotel, a unique location
steeped in a rich and charming history. As you enjoy the most
recent chapter in our story, let us introduce you to our past.
We hope you enjoy your stay with us
on the shores of beautiful Lough Ree....
Timothy Hayes
General Manager
Hodson’s Pillar on Lough Ree, marking the reputed centre of Ireland
LOUGH REE, LAKE OF THE KINGS
“
Loch Rí, when comes its name, truly given, O ye learned of Inis
Fail? Say who was Rí from whom it is called, ye learned poets of
the world! Rí, son of famous Muirid, of the bright joyous plain of
Meath, got a home there.
For a time in MagAirbthen of the angels. A gelding - the braver
was he - when loosed of his burden staled and made a spring it was theme of talk - of the abundant flow in mid-plain. The
copious spring spread over MagAirbthen famed in story; it
drowned Rí - the braver was he!- with his horse and all his cattle.
From that Rí - it was a masterful effort - the lake is named
throughout Erin; from him - a title early won - bravely arose the
noble lake.
”
from The Metrical Dindsenchas as Translated by Edward Gwynn
(Dublin: Royal Irish Academy, 1903)
THE VIKINGS
The Vikings arrived in Ireland circa 795 and the attack on
Malahide is the first recorded assault in Ireland. In approx
850 the Vikings had settled in Limerick and by 936 Olaf Na
Ceann Carach (or “Olaf with the Scabby Head”) and his fleet
had reached Lough Ree, having moved his long-ships overland
following a raiding expedition on Lough Erne. For three years
he based himself here for political and economical reasons. It
was on Lough Ree that a famous battle took place when Olafr
Gothfrithsson, a Dublin based Viking king, defeated the Lough
Ree Vikings and took Olaf Na Ceann Carach as their prisoner.
It wasn’t until 1800 that the largest Viking gold hoard in Western
Europe was found in Lough Ree, consisting of armlets, bracelets
and many other gold objects. Whilst most of this was melted
down and subsequently sold in Dublin, highly detailed drawings
of each piece were carefully captured and preserved.
Relive Vikin
g
Battles on-b
oard
Athlone’s fa
mous
Viking Cru
ise!
MONASTIC SETTLEMENTS
EARLIEST ACCOUNT OF HODSON BAY
Clonmacnoise Monastic Site.
30mins from Hodson Bay Hotel.
Saint Island ruins on Lough Ree.
Lough Ree is home to numerous early Christian monastic sites.
Remains on Inchbofin consist on an enclosure and two churches,
dating from the 10th Century to the middle ages. On Saint
Island, remains can be found of a 12th Century monastery with
a cloister, church and enclosure which was subsequently linked
to the mainland by a causeway. On Quaker Island there are ruins
of two old churches residing within the egg-shaped enclosure
and two more outside. The most notable, perhaps, lies on Hare
Island. It was here that St. Kieran of Clonmacnoise founded an
early monastery, of which a Romanesque church and sporting
lodge can still be seen. An Oak forest was planted here by Lord
Castlemaine who lived outside Athlone in Moydrum in the 1800s.
The island of Inchcleraun (Inis Cloithreann) in the northern
part of the lake is the site of a monastery founded in the
early Christian era and contains the remains of several ancient
churches. In Irish legends, it was on this island that Queen Maeve
was killed. The Viking Turgesius controlled a ring fort on the
shores until his death by drowning in Lough Owel.
The earliest accounts of the Hodson Bay site show it as a Catholic
Monastery known as St.John’s Abbey, where the inhabitants lived
a sheltered life under Jacobite rule.
THE ANGLO NORMANS
The Anglo Normans arrived in
Athlone in 1200 and by 1220,
Connaught was granted to the norman
De Burke. Within the new cantred,
Rindoon became the Kings Town
while Athlone developed under De
Burke. Rindoon grew to include a
windmill, fish pond, market square and
cross, hospital and boat yard. Athlone
survived as a town while Rindoon
lasted merely 100 years.
Rindoon town ruins.
Explore the
ruins of Rin
doon’s
Medieval T
own!
10mins from
Hodson Bay
CROMWELL & WILLIAM OF ORANGE
THE PLUNDERING OF ST.JOHN’S ABBEY
When Cromwell arrived in Ireland in 1649 his four generals were
Hodson, Gunning, Lloyd and Sproule. These families would be
destined to become a big part of the history of Hodson Bay
when St.John’s Abbey was plundered and captured by Cromwell’s
army. In 1633, John Hodson arrived as chaplain in the entourage
of Thomas Wentworth, Earl of Strafford, who was appointed
Lord Deputy of Ireland in 1632.
Athlone Castle
During the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries, tower houses were
developed around the lake to assume more practical living
quarters. By the 17th century, after losses of battles and land,
Athlone was struggling. The chance for a comeback came in the
1680’s when James II became king. A Catholic king gave hope for
a brief spell before he was driven out by William III of Orange.
“The People of the Siege”
at Athlone Castle & Visitor Centre
James fled to France where Louise XIIII supported his return
to attack William. The subsequent three year war would include
the Siege of Derry (1689) and the Battle of the Boyne (1690).
Athlone was besieged twice during the war with the Jacobites
finally abandoning their positions at Athlone Castle, falling back
to Aughrim and then Limerick where they settled terms and lived
under protestant rule for the next 100 years.
THE HODSONS
During the war John Hodson went in to hiding in Dublin before retreating to England. When peace
was restored, he returned to Ireland accompanied by his brother Leonard and Leonard’s son Samuel.
John Hodson served as Rector of Louth and Dean of Clogher before his installation as Bishop
of Elphin. As with other men of the cloth who came to Ireland at that time John Hodson quickly
amassed a great deal of land. He aquired the Manor of Skea in Cavan and the lands of Tuitestown
in County Westmeath and most importantly, the land captured at St.John’s Abbey, now known as the
Great Berries (later Hodson Bay). Soon branches of the family were established in various places
including St. John’s, Great Berries and Twyford.
The earliest members of the family to settle here at Great Berries were Thomas and Alice Hodson
in the mid 18th century. Thomas died in 1797 and his widow Alice died in 1802. Samuel Hodson, a
nephew of Thomas, was curate of the nearby parish of Kiltoom from 1800-13 and for many years
served as a magistrate for County Roscommon and chaplain to the garrison in Athlone.
The Hodson Family Tree.
HODSON’S PILLAR
It was during the tenure of Samuel Hodson that the
crude stone pillar was erected on the little island,
known as Temple Island, in Hodson Bay. It was
considered very becoming at that time for gentlemen
to enhance their estates by constructing mock-ruins or
follies to catch the eye. The construction of this pillar
may have had a dual purpose as it could have held a
beacon to allow safe access to the bay at night. It is also
said to mark the centre of Ireland and is still visible
from the hotel.
In 1949 a carved stone head was unearthed during
work on the site. It was thought to be medieval in date.
Later owners discovered another example of work
in 1991 when the top of the stone tower began to
crumble. Renowned historian and archaeologist Peter
Harbison was commissioned to investigate and he
exposed a perfect carving of a stone boat which is now
visible from the shoreline in front of the hotel. Unlike
the head, the boat carries a date, 1790.
Hodson’s Pillar
THE LENIHAN FAMILY
The families of Cromwell’s four generals
inter-married throughout the years, ending
their reign with a Gunning family from
whom PJ Lenihan purchased the site in the
1950’s. Lenihan became the first Irishman
to gain ownership of the property since
Cromwell’s time in Ireland. He was also the
father of Mary O’Rourke and the late Brian
Lenihan Senior, and grandfather of the late
Brian Lenihan Junior, who was Minister for
Finance 2008-11.
(L-R) Sean Lemass, PJ Lenihan & Archdeacon Crowe
at Hodson Bay Hotel, 1953
The Lenihan family opened the house as a
hotel and thus the Hodson Bay Hotel was
founded. The property continued to operate
as a hotel until the current family acquired it
in 1992 when it was developed and reopened
as a 46 bedroom hotel.
HODSON BAY HOTEL
Hodson Bay Hotel has gone from strength to strength
throughout the years with numerous extensions being
added to become the hotel as we know it today.
The most recent of these was the addition of Hodson
Retreat, The Spa at Hodson Bay and a new state of
the art Leisure Centre in 2005. This development also
brought the total number of bedrooms to 176.
The Hodson Bay Hotel now establishes itself as
one of the country’s leading destinations for leisure,
conferencing, weddings and generations of family
celebrations.
Hodson Bay Hotel, 1950s
Hodson Bay Hotel Group has also expanded over the
years, with the constructions of sister properties in
Galway and Athlone town centre.
Galway Bay Hotel opened its doors in 1998 on the
famous Salthill Promenade in Galway City.
Hodson Bay Hotel, 1950s
Sheraton Athlone Hotel, the most recent addition to
the family, was constructed in 2008, offering a chic and
contemporary alternative in the heart of Athlone.
Hodson Bay Hotel, 1962
Hodson Bay Hotel, 1980s
THE HODSON BAY HOTEL GROUP