Legend: The Lady of the Lake (Curragh Chase, Limerick)

By Ben Kesp 

Curragh Chase House and the Lake 

Legends and myths always conjure exciting and mysterious stories of the imagination drawing us into the source, causing us to ask – what if? I have visited the beautiful Curragh Chase Forest Park in Co. Limerick, many times and always I picture the grandeur of the big house in its day, sitting atop its lofty position with its lawns and manicured gardens sweeping down towards the large artifice lake. The large estate owned by the Hunt/de-Vere family for three hundred years (1657-1957) must have enjoyed the magnificent views of the stately home from inside the tall windows, perhaps from the elegant dining room each morning as they enjoyed a good breakfast. 

Curragh Chase Forest Park

But the lake carries its own mystery that today can bring the visitor’s eye away from the magnificent ruin of Curragh Chase House and onto the lake itself. Many accounts have been recorded of strange and unusual sightings around the lake of a mysterious woman. Lord Tennyson (British Poet) on a visitation to Curragh Chase, being a good friend to Sir Aubrey de-Vere (Irish Poet & Critic), saw an arm of a mysterious lady rising upwards from the water. 

But legends need great stories and there is such a story. On one very stormy Christmas night, a grand party was being held at the house, when all inside heard a cry above the storm, pulling their attention to the lake below the house. To their surprise or even horror, they saw a figure of a woman, glowing red, floating above the lake with her arm outstretched towards the house. The story continues that it was during this storm one of her limbs, crashed through the house, hitting candelabra, setting the house alight. She continues to reappear each Christmas eve, directing her attention towards Curragh Chase. 

Sir Aubery de-Vere's Meditation Seat 

Who this mysterious lady is, perhaps we will never know. Lord Tennyson wrote a poem called “Lady Clara Vere de-Vere” which is said to represent his close ties to the de-Vere family, however he also highlighted his disdain for Lady Clara’s snobbery and airs. Even though there was never a Lady Clara, there did exist on earlier maps of the estate, a small island in the lake below the house called “Lady’s Island”. 

But why should we try to find meaning or question the mysterious lady’s origin? She is after all a legend and like all good legends, her story lives on and continues to be told. 

Curragh Chase Lake and its peaceful residents

I have often stood by the lake with this story in mind but the swans and mallards are all I ever saw. No glimpse of the mysterious lady but perhaps her appearance was only for the Hunt/de-Vere family – this we will never know. 

Remains of Curragh Chase House