A Home in Belvedere
Howard Bury inherited Belvedere House, County Westmeath, in 1912. He settled there
during the 1920s and, while he continued to take regular journeys abroad, it remained his home for
the remainder of his life. It was a happy home, one that he shared with his partner, Rex Beaumont, an English actor.
during the 1920s and, while he continued to take regular journeys abroad, it remained his home for
the remainder of his life. It was a happy home, one that he shared with his partner, Rex Beaumont, an English actor.
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In the decade after the Everest reconnaissance, Charles Howard-Bury continued to travel to new locations, especially in North Africa. In 1931, his mother Emily Howard-Bury died in Paris and he inherited Charleville Castle, its lands and its oak forest. During that year, he resigned from the British parliament, after which he travelled regularly to Tunisia, purchasing a villa near the seaside town of Hammamet in the north of the country, not far from the capital.
Following the beginning of the Second World War in 1939, he was appointed Assistant Commissioner of the British Red Cross and St. John's Ambulance Brigade, positions that required constant travel. During one of these trips, he met Rex Beaumont, an English actor. Beaumont, who served in the RAF, became a frequent visitor to Belvedere and moved there permanently after the Second World War. Together, they restored Belvedere House and Gardens, often using seeds from plants that Howard-Bury had encountered during his travels. Beaumont, whom Howard-Bury described as 'the kindest person in the world' organised the gardens and put his personal stamp on the interior of Belvedere House. They often spent winters in Hammamet but for the remainder of each year Belvedere was the centre of a wide and vivacious social circle, into which celebrity friends and acquaintances would often appear. Charles Howard-Bury died in 1963, cared for by Rex Beaumont during his final years. Beaumont inherited Belvedere House, in which he lived for nearly two decades, before moving to nearby accommodation. In 1980, he auctioned Belvedere's contents and sold the house and gardens to Westmeath County Council in 1982. Rex Beaumont died in 1988. |
Howard-Bury in later life, although the location is unknown (Marian Keaney/Westmeath Library Services: Howard-Bury Collection)
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Charles Howard-Bury was a popular figure in the area.
A large crowd visited Belvedere shortly before his death to celebrate his long residency in Belvedere. (Marian Keaney/Westmeath Library Services: Howard-Bury Collection) |
Rex Beaumont in Belvedere, 1978, with the Dalmatians Tsar and Lhasa. Beaumont was well liked in the Mullingar area, partly because of his storytelling ability and gregarious nature.
(Marian Keaney/Westmeath Library Services: Howard-Bury Collection) |
Beaumont was an avid fan of horseracing (Marian Keaney/Westmeath Library Services: Howard-Bury Collection)
The classic view of Belvedere House, seen from Lough Ennell (National Library of Ireland)
Lough Ennell, as seen from Belvedere House (National Library of Ireland)
