Mountbatten's residence: The late Earl Mountbatten offered his Irish residence, Classiebawn Castle in Co Sligo, to the Irish nation four years before he was killed by a Provisional IRA bomb. State Papers just released show that the offer was turned down at a Cabinet meeting in April 1975.
An uncle of Britain's Prince Philip and great-grandson of Queen Victoria, Mountbatten wrote to then-taoiseach Liam Cosgrave on St Patrick's Day, 1975. Addressing him as "Dear Prime Minister", the earl recalled meeting Mr Cosgrave at lunch after the funeral of president Erskine Childers the previous November.
"I was very touched with your remarks on how much you valued my family connection with Ireland through Classiebawn Castle," he wrote. "I mentioned this to my family and in discussion we unanimously came to the conclusion that we would like to show our appreciation of our mutual feelings of friendship.
"We would like to make a gesture to cement the close connection the family has with Ireland, and I am therefore writing to offer the use of Classiebawn Castle to the nation. My suggestion would be that it should be available for the president, you, your ministers or official visitors to Ireland, for a period to be mutually agreed.
"This offer would mean that you would have the use of the castle, rent-free except for the normal upkeep, such as rates, maintenance, etc.," Mountbatten wrote. "The only request I would make is that you would allow my family and me to use the castle during the month of August, as we have done almost every year since the war."
Mountbatten enclosed a guide-book to the castle, including a floor-plan as well as information about the Shadow V - the 28-foot fishing-boat on which he met his death when a 50-lb bomb exploded, shortly before noon on August 27th, 1979. Three other people died as a result of the blast: the Dowager Lady Brabourne (82) and two teenage boys, Nicholas Knatchbull (14) grandson of the earl, and Paul Maxwell (15) from Enniskillen, Co Fermanagh.
In a memorandum for the Government, the Taoiseach's office noted that the earl had inherited the 19th-century castle from his wife, Lady Edwina, who died in 1960. "It is said by the Office of Public Works not to have any particular architectural interest," the memo continued. "The estate comprises some 700 acres but no mention is made of the lands in the earl's letter to the taoiseach."
Mr Cosgrave advised against accepting the offer, "having regard to the limited use that the State would be likely to make of the castle and the relatively heavy expenditure that would be involved" maintaining it.
He said nothing about any potential political embarrassment arising from the use of property belonging to a member of the British royal family.
The Cabinet meeting on April 4th, 1975, accepted the recommendation of the taoiseach and, in a courteously-worded letter to Mountbatten, Mr Cosgrave wrote: "We have given the matter the most careful consideration but have come to the conclusion, with reluctance, that the limited use the State would be able to make of the castle would not justify our acceptance of your kind offer."
Earl Mountbatten of Burma had written to the taoiseach on October 5th, 1973, seeking his help over a delay in securing approval from the Land Commission for the purchase of another property, Aasleagh Lodge, Westport, Co Mayo, by his son-in-law, Lord Brabourne.
Mr Cosgrave made representations to minister for lands Tom Fitzpatrick who, in turn, asked the Land Commission to give it "top priority". Within weeks the transaction was approved, subject to continuing public access to fishing on the River Erriff and Tawnyard Lake which formed part of the property.
A year after the Government declined the offer of Classiebawn Castle, the Sligo property was leased to Clones meat millionaire Hugh Tunney, with the proviso that the earl could have it for holiday use every August. It was during one of those holidays, in 1979, that he met his death.
Later that year, Thomas McMahon, Carrickmacross, Co Monaghan, was sentenced to life imprisonment. He was released in 1998 under the terms of the Belfast Agreement.