Percy Le Clerc, who died on March 4th aged 87, was a former Inspector of National Monuments. As such, he was responsible for the conservation of national monuments and for bringing into State care such buildings and properties as were deemed appropriate.
The preservation of Ireland's built heritage owes a great deal to his efforts. As inspector he emphasised the need for restoration over preservation, believing that, where possible, buildings should be rendered fit for use. This belief led him in 1958 to become a founding member of the Irish Georgian Society.
His view was that the primary purpose of restoration was the repair of a building so as to put it back into its original form as far as possible and practicable. The primary aim, he held, should be neither to transform nor improve the original architectural qualities, but to bring them out to their best advantage.
"The full process of restoration is not merely the physical matter of putting the fabric together," he wrote, "but also one of bringing the building to life by making it the setting for some present-day activity; neither of these aims should be pursued to the detriment of the other."
He regarded cost as the final test of feasibility and estimating this, he observed, was more of an art than a science.
William Percival Le Clerc was born on May 30th, 1914, in Irlam, near Warrington, the youngest of the three sons of Robert Le Clerc and his wife Edith (née Baylee). His father, from Dublin, was a general practitioner and his mother, from Clare, was a nurse.
As a boy, Percy Le Clerc went on cycling holidays to France with his eldest brother Robert and acquired a lifelong love of things French.
In 1926, the family moved to Kidlington, a village five miles north of Oxford. Percy Le Clerc overcame an asthmatic condition in his teens and set his sights on becoming an engineer. He enrolled in Exeter College, Oxford, to read for an engineering degree but after two years discovered that his interest lay in architecture.
He moved to London where he joined an architect's practice, studying by night. He paid particular attention to studying the history of architecture which was to stand him in good stead as his career unfolded.
On qualifying, he found employment with the Office of Public Works in Dublin in 1941 and became Inspector of Public Monuments following the retirement of Harold G. Leask in 1949.
Bunratty Castle was one of the major restoration projects undertaken by Percy Le Clerc. Work on the present castle was begun in 1450 and was completed in 1467. It was taken over by the O'Briens of Thomand in 1500. Purchased by Lord Gort in 1954, it was excellently restored to its original grandeur in 1960 and today houses one of the best collections of 14th-17th-century furniture and furnishings in either Britain or Ireland.
The restoration of Ballintubber Abbey, Co Mayo, was another of Percy Le Clerc's projects. An Augustinian monastery founded in 1216, additions to the original building were made in subsequent centuries. The living quarters were destroyed by Cromwellian forces in 1653 although the shell of the church remained intact. The church was partially restored in 1846. The final restoration began in 1963 and was completed in time for the 750th anniversary in 1966. Percy Le Clerc was awarded the RIAI conservation silver medal for his work.
He also worked on the restoration of Holycross Abbey, Co Tipperary, which was re-roofed in 1975 as part of the European Architectural Heritage Year. Founded originally in 1168 for Benedictines by the King of Munster, Donal O'Brien, it later became a Cistercian abbey. A relic of the true cross made it a popular place of pilgrimage in the 15th century. It is now in use as a parish church, restored to its former glory as one of the finest 15th-century Irish churches.
In 1974, Percy Le Clerc, long at odds with his colleagues in administration, resigned from the Office of Public Works. However, he continued working on Holycross Abbey until the restoration work was completed.
He went into private practice and worked on the restoration of Dunguaire Castle, Co Galway. He was also commissioned by Sir Anthony O'Reilly to restore the 15th-century Church of St Mary situated in the Castlemartin estate, "a dilapidated, roofless ruin, heavily overgrown with ivy and with two large elder trees growing in the wall-tops". Within two years the church was fully restored, complete with floor-heating, and reconsecrated.
Duiske Abbey, Graiguenamanagh, and Rothe House, Kilkenny, are other good examples of Percy Le Clerc's work.
Percy Le Clerc lived for many years in Blackrock, Co Dublin, in a house set in its own grounds. He kept a small number of sheep to crop the grass so that he could devote the time saved to cultivating orchids.
Fine wine was another passion and he was quick to reprimand a sommelier if ever he was served a poor bottle.
In the 1980s Percy Le Clerc moved to France and lived near Versailles.
He is survived by his brother Maurice.
William Percival Le Clerc: born 1914; died, March 2002