“Meath was one of the first areas settled in Ireland. The world famous tombs at Brú na Bóinne and Newgrange built in 3200 BC lays claim here. County Meath is also celebrated as the place from which the high kings of Ireland reigned from their ritual seat on Tara, and the legends of Ireland were written in the nearby fields. In the Boyne Valley, St. Patrick first preached the Christian faith in Ireland, lighting the Pascal fire on the hill of Slane.”
established in 1798
A family run business, the Garveys have resided at Rathe House for over 40 years. Here the family have lovingly restored the 17th century Georgian house, courtyard and stables into what is today an expansive country retreat.
The owner Brian Garvey acquired Rathe in 1982 with the hope to turn the farm into not only a loving home, but also a place for people to enjoy and escape.
Another famous family that resided at Rathe were the Lighton Synges. John Lighton Synge (1897–1995) grew up at Rathe until 1903 and was arguably the greatest Irish mathematician and theoretical physicist since Sir William Rowan Hamilton. He made outstanding contributions to a vast range of subjects, and particularly to Einstein’s theory of relativity.
our celtic heritage
Rathe House is a magical place surrounded by Celtic standing stones and five ring forts (or raths), hence the name Rathe House. The ancient Druids cherished these lands as a place of spiritual worship because of the sense of peace, natural stillness and connection to the ancient sites of Newgrange and the Hill of Tara.
The Ui Neill Warlords arrived in these fair lands from Connacht in the West of Ireland. The ‘Seed of Aodh of Slane’ were a sept of this tribe and the Gaelinga were the fighting men of the Ui Neill clan - their land stretched along the border of the Kingdom of Breffni and the Kingdom of Brega. These ringforts were the dwelling places of these clans. Wooden palisades were erected around each ringfort to protect the ruling family and their precious livestock.
It has also been recorded that during The Great Famine in 1847 the land surrounding Rathe was so rich in iron that it was one of the few areas in Ireland that potatoes were able to grow, historical records show that the land fed over 20,000 starving people during of Ireland's darkest periods.
