Castletown House, in County Kildare, was Ireland s largest private residence, a spectacular Palladian mansion which was once an alternative seat of political power to Dublin, and whose design was the basis for the White House in Washington. The four Conolly-Carew children, Sarah, Patrick, Diana and Gerald, were the last generation to grow up within its walls, and their story is a window into Ireland s real Downton Abbey, a world of servants and lavish balls, of cars run on charcoal, visiting Princesses, IRA intimidation and Olympic glory. Today Castletown is owned by the state, and operates as a highly regarded tourist attraction, but in this book you will hear what really happened in these banquet halls, and about the dramas that unfolded beneath these still glittering chandeliers."