of Independence and Irish Civil War by the Irish Republican Army. The War of Independence saw the destruction of approximately 275 'big' houses, with an estimated 199 of the houses being burnt and destroyed from 1920 to 1923. While much republican sentiment argued that these houses had to be burned because they symbolised Irish oppression, the levelling of the landed class was also meted out under socialist rhetoric. The Republican revolutionary Ernie O'Malley stated that "Under the Republic all industry will be controlled by the state for the workers' and farmers' benefit... all banks will be operated by the state... the lands of the aristocracy will be seized and divided". Many of the Big House were abandoned after they had been attacked, and only a small minority were rebuilt or restored. After Ambrose Congreve died in 2011 aged 104, Mount Congreve was described as the "last Big House", meaning the last in which a member of the ascendancy family was resident. Killegar House has been similarly described, and is home of the widow of John Godley, 3rd Baron Kilbracken, who died in 2006. Present day The fate of the Big House still remains undecided today as new challenges are faced in order or preserve them. Terence Dooley's work on fifty such houses outlines the different categories of 'big' houses, their modern functions, and statuses of ownership whether private or public. The work speaks of the desire to preserve and the feasibility of such practices. Dooley argues that "the future of Irish historic houses is by no means secure. Unless concerted action is undertaken, a major component of the country’s architectural, historical and cultural heritage, at both local and national level, is in danger of being substantially lost forever to the Irish people." Since the mass scale decline and destruction of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, time now serves as the main perpetrator in the decline of these houses as surviving estates continue to fall into neglect and disrepair. See also List of country houses in County Carlow References Sources Citations External links "Power & Privilege: the Big House in Ireland 1858–1922" a National Library of Ireland mini exhibition on Google Cultural Institute Houses in Ireland House types in the United Kingdom Social history of Ireland