never rebuilt. Following this fire, the senior line of the Donegall family (also known as the Chichester family) left Belfast. The head of the Donegall family would not live in Belfast again for almost a century, until The 2nd Marquess of Donegall (1769-1844) settled in Belfast in 1802, establishing his main residence there. Donegall House and Ormeau House When The 2nd Marquess of Donegall settled in Belfast in 1802, what remained of the 'Plantation-era' Belfast Castle had long been a ruin, having been destroyed by a fire almost a century before, in April 1708. This 'Plantation' castle had almost certainly been built on, or very near, the site of the 'Norman' Belfast Castle, which was the original medieval castle. It certainly seems that the 'Plantation' castle was, at the very least, built on the site of the Uí Néill towerhouse, which had probably replaced the Norman castle. By 1802, these original castle sites had partially been built upon with other buildings. Lord Donegall thus had to find an alternative residence for himself and his family. He settled at what became known as Donegall House, a large terraced house on the corner of what is now Donegall Place and Donegall Square North, only a few hundred yards from the original site of Belfast Castle, right in the centre of the town of Belfast (it did not officially become a city until November 1888). The 2nd Marquess of Donegall became the first head of his family in almost a century to actually live in Belfast. Since 1708, the Earls and, later, Marquesses of Donegall had mainly lived over in Great Britain, usually living in London. The 2nd Marquess of Donegall also maintained a country residence called Ormeau Cottage on the Ormeau Demesne (which later became Ormeau Park). At that time, the Ormeau Demesne was on the south-eastern edge of Belfast, being in Ballynafeigh on the County Down side of the River Lagan. In the 1820s, Lord Donegall had Ormeau Cottage greatly extended in size, turning it into a mansion called Ormeau House. This country house was built in the Tudor Revival architectural style and was designed by William Vitruvius Morrison. Lord Donegall sold off Donegall House in the centre of Belfast in the early 1820s, establishing his main residence at Ormeau House thereafter. Donegall House was converted into being The Royal Hotel in 1824. Ormeau House, where The 2nd Marquess of Donegall