Building tycoon Maurice Regan buys Meath castle that was former home of Duke of Wellington

Construction tycoon Maurice Regan has bought a castle in Co Meath and its surrounding 236 acres of land that was formerly owned by builder Gerry Gannon. The purchase by Regan of Dangan Castle, the childhood home of Arthur Wellesley, the Duke of Wellington, came as part of Regan’s €250 million buyout of developer Gannon’s loans from the National Asset Management Agency (Nama) in 2024.Land records show that Gannon bought Dangan Castle in 2008 and there were two charges placed on the property from AIB. Those charges were replaced by a charge placed on the historic property by Stolensky Ltd, a Regan company, on December 17th, 2024.Regan became its full owner in June 2025 and there are no charges on the property now. READ MOREThe property was offered for sale for €3.1m in 2023. The 18th-century castle is in a ruinous state and it is understood the New York-based Regan is exploring what work is required to prevent further degradation of the large Georgian country residence.The castle has a five-bay, two-storey facade above a vaulted basement. It was the childhood home of the Duke of Wellington, who famously went on to defeat Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815. [ Historic childhood home of the 1st Duke of Wellington for sale at €3.1mOpens in new window ]It is understood Regan primarily sees the property as a farm. In 2023 it had 50 acres of grassland, 115 acres of tillage and 70 acres of forestry. It is located 2km from the village of Summerhill.Maurice Regan has extensive farm interests in Tipperary centred on his base in Newtown Anner Stud. Photograph: Collins Courts A spokesman for Regan said: “As part of our relationship with our partner developer Gerry Gannon, we acquired in a portfolio the Park2Travel car park at Dublin Airport and tillage and forestry land in Co Meath.”As part of his purchase of Gannon’s Nama debts, Regan took over his Dublin Airport car-parking site that has capacity for 6,000 cars. It now operates under the Park2Travel brand and is managed by Apcoa. Airport operator DAA was previously blocked from acquiring the parking facility due to a ruling from the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission.Born in London but raised in Kerry from the age of 10, Regan became wealthy through building up JT Magen, a New York construction firm that includes Netflix and a number of data-centre companies among its range of clients in the United States. In Ireland he owns the Mercantile Group of pubs whose bars include Whelan’s, Cafe en Seine and The George. Regan has extensive farm interests in Tipperary centred on his base in Newtown Anner Stud outside Clonmel. He is due to acquire the 751-acre Barne Estate for €22.25 million after Coolmore’s John Magnier failed in a High Court case to enforce an earlier handshake deal he agreed with the owners to buy it for €15 million.[ John Magnier mystique unmasked in continuing conflict with Maurice ReganOpens in new window ]Regan and Magnier are locked in an ongoing competition case that is before the High Court, with Regan claiming that Coolmore has used its power to block Regan’s stud from using the Fethard Equine Hospital and Coolmore’s stud services. Coolmore has denied breaching any laws and has said the hospital is free to treat Regan’s horses. It has accused Regan of threatening to “destroy” Magnier.