Frederick Augustus Hervey (1730 – 1803), known as the ‘The Earl Bishop’, was Bishop of Cloyne (1767 – 1768) and Bishop of Derry (1768 – 1803). In 1779 he became the 4th Earl of Bristol and owner of the family’s ancestral home at Ickworth in Suffolk. As Bishop of Derry he was active, religiously inclusive and philanthropic; he built splendid residences at Downhill and Ballyscullion, which he adorned with works of art from all over Europe and particularly from Italy. He was so captivated with the Temple of Vesta, at Tivoli near Rome, that he constructed a copy of the temple at the edge of the cliffs at Downhill and dedicated it to his cousin Frideswide Mussenden
The Bishop took a lively interest in the local scene. He was fascinated by vulcanology and was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society for his work on interpreting the Giant’s Causeway. He had an intense interest in Irish music and became the patron of Denis O’Hampsey, a blind harper from Magilligan. Denis was a regular visitor to Downhill House to entertain guests and the Bishop visited the harper’s humble cottage in Magilligan.
He died at Albano in Italy and his remains were interred at Ickworth Estate, near Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, where an obelisk was erected to his memory by the inhabitants of Derry.
