Since it was built in about 1790 for the prominent barrister, MP and future attorney general William Saurin, Bloomfield House in Donnybrook has witnessed much history. In 1802, Saurin sold it to state physician Dr Robert Emmet, whose youngest son and namesake was executed for high treason following his failed 1803 rebellion.
In 1809 the Emmet family sold it to the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), who extended the building and ran it as a hospital for almost two centuries. It was bought by Galway developer Gerry Barrett whose Edward Holdings built luxury Regency-style homes around a quarter-acre communal garden at Edward Square; these look as fresh as when they were launched in 2004.