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History
Built in 1860 by Moussa Sursock, it was recognized at the time as one of
Beirut's grandest town house and it is today certainly the largest private
palace of that period to survive intact, with its surrounding lush gardens,
as a family home.
The Sursock's origin goes back to Constantinople and they have been recorded
as living in Beirut since 1714. Their great wealth was made in the early
19th century primarly in agriculture (wheat and cotton) and later in manufacturing
(cotton mills). At its hight, the Sursock empire extended from Mersine,
Turkey to Alexandria, Egypt passing by Lebanon, Cyprus and Palestine.
With the advent of nationalist regimes in Turkey & Egypt and the creation
of the state of Israel, the Sursocks lost both their lands and manufacturing
facilities and the palace in Beirut is one of the few remaining symbols
of their former glory.
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After Moussa, the palace passed to one of his sons, Alfred who endowed
it with its extensive collection of Persian carpets, 16th/17th century
collection of Neapolitan paintings and rare pieces of furniture.
Alfred died at an early age leaving the palace to his infant daughter,
Yvonne and her aristocratic Italian mother, Donna Maria Serra Di Cassano
(daughter of Duke Francesco Serra Di Cassano).
Yvonne, who later married a dashing officer of the British army, Sir Desmond
Cochrane, defended the palace with great courage and kept it standing
after it had been repeatedly and severely damaged during the dark days
of the Lebanese civil war.
Today the palace is home to Yvonne, Lady Cochrane, her third son Roderick,
his American wife Mary and their young daughter Ariana.
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