The 8th Duke of Newcastle-under-Lyne (1866-1941; previously known as Lord Francis Hope) sold his life interest in the castle and the estate in 1928, the same year he succeeding to the dukedom, short of cash and unable to access the capital endowed into his grandmother's monetary trusts. What remained of the estate was subsequently broken up and used, in part, for local political patronage. During 'The Emergency' (World War II), the old woods on the Black Island in Lough Muckno were cut down, and left as a for some time.