Muckross Abbey

Muckross Abbey
Monastery information
Established1448
Site
LocationKillarney National Park, County Kerry
CountryIreland
Muckross Abbey
The abbey in the 1890s

Muckross Abbey (Irish: Mainistir Locha Léin and Mainistir Mhucrois) is one of the major ecclesiastical sites, found in the Killarney National Park, County Kerry, Ireland. It was founded in 1448 as a Franciscan friary for the Observantine Franciscans by Donal McCarthy Mor.[1]

It has had a violent history and has been damaged and reconstructed many times. The friars were often subjected to raids by marauding groups[who?] and were persecuted by Cromwellian forces under Lord Ludlow.[2] Today the abbey is largely roofless, but is otherwise generally quite well-preserved. Its most striking feature is a central courtyard, which contains a large yew tree and is surrounded by a vaulted cloister.[3]

Ground plan of Muckross Abbey

In the 17th and 18th centuries, it became the burial place for prominent County Kerry poets O'Donoghue, Ó Rathaille and Ó Súilleabháin, while Piaras Feiritéar is buried in the graveyard just outside.[4]

  1. ^ "Killarney National Park". 23 March 2016. Archived from the original on 23 March 2016. Retrieved 12 July 2018.
  2. ^ "Dan the Feathers - Killarney Ireland". www.vacationkillarney.com. Retrieved 12 July 2018.
  3. ^ Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland, Volume 2. 1892.
  4. ^ "Sightseeing - Visitor Attractions in Killarney". killarney-insight.com. Retrieved 12 July 2018.

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