Muckross Abbey - Killarney Ireland
Posted by: 
teeoff2
N 52° 01.574 W 009° 29.689
29U E 466050 N 5764071
One of the best preserved Franciscan Friarys in Ireland.
Waymark Code: WM5WVF
Location: Munster, Ireland
Date Posted: 02/22/2009
Views: 17
From the sign in front of the abbey:
The community here were Observantine Franciscans, so called because of their rigid observance of the order's rule on matters such as diet, clothing and possession of private property. The friary was dedicated to the holy trinity and is known to have had in its possession a miraculous statue of the virgin. Muckross was suppressed by order of Henry VIII in 1541, but was formally re-established in 1612. The friars were eventually driven out by the Cromwellians in 1652.
On the opposite side of the cloister is the is the kitchen and the refectory or dining hall with a store room beneath. On the east side is a sacristy attached to the church, and the chapter house where the community met to discuss business and to read the daily chapter of the Order's rule. Above the chapter house is the Dormitory.
From the following website:
(
visit link)
Built in 1448, this Franciscan friary is one of the best preserved in Ireland. The ruins are partly Norman, partly Gothic, with impressive cloisters surrounding a massive yew tree; this yew is said to be as old as the abbey itself. When the abbey was attacked in 1589, the friars hid sacred vessels and church valuables on one of the 30 lake islands. Although tortured, the friars would not reveal their secret and the riches were never found. The abbey is surrounded by a graveyard, which holds the remains of ancient O'Sullivan, MacGillycuddy, and O'Donoghue chieftains, as well as the last King of Desmond.