Castledermot Abbey
| Díseart Diarmada | |
|
| |
  Location within Ireland | |
| Monastery information | |
|---|---|
| Other names | Castledermot Friary |
| Order | Franciscan |
| Established | 1302 |
| Diocese | Kildare and Leighlin |
| People | |
| Founder(s) | Thomas FitzGerald, 2nd Earl of Kildare |
| Architecture | |
| Functional Status | Abandoned |
| Heritage designation | National Monument |
| Style | Irish monastic |
| Groundbreaking | 1302 |
| Site | |
| Location |
Abbey Street, Castledermot, County Kildare, Ireland |
| Coordinates | 52°54′31″N 6°50′14″W / 52.908556°N 6.837141°W |
| Public access | yes |
Castledermot Abbey is a ruined Franciscan friary, built c. 1302, in Castledermot, County Kildare, Ireland.
Building
Only the walls of the church remain, originally a long rectangular structure with a doorway and a pair of lancet windows in the west wall. The north transept was added to it later: this is probably the chapel of St. Mary built by Thomas FitzGerald, 2nd Earl of Kildare in 1328. Attached to the south wall of the church is a square building known as the Abbey Castle, which possibly dates from the 15th century and would have served as accommodation for the monks.
History
A monastery was first established at this site in AD 800 by Diarmait, a son of Áed Róin, King of Ulster.[1] This Franciscan abbey was founded in 1302 by Thomas FitzGerald, 2nd Earl of Kildare, with the help of the de la Hoyde family.
The Abbey was plundered by a Bruce army in 1317 during the Bruce campaign in Ireland. Later, in 1541, the friary was suppressed in the Dissolution of the Monasteries. It was also damaged by Cromwellian forces during the 1649–53 invasion.[2]
References
- ↑ "Fransiscan friary, Castledermot", Atlas and Cyclopedia of Ireland (1900)
- ↑ "Castledermot Abbey Co Kildare", Ireland in Ruins