Religious house - Knights Hospitallers

The National Monuments Service's description

In level mixed tillage and pasture at the W edge of a farmyard some 700m E of the S-flowing River Barrow. A church (KD030-006----) and graveyard (KD030-006001-) lie c. 40m to the NE and a ruined gatehouse (KD030-007001-) and possible bawn (KD030-007002-) stand c. 50m to the ESE. In 1837, according to O’Conor who co-compiled the OSL for County Kildare (Herity 2002, 70 [206]), ‘There was formerly a Nunnery in Kilberry, four portions of the walls of which still remain. The site of the wall (& fosse) that ‘fenced’ (enclosed) this nunnery is as yet pointed out in the field where its ruins are, and in a grave yard [KD030-006001-] adjacent, within the same field, stand the ruined walls of the “Cathedral” (church) [KD030-006----] of the nunnery.’ However, Gwynn and Hadcock (1970, 365-6) maintain that, ‘… the site seems unsuitable for nuns, as other towers and castles in the vicinity suggest that it was on a main defensive line. … one of the military orders, possibly hospitallers, seems more probable, in which case sisters may have been attached, explaining the tradition of nuns being there.’ A very poorly preserved rectangular structure (traceable L 22m NW-SE; traceable Wth 9.1m) is defined by the ivy-clad remains of a SE gable wall and gapped SW sidewall (av. T 1.2m) built of rubble masonry. A robbed out, apparently flat-headed window survives near the N end of the gable wall, and the central portion of the sidewall contains two adjoining robbed out loops.

Compiled by: Gearóid Conroy

Date of upload: 30 September 2013

References

Herity, M. (ed.) 2002 Ordnance Survey Letters Kildare. Dublin. Four Masters Press.

Gwynn, A. and Hadcock, R.N. 1970 (Reprint 1988) Medieval religious houses of Ireland. Dublin. Irish Academic Press.