Church

The National Monuments Service's description

Kilbinane Church (site of). The church of St Benignus originally occupied the summit of a round hill and the townland was called after it. However, no trace of this church survives. In 1690 William Fitzmaurice (1663-1697), 20th Lord Kerry, erected an imposing mausoleum on this site as a burial monument for his family. The tower (KE016-014002-) was 12m high and 30m in circumference and the walls 1m thick. The tower contained four semi-circular windows. The tomb was circular in shape, c 4.5m in diameter and had a flat stone roof. The tomb lay directly under the tower, so the tomb's roof was the tower's floor. The tower was protected by a wall 3.5m high. William died in 1697 and according to tradition was buried here, as were his father and son. The coffin was made of lead and was desecrated by 'Moonlighters for the making of ammunition during the land war. It was demolished by the County Council for quarrying purposes in 1962 and no surface trace of it can be seen today' (O'Ruane). This townland was originally called Kilbinane but was renamed after Fitzmaurice's burial monument.

The above description is derived from C. Toal, ‘North Kerry Archaeological Survey’. Dingle. Brandon in association with FAS Training and Employment Authority (1995), no. 955. In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research.

Date of upload: 3 August 2013