Religious house - Franciscan Third Order Regular

The National Monuments Service's description

Kilshane abbey described by Westropp (1904-5, 409-10) as a 'Monastery of St. John of the Third Order of St. Francis, 1410. It was founded for conventual Franciscans by FitzGerald, of Clenlis (Cleanglass). Gerot Baluff f. Philip held "the patronage of the religious house of St. Francis, called Kilshane, with a water-mill [LI029-116----] in Ballingarry, and part of Kilnemona, in Clonkath," when he joined the rebellion, 1584 (Inq., No. 54). It has been confused with the Cistercian cell of Kilshanny, County Clare. According to Gwynn and Hadcock (1970, 138-9) a Cistercian monastery was founded at Kilshane in 1198 by Donnchad Cairbreach O'Brien, King of Limerick. It failed shortly after its establishment, and later in the fifteenth century it became a Franciscan foundation for the brethren of the Third Order Regular of St. Francis (ibid., 273).
Fabric - In 1840 there stood a nave and choir, 39 feet [12m] by 19 feet [5.8m], and 33½ feet [10m] by 19 feet 8 inches [6m], with a tower 60 feet [18m] high, on two pointed arches, 15 feet [4.5m] high at the intersection. The tower had ogee-headed lights and an oblong ope under the weather-ledge of the nave roof. The east window was large and pointed, but the sill was destroyed. The north wall was 17 feet [5.2m] high and 2 feet 9 inches [0.84m] thick; it had a breach and a lintelled door. Only a few feet of the south wall, with a defaced door, remained near the belfry. The west end of the nave was down, and only 11 feet [3.35m] of the side walls adjoined the belfry (O.S.L., 8, p. 61). Old people say that the tower closely resembled that of the Franciscan House at Adare, having stepped battlements and double lights and string courses. It fell in 1854, not in the great gale of 1839, as usually told. The ruins are now levelled to the ground, having been used for building'.

Compiled by: Caimin O'Brien

Date of upload: 22 January 2019

References

OSL - Ordnance Survey Letters. Letters written by members of the Ordnance Survey's 'Topographical Department' (T. O'Conor, A. O'Curry, E. Curry, J. O'Donovan and P. O'Keeffe) sent to headquarters from the field (1834-41). MSS in Royal Irish Academy.

Westropp, T.J. 1904-5 A survey of the ancient churches of Co. Limerick. Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy 25C, 327-479.

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