Church

The National Monuments Service's description

Situated on a level landscape. A church at Clongill is listed in the ecclesiastical taxation (1302-06) of Pope Nicholas IV (Cal. doc. Ire. 5, 261). Ussher (1622) describes the church and chancel at Clongell as in ruins (Erlington 1868, 1, xciv). According to Dopping's Visitation (1682-5) the church was dedicated to the Blessed Virgin but was in poor condition with no chancel, while the graveyard was 'tolerably fenced with stone' (Ellison 1973, 6). The site of the medieval parish church of Clongill is within a rectangular graveyard (dims c. 60m E-W; c. 40m N-S) defined largely by masonry walls and incorporating the townland boundary with Arch Hall at E.
The church is visible as a grass-covered sunken area (int. dims 15.8m E-W; 6.8m N-S) defined by traces of the walls, especially at S, but its stones were said to have been used to build the Church of Ireland church at Kilshine (ME012-038----) c. 2.5km to the NNE (O’Sullivan 1955). There is a vault beneath the east end of the church. The graveslab of James Trynch, dated 1631 (Du Noyer 1897) is a rectangular sandstone slab (dims 2.12m x 0.95m; T 0.12m) outside the church to the E. The inscription in relief in Roman letters is around the edge and in two panels in the centre between crests. There is a skull and cross bones in a panel at the base. Clongill Castle (ME017- 019----) is c. 150m to the SSW, on the other side of the road.

The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Meath' (Dublin: Stationery Office, 1987). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research.

Compiled by: Michael Moore

Date of revision: 12 December, 2014

References

O'Sullivan, D. F. 1955 Survey of antiquities: Clongill. Ríocht na Mídhe, 1, 1, 19.

Du Noyer, G. V. 1897 Clongill old churchyard, near Kells (Donaghpatrick). Journal of the Association for the Preservation of the Memorials of the Dead, Ireland. 3, 3, 491-2.

Ellison, Rev. C. C. 1971-5 Bishop Dopping's Visitation Book 1682-5, Ríocht na Mídhe, 5, 1, 28-39; 5, 2, 3-13; 5, 3, 3-11; 5, 4, 98-103; 6, 1, 3-13.

Cal. doc. Ire. - Calendar of documents relating to Ireland 1171-1307, ed. H.S. Sweetman (5 vols., London, 1875-86).

Erlington, C. R. (ed.) 1847-64 The whole works of the most Reverend James Ussher. 17 vols. Hodges and Smith, Dublin