Graveyard

The National Monuments Service's description

Located at the crest of a S and E-facing slope overlooking the Diamond of Clones, which is to the SE and the site of St Tigearnach’s monastery (MO011-010001-) c. 300m to the S. The medieval parish church of Clones (MO011-010006-) is within an oval graveyard (dims c. 55m NW-SE; c. 35m NE-SW) defined by masonry walls, which has a subrectangular extension (dims c. 70m NE-SW: c. 20-35m NW-SE) off to the SW, which was established before 1835 (OS 6-inch map). The notorious and well-attested massacre of eighteen Scots settlers by hanging, which occurred in December, 1641 (Schlegel 1997, 86), was probably perpetrated in this graveyard. The headstone inscriptions dating from 1730 have been recorded (McMahon et al. 1983), and the datestone (MO011-010007-) is built into the inside of the perimeter wall at SE. Archaeological testing (06E0957) c. 20-150m NW of the graveyard produced no related material (Russell 2008). Archaeological monitoring (08E0358) of the reconstruction of a section (L 18m; ext. H 4m) of the graveyard wall at N recorded graveyard soil (D 1.4-1.8m) over natural. No archaeological features or artefacts were recorded, but the generally disarticulated human remains dislodged by the activity were re-buried in the graveyard (Campbell 2011).

Compiled by: Michael Moore

Date of upload: 29 November, 2016
Amended: 16 January 2020

References

Russell, I. 2008 Archaeological Assessment, Newtownbutler Road, Clones, Co. Monaghan. Licence No. 06E0957. Unpublished report, Archaeological Consultancy Services

Campbell, K. 2011 993. St Tighernach’s Church, Clones. Post-medieval, urban. in I. Bennett (ed.) Excavations 2008: summary accounts of archaeological excavations in Ireland, 295. Dublin, Wordwell

McMahon, T., Slowley, S. and O'Neill, M. 1983 Inscriptions from St Tigernach's Church of Ireland graveyard, Clones. Clogher Record, vol. 13, No. 1, 90-115.

Schlegel, D. H. 1997 A Clones chronology: October 1641 to July 1642, Clogher Record, vol. 21, No. 1, 79-93.