Religious house - Augustinian canons

The National Monuments Service's description

Situated on the N side of Inchmore Island on Lough Ree. A monastery was reputedly founded here by St. Laobhán (Ó Riain 2011, 390-1). He was one of 47 children whose mother was Cuman daughter of Dallbhrónach, maternal aunt to Saint Brighid of Kildare, whose was womb had been blessed by St. Patrick (ibid.). His feastday fell on the 9th of August (ibid.). According to Ware a priory of Augustinian Canons was established on the island, probably some time before 1170 AD (Gwynn and Hadcock 1970, 179). In 1103 the Annals of the Four Masters recorded the death of 'The Lector Ua Connmhaigh, of the family of Inis-mor' (O'Donovan 1856, 973). After the dissolution of the monasteries the land of Inchmore was granted to Richard Barnwell (Gwynn and Hadcock 1970, 179). In 1641 the lands of Inchmore were in the joint possession of Lord Viscount Dillon, Gerald Dillon and John Dillon (NLI MS 723-4).
Monument depicted on the 1837 ed. OS 6-inch map and annotated as ‘Inchmore Church’. A narrow inlet, 60m to N is annotated as ‘Church Harbour’. Poorly preserved remains consist of a simple rectangular structure (Int. dims. 4.55m N-S x 9m E-W) comprising well built mortared walls (T 0.85m), with only the W gable upstanding and lower courses of the remaining walls surviving elsewhere. . A possible opening in N wall towards E end, but very uncertain. No dressed stones, windows or doorway visible. No surrounding earthworks visible.

Compiled by: Frank Coyne and Caimin O'Brien

Date of upload: 5 September 2018

References

NLI, MS 723-4 - National Library of Ireland, The parish maps of the Down Survey for the County of Westmeath, attested by W. Petty, in 1659. Copied by Daniel O'Brien. A set of 67 maps with accompanying terriers in two volumes, 1786-7. Dublin.

Ó Riain, P. 2011 A dictionary of Irish Saints. Dublin. Four Courts Press.

O'Donovan, J. (ed. and trans.) 1856 Annals of the kingdom of Ireland, by the four masters, from the earliest period to the year 1616. Dublin. Hodges, Smith and Co.

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