Banagher Old Church is a monument in state care, and a scheduled monument, in Banagher near

Dungiven Dungiven () is a small town, townland and Civil parishes in Ireland, civil parish in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It is near the main A6 road (Northern Ireland), A6 Belfast to Derry road, which bypasses the town. It lies where the river ...

County Londonderry County Londonderry (Ulster Scots dialects, Ulster-Scots: ''Coontie Lunnonderrie''), also known as County Derry (), is one of the six Counties of Northern Ireland, counties of Northern Ireland, one of the thirty-two Counties of Ireland, count ...

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

. Local tradition ascribes the foundation of the church to either

Saint Patrick Saint Patrick (; or ; ) was a fifth-century Romano-British culture, Romano-British Christian missionary and Archbishop of Armagh, bishop in Gaelic Ireland, Ireland. Known as the "Apostle of Ireland", he is the primary patron saint of Irelan ...

, or more commonly, St Muiredach O’Heney. Whilst an inscription etched in the 1730s states that ‘this church was built in ye year of God 474’, there is no evidence that the church is that old. Instead it was likely founded towards the end of the 11th century. Its first definitive reference in recorded history is related to 1121, when it is mentioned in the

Annals of Ulster The ''Annals of Ulster'' () are annals of History of Ireland, medieval Ireland. The entries span the years from 431 AD to 1540 AD. The entries up to 1489 AD were compiled in the late 15th century by the scribe Ruaidhrí Ó Luin� ...

as the site where the king of the

Ciannachta The Ciannachta were a population group of early historic Ireland. They claimed descent from the legendary figure Tadc mac Céin. Modern research indicates Saint Cianán and his followers may have been the origin behind the tribal name as it is ...

was killed by his own kinsmen. It was later noted as the base for Archbishop Colton of Armagh's 1397 visit to the Diocese of

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry, is the second-largest City status in the United Kingdom, city in Northern Ireland, and the fifth-largest on the island of Ireland. Located in County Londonderry, the city now covers both banks of the River Fo ...

. It is unknown when the church was abandoned, but a survey of churches of the area in 1622 noted it was already ruined. Interest in the site as an important ecclesiastical ruin was revived in the late 19th century. In 1880 it passed into state care from the church Temporal Commissioners. In the 1970s the church was fully excavated and underwent a conservation programme.

Protected Monuments

Church: The church elements vary in age, with the nave being the oldest part and likely dating from the late 11th century. The chancel was added soon after in the early 12th century and the east end of the church was extensively remodelled in the 15th century before falling into ruin by the 17th. Mortuary house: The site's association with St. O’Heney goes beyond the local tradition of it being founded by him. In the graveyard there lies the seven foot high mortuary house, which is said to hold his remains. It was an important pilgrimage site for many centuries, as sites of supposed saints’ relics often are. The relics location here gave rise to the still-living tradition that ‘Banagher Sand’ is supposed to bring you good luck, especially in sporting events. This house is the most sophisticated of a small group of Ulster mortuary houses found from

County Down County Down () is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. It covers an area of and has a population of 552,261. It borders County Antrim to the ...

County Donegal County Donegal ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county of the Republic of Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster and is the northernmost county of Ireland. The county mostly borders Northern Ireland, sharing only a small b ...

. Residence: Outside the church lies a building known as ‘the residence’ where St. O’Heney was supposed to have made his appearances. The most likely explanation is that it was a "strong house", intended to protect the church's possessions and as accommodation for the rector. There is no clear evidence for when the building dates from. Termon Crosses: Two crosses remain of what were originally likely five. Termon crosses were used across Ireland to mark the boundaries of early Christian ecclesiastical sites, after which right of sanctuary would prevail. The crosses simplicity however make them very hard to date.

References

{{reflist Churches in Northern Ireland State Care Monuments of Northern Ireland