The Abbey School (formerly Abbey CBS) is a Christian Brothers Secondary School in the town of

Tipperary, County Tipperary Tipperary (; ), commonly known as Tipperary Town, is a town and a civil parish in County Tipperary, Ireland. Its population was 4,979 at the 2016 census. It is also an ecclesiastical parish in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cashel and Emly, ...

, Ireland. The Abbey is an

all-boys school Single-sex education, also known as single-gender education, same-sex education, same-gender education, and gender-isolated education, is the practice of conducting education with male and female students attending separate classes, perhaps in se ...

which, as of 2024, had over 320 students. In recent years,} the school has been extended twice. The first extension is known as the "

Edmund Rice Edmund is a masculine given name in the English language. The name is derived from the Old English elements ''ēad'', meaning "prosperity" or "riches", and ''mund'', meaning "protector". Persons named Edmund include: People Kings and nobles *Ed ...

Wing" and contains a construction studies room, woodwork room and technology laboratory. The second extension was the complete renovation of an old stable which is now called the "Mary Rice Centre" which houses a special needs area, learning support and one-to-one education and a library. As of 2024, the principal of the school was David Sadlier.

History

A priory of

Augustinian friars The Order of Saint Augustine (), abbreviated OSA, is a mendicant religious order of the Catholic Church. It was founded in 1244 by bringing together several eremitical groups in the Tuscany region who were following the Rule of Saint Augustine ...

operated on the site from c. 1300 before being suppressed in 1539. After the Cromwellian conquest (1650s) the land came to Erasmus Smith. He established

grammar school A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a Latin school, school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented Se ...

s in Tipperary,

Galway Galway ( ; , ) is a City status in Ireland, city in (and the county town of) County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lough Corrib and Galway Bay. It is the most populous settlement in the province of Connacht, the List of settleme ...

and

Drogheda Drogheda ( , ; , meaning "bridge at the ford") is an industrial and port town in County Louth on the east coast of Ireland, north of Dublin. It is located on the Dublin–Belfast corridor on the east coast of Ireland, mostly in County Louth ...

, where the sons of his Protestant tenants were educated. The first building was destroyed during the

Williamite War The Williamite War in Ireland took place from March 1689 to October 1691. Fought between Jacobite supporters of James II and those of his successor, William III, it resulted in a Williamite victory. It is generally viewed as a related conflic ...

(1688–91). By 1702, there was a new

, which lasted until 1820 when it was rebuilt. The structure that succeeded it burned down in 1941, soon after the

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

Christian Brothers had assumed control. On 3 October 1955 the school was reopened as Father Humphrey's Memorial School. The school is named after Fr. David Humphr s (1843–1930) who had campaigned for the education rights of Catholics.

Notable alumni

Nicholas Mansergh Philip Nicholas Seton Mansergh (27 June 1910 – 16 January 1991) was an Anglo-Irish historian. His focus was on Ireland and the British Commonwealth. He was Master of St John's College, Cambridge (1969-1979). He was chair of British Commonweal ...

(1910–91) *

Nicky English Nicholas J. "Nicky" English (born 20 October 1962) is an Irish former hurler who played as a full-forward at senior level for the Tipperary county team. Born in Cullen, County Tipperary, English first played competitive Gaelic games during h ...

(born 1962), hurler, manager and broadcaster *

Standish James O'Grady Standish James O'Grady (18 September 1846 – 18 May 1928) was an Irish author, journalist, and historian. O'Grady was inspired by Sylvester O'Halloran and played a formative role in the Celtic Revival, publishing the tales of Irish mythology, a ...

(1846–1928), writer * John O'Leary (1830–1907), Fenian *

Goddard Henry Orpen Goddard Henry Orpen (8 May 1852 – 15 May 1932) was an Irish historian. He attended The Abbey School, Tipperary and graduated from Trinity College Dublin. Orpen was the son of Dr. John Herbert Orpen (1805–1888) and Ellen Susanna Gertude ...

(1852–1932), historian * Michael Slattery (1783–1857), Catholic archbishop * Alan Quinlan (born 1974), rugby player and broadcaster

References

External links

Official website
1955 establishments in Ireland Congregation of Christian Brothers secondary schools in the Republic of Ireland Education in County Tipperary Secondary schools in County Tipperary {{Ireland-school-stub