Derrynane Abbey also known as Ahamore Abbey ()
is a ruined abbey in
Derrynane
Derrynane, officially Darrynane (), is a small village in the civil parish of Kilcrohane in County Kerry, Ireland. It is located on the Iveragh peninsula, just off the N70 national primary road near Caherdaniel on the shores of Derrynane Bay.
...
in
County Kerry
County Kerry () is a Counties of Ireland, county on the southwest coast of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. It is bordered by two other countie ...
, Ireland. It is located near the town of
Caherdaniel
Caherdaniel () is a village and townland in County Kerry, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, located on the Iveragh peninsula on the Ring of Kerry. It is on the southwestern side of the peninsula, facing onto Derrynane Bay, at a T-junction on the N70 ...
and is very close to
Derrynane House
Derrynane House () was the home of Irish politician and statesman, Daniel O'Connell. It is protected as a national monument and part of a 320-acre (1.3 km2) national historic park. The house is located on the Iveragh peninsula on the Ring o ...
, the house of
Daniel O'Connell
Daniel(I) O’Connell (; 6 August 1775 – 15 May 1847), hailed in his time as The Liberator, was the acknowledged political leader of Ireland's Roman Catholic majority in the first half of the 19th century. His mobilisation of Catholic Irelan ...
. The abbey is on an island appropriately named Abbey Island. It is accessible from the mainland through a beach. It is believed to have been built in the 6th century.
Structure
The Abbey itself is in ruin. There are only 3 interconnecting buildings of the abbey left, all without a roof. The main
church
Church may refer to:
Religion
* Church (building), a place/building for Christian religious activities and praying
* Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination
* Church service, a formalized period of Christian comm ...
, like the other buildings, is overgrown and contains a number of graves, including those of Mary O'Connell (wife of
Daniel O'Connell
Daniel(I) O’Connell (; 6 August 1775 – 15 May 1847), hailed in his time as The Liberator, was the acknowledged political leader of Ireland's Roman Catholic majority in the first half of the 19th century. His mobilisation of Catholic Irelan ...
) and the eighteenth-century Gaelic poet, Tomás Rua Ó Suilleabháin.
The three arched windows of the church are in good condition even though they are facing the sea. The other two buildings have little else of note but graves. In the graveyard surrounding the abbey, there is tomb made of white tile which has been chipped away in places.
Gallery
File:Abbey Island.jpg, Derrynane Abbey
File:Mary O'Connell's Grave.jpg, Mary O'Connell's Grave
File:White Tiled Tomb.jpg, White Tiled Tomb
References
Christian monasteries in the Republic of Ireland
Buildings and structures in County Kerry
Religion in County Kerry
Ruins in the Republic of Ireland
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