Innisfallen ( ) or Inishfallen (from , meaning 'Faithlinn's island') is an

island An island or isle is a piece of land, distinct from a continent, completely surrounded by water. There are continental islands, which were formed by being split from a continent by plate tectonics, and oceanic islands, which have never been ...

in Lough Leane; one of the three Lakes of Killarney 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 Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

. Innisfallen is home to the ruins of Innisfallen Abbey.

Geography

Innisfallen is situated about the midway in Lough Leane,

. The island is some in area, mostly wooded, with undulating hills and many slopes. It lies within the

Killarney National Park Killarney National Park (), near the town of Killarney, County Kerry, was the first national park in Ireland, created when the Muckross Estate was donated to the Irish Free State in 1932. The park has since been substantially expanded and en ...

Access

It is possible for tourists to visit the island during the summer months, with boats leaving from Ross Castle throughout the day.

History

Innisfallen is home to the ruins of Innisfallen Abbey, one of the most impressive archaeological remains dating from the early Christian period. The monastery was founded in 640 by Saint Finian and was occupied for approximately 950 years. Over a period of about 300 of these, the monks wrote the

Annals of Innisfallen The ''Annals of Inisfallen'' () are a chronicle of the medieval history of Ireland. Overview There are more than 2,500 entries spanning the years between 433 and 1450. The manuscript is thought to have been compiled in 1092, as the chronic ...

, which chronicle the early history of Ireland as it was known to the monks. The monks were dispossessed of the abbey on 18 August 1594, by

Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was List of English monarchs, Queen of England and List of Irish monarchs, Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. She was the last and longest reigning monarch of the House of Tudo ...

. The location of the monastery on the island is thought to have given rise to the name Lough Leane ( Irish ''Loch Léin''), which in English means "Lake of Learning". According to tradition the Irish High King

Brian Boru Brian Boru (; modern ; 23 April 1014) was the High King of Ireland from 1002 to 1014. He ended the domination of the High King of Ireland, High Kingship of Ireland by the Uí Néill, and is likely responsible for ending Vikings, Viking invasio ...

received his education at Innisfallen under Maelsuthain O'Carroll. Maelsuthain has been credited as the possible originator of the ''Annals''.

Structures

While the abbey dates back to the seventh century, the oldest extant structure, dated to the tenth century, is the western two-thirds of the abbey church. The remainder of the church and the main abbey complex were constructed in the thirteenth century. A third structure, an oratory with a Hiberno-Romanesque doorway, dates from the twelfth century.

Literature

The island is the subject of the melody ''Innisfallen, the Island — Sweet Innisfallen'' by

Thomas Moore Thomas Moore (28 May 1779 – 25 February 1852), was an Irish writer, poet, and lyricist who was widely regarded as Ireland's "National poet, national bard" during the late Georgian era. The acclaim rested primarily on the popularity of his ''I ...

, of which the first verse is: It is also the subject of "The Abbot of Innisfallen. A Killarney Legend", a poem by

William Allingham William Allingham (19 March 1824 – 18 November 1889) was an Irish poet, diarist and editor. He wrote several volumes of lyric verse, and his poem "The Faeries" was much anthologised. But he is better known for his posthumously published ''Di ...

, first published in ''Macmillan's Magazine'' (August 1864). This was in turn set to music by

Geoffrey Molyneux Palmer Geoffrey Molyneux Palmer (, 8 October 1882 – 29 November 1957) was an Irish composer, mainly of operas and vocal music, among them the first musical settings of poems by James Joyce. Biography Palmer was born of Protestant Irish parents in ...

as ''The Abbot of Innisfalen'', Op. 5, for baritone, chorus and orchestra, which won the cantata prize at the 1908 Feis Ceoil in Dublin.

Notes

References

Sources

* * * * {{Authority control Archaeological sites in County Kerry Islands of County Kerry Lake islands of Ireland Uninhabited islands of Ireland Former populated places in Ireland Religion in County Kerry