A high cross or standing cross is a free-standing Christian cross made of stone and often richly decorated. There was a unique Early Medieval tradition in Ireland and Britain of raising large sculpted stone crosses, usually outdoors. These probably developed from earlier traditions using wood, perhaps with metalwork attachments, and earlier pagan Celtic memorial stones; the Pictish stones of Scotland may also have influenced the form. The earliest surviving examples seem to come from the territory of the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Northumbria, which had been converted to Christianity by Irish missionaries; it remains unclear whether the form first developed in Ireland or Britain.
Netley Abbey is a ruined late medieval monastery in the village of Netley near Southampton in Hampshire, England. The abbey was founded in 1239 as a house for monks of the austere Cistercian order. Despite royal patronage, Netley was never rich, produced no influential scholars nor churchmen, and its nearly 300-year history was quiet. The monks were best known to their neighbours for the generous hospitality they offered to travellers on land and sea.
Sligo Abbey was a Dominican convent in Sligo, Ireland, founded in 1253. It was built in the Romanesque style with some later additions and alterations. Extensive ruins remain, mainly of the church and the cloister.
Clonmacnoise is a ruined monastery situated in County Offaly in Ireland on the River Shannon south of Athlone, founded in 544 by Saint Ciarán, a young man from Rathcroghan, County Roscommon. Until the 9th century it had close associations with the kings of Connacht.
The Abbey of Kells is a former monastery in Kells, County Meath, Ireland, 59 kilometres (37 mi) north-west of Dublin. It was founded in the early 9th century, and the Book of Kells was kept there during the later medieval and early modern periods before finally leaving the abbey in the 1650s. Much of the Book of Kells may have been created there, but historians cannot be certain of the exact date and circumstances of its creation.
Greyabbey or Grey Abbey is a small village, townland and civil parish located on the eastern shores of Strangford Lough, on the Ards Peninsula in County Down, Northern Ireland.
Muiredach's High Cross is a high cross from the 10th or possibly 9th century, located at the ruined monastic site of Monasterboice, in County Louth, Ireland. There are two other high crosses at Monasterboice; in local terms Muiredach's cross is also known as the South Cross. Muiredach's cross is the most impressive surviving example of early medieval Irish stonework, and the crosses at Monasterboice have been said to be Ireland's greatest contribution to European sculpture.
The Ross Errilly Friary is a medieval Franciscan friary located about a mile to the northwest of Headford, County Galway, Ireland. It is a National Monument of Ireland and among the best-preserved medieval monastic sites in the country. Though usually referred to by locals as "Ross Abbey," this is not technically correct as the community never had an abbot.
Jerpoint Abbey is a ruined Cistercian abbey, founded in the second half of the 12th century in County Kilkenny, Ireland. It is located 2.5 km south west of Thomastown on the R448 regional road. There is a visitor centre with an exhibition. It has been declared a national monument and has been in the care of the Office of Public Works since 1880.
Corcomroe Abbey is an early 13th-century Cistercian monastery located in the north of the Burren region of County Clare, Ireland, a few miles east of the village of Ballyvaughan in the Barony of Burren. It was once known as "St. Mary of the Fertile Rock", a reference to the Burren's fertile soil.
Boyle Abbey is a ruined Cistercian friary located in Boyle, County Roscommon, Ireland. It was founded by Saint Malachy in the 12th century.
Fore Abbey is the ruins of a Benedictine and Early Gaelic 7th century Abbey with associated Mill, Anchorite's Cell, Holy Wells and a structure associated with St. Feichin, all situated to the north of Lough Lene in County Westmeath, adjacent to Fore village. Architectural additions, damage by fire and dismantlement have altered the site's appearance and layout over the centuries.
Movilla Abbey in Newtownards, County Down, Northern Ireland, is believed to have been one of Ulster's and Ireland's most important monasteries. Movilla should not be confused with Moville in County Donegal.
Flann Mainistrech was an Irish poet and historian.
Ferns Abbey is a ruined Augustinian abbey in Ferns, County Wexford, Ireland. Likely built on the site of an early Christian monastic site founded by Máedóc of Ferns, the standing remains were built by Diarmait Mac Murchada c.1160. The abbey was suppressed on 7 April 1539.
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 a late construction similar in form to Eóganachta and Connachta. They first appear in historical sources in the 6th century, and were found in several parts of the island, including in Brega and Airgialla. The Ciannachta groups were absorbed over time. Modern descendants have formed a Clan Cian society.
Clones Abbey is a ruined monastery that later became an Augustinian abbey in the twelfth century, and its main sights are ecclesiastical. The Abbey was formerly known as St. Tighernach Abbey, and was referred to locally as the "wee abbey". Parochial and monastic settlements were separated, and it seems likely that the building became the Abbey of St. Peter and Paul. In the Book of Armagh and Annals of Ulster the word Clones is referenced as "Clauin Auis" and "Cluain Auiss," respectively. As there is no word in standard dictionaries of Old Irish that give the form "auis" or "eois", Seosamh Ó Dufaigh has speculated that the word is a cognate of the Welsh word for point or a tip: "awch". Although, Bearnard O'Dubhthaigh disputes this theory on the grounds that the earlier form of "awch" is "afwch". Folklore suggests that the monastic town was originally called "Cluin Innish" on account of it being surrounded by water.
Drumlane is a townland situated near the village of Milltown, area 85.76 hectares, in County Cavan, Ireland. Drumlane is also the name of the civil parish in which the townland is situated. Saint Columba brought Christianity to Drumlane in 555, and Saint Máedóc of Ferns was the founder of an early Drumlane monastery. Saint Máedóc made the Connachta nobleman Faircheallaigh the first Abbot of Drumlane at the end of the sixth century and his Ó Faircheallaigh descendants became historically the Erenagh Abbots of Drumlane. The name Drumlane denotes the drumlin region of low hilly ribbed moraines formed over a limestone bedrock created by the movement of glacial ice and melt water during the last ice age. Several townlands in the neighbourhood are prefixed with the word 'Drum' ('Droim'), while several others are prefixed with the word 'Derry' ('Doire'), which is Irish for oak.
Monasteranenagh Abbey is a medieval friary and National Monument located in County Limerick, Ireland. It is in the civil parish of Monasteranenagh.
Drumcliff Monastery was located in Cairbre Drom Cliabh, now County Sligo, five miles north of the modern town of Sligo. The site consists of the remains of a round tower and several high crosses, including one outstanding example. It is currently also the site of a Church of Ireland parish church and a graveyard. It is the burial place of the poet William Butler Yeats. Founded in the 6th century by Saint Colmcille, he is said to have declared in a later literary fragment:
Beloved to my heart also in the West— Drumcliffe at Culcinne's strand.
