|
Muckross Abbey
(Irrelagh, or
Oir-bhealach)
| A
legend of the
founding of Irrelagh shows up in Mary
Frances Cusack's History of Ireland, written in
1868. Apparently the
founding site for the Friary was revealed to Donal McCarthy in a
dream. The vision told him to found the Friary
on the 'rock of the music.' He searched and found the spot near
his
home, a place from which exquisite music was
said to have mysteriously played. The
Abbey was built there, in
1448. More>> |
Download a 269
KB JPG
of this image.
| Order: Observantine
Franciscan.
Location:
Killarney,
Ireland.
Founded: The
abbey was founded by Donal McCarthy as a Friary in 1448.
Short History: A
legend
of the founding of Irrelagh shows up in Mary
Frances Cusack's History of Ireland, 1868. Apparently the
founding site for the Friary was revealed to Donal McCarthy in a
dream. The vision told him to found the
Friary
on the 'rock of the music.' He searched and found it near his
home, a place from which exquisite
music was
said to have mysteriously played. The Friary survived the
predations of Henry VIII and the
reformation, though it was
a difficult, and at times the Friars were forced to flee. The
house
was finally forced into dissolution in 1698. A new Friary was
built near the site in 1860
and is in use today.
Of
Interest: If
you thought the Dissolution was tough in England, it was worse in
Ireland. Trials of
Irish Martyrs dragged on and on and
on. Donagh O'Murheely,
an innocent man mistaken for another, was tortured and stoned to death
at
Muckross by officers of the crown in 1584. He joined hundreds of
others who were scourged, hanged,
mutilated, tortured, thrown into kilns, weighted and thrown into the
sea, beheaded, torn to pieces,
dragged behind horses, raped, burned to
death.... It was a cataclysm.
Famous for: The
miracle
of Our
Lady. The English tore down the monastery and descecrated its
relics and sacred items.
Franciscan Friars rescued the Virgin's statue and buried it under a
dead tree in an effort to keep it hidden and
safe. That tree sprung back to life.
Muckross Abbey Links:
|
Back to top
|
Copyright (c) Richenda
Fairhurst and historyfish.net, 2007
All rights reserved. No commercial permissions are granted.
Keep author, source and
copyright permissions with this article.
Historyfish intends to generate discussion through shared
information and does not claim to provide,
in any way, formal, legal, or factual advice or information. These
pages are opinion only. Opinions shared on historyfish are
not necessarily
the
opinions of historyfish editors, staff, owners or
administrators. Always consult
proper authorities with questions pertaining to copyrights, property
rights, and intellectual property rights.
|
