User:Clareabbey

LOCATION This parish includes the villages of Clarecastle and Ballyea and their hinterland. There are Catholic churches at Clarecastle (www.clarecastleballyeaparish.ie. ) and Ballyea (www.clarecastleballyeaparish.ie. ) and national schools (for ages 4 to 12) at Clarecastle and BallyeaThe parish is situated on the Fergus Estuary in mid- Clare, and is bounded on the west by the civil parish of Clondegad, on the north by the civil parish of Drumcliff, and on the south the Fergus Estuary and to the east by Doora Parish. CLARE ABBEY

Clare Abbey was founded in 1189 by Donal Mór O'Brien. It was an abbey of the Canons Regular of St. Augustine and was dedicated to Saints Peter and Paul. The abbey was the scene of a great slaughter in 1278 between various factions of the O'Briens. Parts of the single-aisled church date from the late twelfth century but most of the buildings are fifteenth-century work. These include a well-preserved east window, the tower and the domestic buildings with their unusual floral window at the south-eastern corner. The church and charter were reconfirmed by Thady, Bishop of Killaloe, in 1461. Henry VIII granted the abbey to the Baron of Ibrickan in 1543 and the Earls of Thomond were confirmed as owners in 1620 and 1661. The Augustinians remained in the abbey until 1650. By 1703 the abbey was a ruin, but there was a good "thatched house, an orchard and 2 or 3 cabins nearby", according to Moland's survey.

Clare Abbey 1862  by Rev. John Louis Petit Courtesy of Pat & Kitty Quinn KILLONE CONVENT: The convent of Cill Eoin or the convent of St. John's Church, was the first convent of Augustinian nuns in County Clare. The Annals of Inisfallen, 1259-1260, mention the death of "Slaney, O Bryan's daughter, Abbess of Kill Eoin, chief in devotion, almes-deedes and hospitality of all women in Munster." Another abbess, Dubcollaithig Breyn, died in 1350. In 1584 the convent was vested in the Crown. One legend relates how Honora O'Brien became a nun in Killone but ran off with Sir Roger O'Shaughnessy of Gort and presented him with a son and daughter before getting the Pope's dispensation for their marriage. It is mentioned in the Visitation of Killaloe in 1617 as the property of Baron Inchiquin. It was last occupied at the end of the sixteenth century. The east window is its most interesting feature, being double with two semi-circular headed lights lined with smooth stonework.

Killow/Cill Lua Local spelling Killoo also spelled Killoe. The settlement of Cill Lua is reputed to have been founded by St Lua a grandson of a 5th century King of Thomond and is one of the oldest Churches in the Diocese of Killaloe. The Church measures 37ft 9inches by 19ft 4inches. Joe Power’s History of Clarecastle (p 21) states that Killow belonged to the Deanery of Tradaree up to the 17th century and must have been incorporated into Clareabbey during penal times. Hilary Gilmore’s research states: ‘In the town land of Killow there is an ancient Church and Graveyard. There is no definite information available regarding the Church. It is probable that a Monastery was founded here about the middle of the 7th century AD by St Molua or Lugad of Killaloe. It seems to have survived the Viking wars and it became a Parish in its own right following the 12th century reorganisation of the Irish Church. The first record we have regarding this Church is the Papal taxation of 1302 where it is listed as a Parish with a valuation of 3 marks. It was united with Clareabbey later on. In the years following the Reformation many Churches were taken over and used by Ministers of the new Protestant religion. Bishop Rider, Protestant Bishop of Killaloe, reported in 1615 on the conditions of Churches in the Diocese His comments on Killow were “Church and Chancel down”. It seems therefore that Killow Church was not used for public worship after that. T.J. Westropp in his Churches of Co Clare (1900) wrote “Killue – Clareabbey Parish; A small Church 37ft 9ins by 19ft 4ins. East window has a slightly pointed head and is chamfered; the splay is rudely built and other features defaced. Founder Lugad perhaps Molua. Killuga 1302 then a separate Parish. Monuments Stamer 1766.