Muckross Abbey Cross above altar

Muckross Abbey is one of the major ecclesiastical sites found in the Killarney National Park, County Kerry, Ireland. It was founded in 1448 as a Franciscan friary for the Observantine Franciscans by Donal McCarthy Mor.[1]

It has had a violent history and has been damaged and reconstructed many times. The friars were often subjected to raids by marauding groups and were persecuted by Cromwellian forces under Lord Ludlow.[2] Today the abbey is largely roofless although, apart from this, is generally quite well preserved. Its most striking feature is a central courtyard, which contains a large yew tree and is surrounded by a vaulted cloister.[3]



Ground plan of Muckross Abbey
In the 17th and 18th centuries, it became the burial place for prominent County Kerry poets O'Donoghue, Ó Rathaille and Ó Súilleabháin.[4]
Read less