MUCKROSS ABBEY

The beauty of the cloister will remain in our memories of this ruined abbey, the main religious site of the park, founded in the 15th century by the Franciscan monk Donal McCarthy Mor. In an impeccable state of preservation, the arcades, one row of which differs from the others, are aligned in a perfect square, open to the sky, small enough for the yew tree planted in the centre to appear to invade the space with its branches. The square tower is the only Franciscan tower in Ireland. The community of monks was dispersed in 1652 by the supporters of Oliver Cromwell.