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| Hore Abbey in the distance from the Rock of Cashel |
As we near the end of our Ireland Trip Blog #66
gives you a quick overview of the Rock of Cashel's Hore Abbey.
Hore Abbey is a ruined Cistercian monastery
near the Rock of Cashel (fortress/cathedral), County Tipperary, Republic of
Ireland. We could see the ruins from the Rock of Cashel, which lies to the
north of the ruins. There's a couple of things you need to know to understand
this place. 1) What does "hore" mean and 2) What is a Cistercian.
We'll explain both.
WHAT IS HORE? - The word 'Hore' is didn't refer
to a loose nunnery. Okay, I couldn't resist. Actually it was thought to come
from the word 'iubhair' the yew tree.
WHAT IS A CISTERCIAN? - A Cistercian is a
member of the Cistercian Order -it's basically a religious order of monks and
nuns. According to Boydell & Brewer.com:
The Cistercians (White Monks) were the most successful monastic experiment to emerge from the tumultuous intellectual and religious fervour of the eleventh and twelfth centuries. By around 1150 they had established houses the length and breadth of Western Christendom and were internationally renowned. They sought to return to a simple form of monastic life, as set down in the Rule of St Benedict, and preferred rural locations "far from the haunts of men". But, as recent research has shown, they were by no means isolated from society but influenced, and were influenced by, the world around them; they moved with the times.
The Cistercians (White Monks) were the most successful monastic experiment to emerge from the tumultuous intellectual and religious fervour of the eleventh and twelfth centuries. By around 1150 they had established houses the length and breadth of Western Christendom and were internationally renowned. They sought to return to a simple form of monastic life, as set down in the Rule of St Benedict, and preferred rural locations "far from the haunts of men". But, as recent research has shown, they were by no means isolated from society but influenced, and were influenced by, the world around them; they moved with the times.
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| Credit: www.adaremanor.com |
WHO GAVE IT TO WHOM? - The former Benedictine
abbey at Hore was given to the Cistercians by Archbishop David MacCearbhaill
(in 1270), who later entered the monastery. He endowed the Abbey generously
with land, mills and other benefices previously belonging to the town.
This is all that's known about this Abbey in
ruins:
·
1269 Archbishop David MacCearbhaill made
profession of the Cistercian rule though remaining as Archbishop of Cashel
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1270 Founded from Mellifont. The last
Cistercian foundation in Ireland before the dissolution of the monasteries
·
1540 Dissolved and property transferred
to James Butler, 9th Earl of Ormond. Monks continued to serve the local parish.
Later occupied as private dwellings
·
1561 Lands granted by Elizabeth I to Sir
Henry Radcliffe
NEXT: A QUICK LOOK AT THE TOWN OF CASHEL and GRAVEYARD GHOST
NEXT: A QUICK LOOK AT THE TOWN OF CASHEL and GRAVEYARD GHOST
