athassel augustinian priory

This, the largest medieval priory in Ireland, was founded for the Canons Regular of St. Augustine by William FitzAdelm de Burgo at the close of the 12th century and dedicated to St. Edmund. The abbot was a Peer of Parliament. The priory was dissolved int he time of Edward VI, and in the reign of Philip and Mary was granted to Thomas, Earl of Ormond. The remains of the monastery cover four acres. The church is 210 feet long and has two transepts, with a square tower in the centre of the crossing and another smaller one at the north-western end of the church. The nave had two aisles which were probably vaulted, and was probably not built till about 1280. The choir was built about 50 years earlier, though its east windows were replaced in the 15th century. The tower at the crossing (more Cistercian than Augustinian in style) seems to have been planned from the beginning; there is a very fine doorway in the west wall; above it is a recess (blocked up in the 15th century) which may have contained the Rood or cross.