Everything about Mellifont totally explained
Mellifont Abbey (
Irish:
An Mhainistir Mhór, literally "the big abbey"), located in
County Louth, was the first
Cistercian abbey to be built in
Ireland.
Origins
Founded in
1142 on the orders of
Saint Malachy, Archbishop of
Armagh, Mellifont Abbey sits on the banks of the
River Mattock, some ten
km (6
miles) from
Drogheda.
By 1170, Mellifont had one hundred monks and three hundred lay brothers. The Abbey became the model for other Cistercian abbeys built in Ireland, with its formal style of architecture imported from the abbeys of the same order in France; it was the main abbey in Ireland until it was closed in
1539, when it became a fortified house.
The Synod of 1154
An important
synod was held in Mellifont in
1152 as recorded in the
Annals of the Four Masters, which asserts that the synod was attended by bishops and kings along with the papal legate
John Paparo (Saint Malachy having died some ten years beforehand). The consecration of the church took place in 1157 and asserted Church authority by banishing the
King of Meath,
Donnchadh Ua Maeleachlainn.
Various kings gave donations to assist this foundation:
Muirchertach Ua Lochlainn, provincial
king of Ulster, gave cattle, some
gold and also a local town land,
Donnchad Ua Cearbhall, the
king of Airgialla, who had donated the land, also gave gold, while
Derbforgaill, the wife of
Tigernan Ua Ruairc gave gold, a
chalice and
altar cloths.
The Abbey since closure
William of Orange used Mellifont Abbey House as his headquarters during the
Battle of the Boyne in
1690.
Mellifont Abbey is now a ruin. Little of the original Abbey remains, save a 13th-century
lavabo (where the monks washed their hands before eating), some
Romanesque arches and a 14th-century
chapter house.
Further Information
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