Innishannon Tower is the ruin of a

Huguenot The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a religious group of French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, the Genevan burgomaster Be ...

chapel tower built beside the original church and graveyard in the town of

Innishannon Innishannon or Inishannon () is a large village on the main Cork– Bandon road ( N71) in County Cork, Ireland. Situated on the River Bandon, the village has grown due to its proximity to Cork city, and is now a dormitory town for city wo ...

County Cork County Cork ( ga, Contae Chorcaí) is the largest and the southernmost county of Ireland, named after the city of Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. Its largest market towns a ...

Tower

There are two currently working churches in the town of Innishannon, one

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

and one

Church of Ireland The Church of Ireland ( ga, Eaglais na hÉireann, ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Kirk o Airlann, ) is a Christian church in Ireland and an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. It is organised on an all-Ireland basis and is the secon ...

. Beside the

River Bandon The River Bandon ( ga, Abhainn na Bandan, from ''ban-dea'', meaning "goddess") is a river in County Cork, Ireland. The Bandon rises at Nowen Hill (one of the Shehy Mountains), to the north of Drimoleague. The river then flows to Dunmanway, ...

is the abandoned St. Mary's church and graveyard, probably initially Cistercian, which has been both throughout its history. It became a Church of Ireland building in the 16th century and was in use until the new church was completed in the mid 19th century. The original handover of the land was by the Church of Ireland to Cork County Council. There was a serious collapse of the tower in 2007. The locals campaigned to have the tower restored. St Mary's Church tower was officially handed over by Cork County Council to the care of the local Tidy Towns committee on 21 November 2013.

References

{{reflist National Monuments in County Cork Religion in County Cork Towers in the Republic of Ireland