Mount St. Joseph Abbey is an abbey of the

Trappist The Trappists, officially known as the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance ( la, Ordo Cisterciensis Strictioris Observantiae, abbreviated as OCSO) and originally named the Order of Reformed Cistercians of Our Lady of La Trappe, are a ...

branch of the

Cistercians The Cistercians, () officially the Order of Cistercians ( la, (Sacer) Ordo Cisterciensis, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint ...

located in

County Offaly County Offaly (; ga, Contae Uíbh Fhailí) is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the province of Leinster. It is named after the ancient Kingdom of Uí Failghe. It was formerly known as King's County, in hono ...

, near

Roscrea Roscrea () is a market town in County Tipperary, Ireland, which in 2016 had a population of 5,446. Roscrea is one of the oldest towns in Ireland, having developed around the 7th century monastery of Saint Crónán of Roscrea, parts of which rem ...

County Tipperary County Tipperary ( ga, Contae Thiobraid Árann) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. The county is named after the town of Tipperary, and was established in the early 13th century, shortly after th ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

. The abbey was founded in 1878 by a group of 32 monks from

Mount Melleray Abbey Mount Melleray Abbey is a Trappist monastery in Ireland, founded in 1833. It is situated on the slopes of the Knockmealdown Mountains, near Cappoquin, Diocese of Waterford. It is famous in literature due to Seán Ó Ríordáin's poem ''Cnoc Mel ...

County Waterford County Waterford ( ga, Contae Phort Láirge) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is part of the South-East Region, Ireland, South-East Region. It is named ...

, a number of years earlier

Arthur John Moore Count Arthur John Moore KHS (1849 – 5 January 1904) was a wealthy Roman Catholic Irish nationalist politician. Background and education Born in Liverpool, Moore was the son of Charles Moore who had served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Tipp ...

MP of Co. Tipperary visited Mt Melleray petitioning for it. The church was opened for worship in 1883, on 600 acres in Mount Heaton, Roscrea, and a

Boarding school A boarding school is a school where pupils live within premises while being given formal instruction. The word "boarding" is used in the sense of "room and board", i.e. lodging and meals. As they have existed for many centuries, and now exten ...

Cistercian College, Roscrea Cistercian College, Roscrea or Roscrea College is a private boarding school in Ireland. It is a Roman Catholic seven-day and five-day boarding and day school for boys, founded in 1905. Its pupil population is primarily made up of boarding stud ...

- was founded in 1905. The first superior was Dom Athanasius O'Donovan (born Daniel O'Donovan). Mount St. Joseph contains several stained glass windows created by

Harry Clarke Henry Patrick Clarke (17 March 1889 – 6 January 1931) was an Irish stained-glass artist and book illustrator. Born in Dublin, he was a leading figure in the Irish Arts and Crafts Movement. His work was influenced by both the Art Nouveau and ...

or his studios. Three windows in the infirmary, three later windows in the chapel of the college and a 1960s window dedicated to St. Patrick for the abbey church. Three foundations have been made from Mount Saint Joseph -

Nunraw Nunraw is an estate in East Lothian, Scotland. It includes the White Castle, a hillfort, situated on the edge of the Lammermuir Hills, two miles south of the village of Garvald, (, , OS Landranger No.67.) Nunraw House was formerly used as the Gu ...

(

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

) in 1946, Tarrawarra (

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

) in 1954, and

Bolton Abbey, Moone Bolton Abbey, Moone, County Kildare is a Cistercian The Cistercians, () officially the Order of Cistercians ( la, (Sacer) Ordo Cisterciensis, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched o ...

, (

County Kildare County Kildare ( ga, Contae Chill Dara) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It is named after the town of Kildare. Kildare County Council is the local authority for the county, ...

) in 1964. The Nationalist, Home Rule supporting MP the Catholic, Count

who donated the six hundred-acre property, and buildings to the Cistercians, where the Abbey and College is, is buried in Mount St Josephs.

Abbots

*Dom Athanasius Donovan (Prior) *Dom Camillus Beardwood (1887) *Dom Justin McCarthy (1911) *Dom Camillus Claffey (1944) *Dom Eugene Boylan (1962) *Dom Colmcille O'Toole (1964-2000) *Dom Laurence Walsh (2000) *Dom Kevin Daly *Dom Richard Purcell (2009-2017) - became Abbot of Mount Melleray *Dom Malachy Thompson (Superior)

References

External links

Mount St. Joseph Abbey
- official website.
Cistercian College, Roscrea
- official website. {{coord missing, County Tipperary Trappist monasteries in the Republic of Ireland Cistercian monasteries in the Republic of Ireland Religious organizations established in 1878 Religious buildings and structures in County Tipperary 1878 establishments in Ireland 1878 in Ireland

Abbots

See also

References

External links