Toomevara, officially Toomyvara (), is a village in

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 village is at the junction on the R445 where it meets the R499 regional road. The village was bypassed in December 2010 by the M7 Dublin - Limerick motorway. It is also a

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

in the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Killaloe The Diocese of Killaloe ( ; ga, Deoise Chill Dalua) is a Roman Catholic diocese in mid-western Ireland, one of six suffragan dioceses in the ecclesiastical province of Cashel and Emly. The cathedral church of the diocese is the Cathedral of S ...

, and is in the historical

barony Barony may refer to: * Barony, the peerage, office of, or territory held by a baron * Barony, the title and land held in fealty by a feudal baron * Barony (county division), a type of administrative or geographical division in parts of the British ...

Ormond Upper Ormond Upper (Irish: ''Urumhain Uachtarach'') is a barony in County Tipperary, Ireland. This geographical unit of land is one of 12 baronies in County Tipperary. Its chief town is Toomevara. The barony lies between Ormond Lower to the north (whos ...

Transport

Local Link Tipperary operates bus service No. 854 between

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 ...

and

Nenagh Nenagh (, ; or simply ''An tAonach'') meaning “The Fair of Ormond” or simply "The Fair", is the county town and second largest town in County Tipperary in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Nenagh used to be a market town, and the site of the ...

which stops at Main Street. The service operates seven days a week with three services in each direction.

Sport and recreation

Toomevara GAA club and Toomevara Camogie Club are based in the area. Toomevara is on the route of the

Beara-Breifne Way The Beara-Breifne Way is a long-distance walking and cycling trail being developed from the Beara Peninsula in County Cork, Ireland, to Blacklion in the area of Breifne in County Cavan. The trail follows closely the line of the historical march ...

, a long distance walking and cycling trail between the

Beara Peninsula Beara ( ga, Béarra) or the Beara Peninsula is a peninsula on the south-west coast of Ireland, bounded between the Kenmare "river" (actually a bay) to the north side and Bantry Bay to the south. It contains two mountain ranges running down it ...

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 are ...

and

Blacklion Blacklion (; also ''An Leargaidh'') is a border village in west County Cavan, Ireland. It is situated on the N16 national primary road, just across the border from the County Fermanagh village of Belcoo. History The village is within the tow ...

County Cavan County Cavan ( ; gle, Contae an Chabháin) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster and is part of the Border Region. It is named after the town of Cavan and is base ...

Medieval Toomevara

In the Civil Survey (1654-6) Toomevara is described as 'the sd manor of Tome ye privilege of a Court Leete & a Court Barron, a Fayre twice a yeare, & a markett every Tuesday'. In the centre of the village are the ruins of a possible rectangular church building composed of roughly coursed limestone rubble with a possible priest's chamber at the West end. The wall construction different from that of the nearby priory suggesting a different date for the construction of this building. It may have been a late medieval parish church associated with the village of Toomevara. It is listed in the ecclesiastical taxation of the Diocese of Killaloe in 1302.

Augustinian Priory

Next to St Joseph's Church are the remains of an Augustinian priory dedicated to St Mary which was founded some time after 1140. The site was possibly an earlier monastic centre dedicated to St Donain. The priory was a daughterhouse of Monaincha and appears to have been strongly associated with the ruling O'Meara dynasty. In 1450 the warden pleaded that, on account of poverty, the value being under 16 marks he and his convent could not be decently maintained, nor repair the cloister and other buildings, most of which had been burnt down during wars. Donogh O'Meara was building a castle here in 1541. In 1597 Miler mac Grath was granted the 'site, circuit and precint of the late priory of Thome' with a 'butt of a ruined castle with certain ruined chambers thatched'. At the dissolution the property of the priory of Toomevara is listed as 'one castle, wall and other buildings on the site'.

Gallery

Toomyvara_St._Joseph%27s_Church_Nave_and_Altar_2010_09_08.jpg, Nave and Altar of St Joseph's Toomyvara_Priory_North_Wall_2010_09_08.jpg, North Wall of Toomyvara Priory Toomyvara_Priory_Nave_2010_09_08.jpg, Nave of Toomyvara Priory ToomevaraChurch 4578.jpg, Former Church of Ireland church on Toomevara Main St

References

External links

Toomevara Settlement Plan
{{Roman Catholic Diocese of Killaloe Parishes of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Killaloe Towns and villages in County Tipperary