Kilree is a former Christian

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone ( hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer whi ...

and National Monument located in County Kilkenny, Ireland.

Location

Kilree is located 2.4 km (1 mile) south of

Kells, County Kilkenny Kells () is a village in County Kilkenny in Ireland. It is about 15 km south of Kilkenny. It is situated on high ground to the south of the Kings River. Kells Priory, though in ruins, is one of the best preserved in Ireland. The Cottere ...

History

The monastery at Kilree was supposedly founded in the 6th century by Saint Rhuidche, from which the name ''Cell-righ'' derives.

Niall Caille Niall mac Áeda (died 846), called Niall Caille (Niall of the Callan) to distinguish him from his grandson Niall mac Áeda (died 917), was High King of Ireland. Background Niall belonged to Cenél nEógain, a northern branch of the Uí Néill, ...

, High King of Ireland, is locally believed to have drowned in the Kings River at

Callan Callan is a given name and surname of Irish and Scottish origin. It can derive from Ó Cathaláin, meaning ''descendant of Cathalán''. Callan can also be an Anglicized form of the Gaelic Mac Allin or Mac Callin. Notable people with the name includ ...

in AD 846 and his body washed up near

. However the Annals of the Four Masters and Annals of Inishfallen are clear the king drowned in the river Callan near Armagh. Some local histories claim he was buried under the high cross at Kilree, others that he was buried outside the church grounds there because he was a pagan. The Annals however record he was heavily involved in a power struggle between two dominant monastic traditions - that of Patrick versus Brigit, with Niall favouring the latter, so the tale of his paganism is not credible. He was primarily the king of Ailech, which was in western County Londonderry, again making it unlikely he is connected with Kilree. The site came into the possession of Kells Priory by 1340. It was surrendered to Henry VIII in 1539, and he granted the abbot a life pension.

Buildings

Church

This is an early church with pronounced

antae The Antes, or Antae ( gr, Ἄνται), were an early East Slavic tribal polity of the 6th century CE. They lived on the lower Danube River, in the northwestern Black Sea region (present-day Moldova and central Ukraine), and in the regions aro ...

, indicating that it is pre- Romanesque in date. It still retains its oval enclosure.

Round tower

The round tower is about tall, depending on which ground level it is measured from. The arched

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates ...

doorway is above ground level and is framed by moulding. The bell-storey has four lintelled windows facing the

cardinal directions The four cardinal directions, or cardinal points, are the four main compass directions: north, east, south, and west, commonly denoted by their initials N, E, S, and W respectively. Relative to north, the directions east, south, and west are at ...

. The cap is gone but

battlements A battlement in defensive architecture, such as that of city walls or castles, comprises a parapet (i.e., a defensive low wall between chest-height and head-height), in which gaps or indentations, which are often rectangular, occur at interva ...

remain. The tower stands on a rectangular stone pad-foundation, only found here and at Aghaviller.

High cross

Kilree High Cross was erected in the 8th/9th Century. It is tall and covered with bosses and geometric designs. The east face has a hunting scene. The west face depicts the

Adoration of the Magi The Adoration of the Magi or Adoration of the Kings is the name traditionally given to the subject in the Nativity of Jesus in art in which the three Magi, represented as kings, especially in the West, having found Jesus by following a star, ...

and Daniel in the Lions' Den.

References

{{Reflist Christian monasteries in the Republic of Ireland Religion in County Kilkenny Archaeological sites in County Kilkenny National Monuments in County Kilkenny