Terryglass () is a

village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred ...

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 ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland is the s ...

. The small town is located on the R493 regional road on the north-eastern shore of Lough Derg near where the

River Shannon The River Shannon ( ga, Abhainn na Sionainne, ', '), at in length, is the longest river in the British Isles. It drains the Shannon River Basin, which has an area of , – approximately one fifth of the area of the island of Ireland. The Sha ...

enters the Lough. It is a

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authorit ...

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 Lower Ormond Lower ( Irish: ''Urumhain Íochtarach'') is a barony in County Tipperary, Ireland. This geographical unit of land is one of 12 baronies in County Tipperary. Its chief town is Nenagh. The barony lies between Ormond Upper to the south-east ...

. It is also an

Ecclesiastical 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,. Terryglass won the Irish Tidy Towns Competition in 1983 and 1997.

History

In the early Middle Ages, the place was known as Tír dá glass (also ''Tirdaglas'' and ''Tirraglasse''). A monastery (abbey) was founded there by

Columba of Terryglass Columba of Terryglass (Colum) (died 13 December 552) was the son of Ninnidh, a descendant of Crinthainn, King of Leinster. Columba was a disciple of St. Finnian of Clonard. He was one of the Twelve Apostles of Ireland. Life In his youth he lea ...

(d. 13 December 552) in 549. He was the son of Colum mac Crimthainn and a disciple of St. Finnian of Clonard. He was one of the

Twelve Apostles of Ireland The Twelve Apostles of Ireland (also known as Twelve Apostles of Erin, ir, Dhá Aspal Déag na hÉireann) were twelve early Irish monastic saints of the sixth century who studied under St Finnian (d. 549) at his famous monastic school Clona ...

. The monastery became a centre of learning and produced (about 1160) the

Book of Leinster The Book of Leinster ( mga, Lebor Laignech , LL) is a medieval Irish manuscript compiled c. 1160 and now kept in Trinity College, Dublin, under the shelfmark MS H 2.18 (cat. 1339). It was formerly known as the ''Lebor na Nuachongbála'' "Book ...

, which is now housed in

Trinity College Dublin , name_Latin = Collegium Sanctae et Individuae Trinitatis Reginae Elizabethae juxta Dublin , motto = ''Perpetuis futuris temporibus duraturam'' (Latin) , motto_lang = la , motto_English = It will last i ...

. The Book is an important collection of history, tales and poems written in

Middle Irish Middle Irish, sometimes called Middle Gaelic ( ga, An Mheán-Ghaeilge, gd, Meadhan-Ghàidhlig), is the Goidelic language which was spoken in Ireland, most of Scotland and the Isle of Man from AD; it is therefore a contemporary of late Old Engl ...

and is believed to be the work of Áed Ua Crimthainn, a 12th-century

abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the male head of a monastery in various Western religious traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not the head of a monastery. Th ...

of Terryglass. The

Vikings Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and se ...

frequently raided the abbey. In 843 an expedition led by

Turgesius Turgesius (died 845) (also called Turgeis, Tuirgeis, Turges, and Thorgest) was a Viking chief active in Ireland during the 9th century. Turgesius Island, the principal island on Lough Lene, is named after him. It is not at all clear whether the ...

raided Terryglass and neighbouring

Lorrha Lorrha (from ) is a small village at the northern tip of County Tipperary, Ireland. It is located on a minor road between the R489 Birr to Portumna road and the N65 Nenagh to Portumna road about five kilometres east of the point where the Ri ...

and in 1164 the abbey was burnt. A remaining wall from this abbey can be seen at the back of Old Church in the village.

Wells

Terryglass has two

holy well A holy well or sacred spring is a well, spring or small pool of water revered either in a Christian or pagan context, sometimes both. The water of holy wells is often thought to have healing qualities, through the numinous presence of its guar ...

s: St. Augh's Eye Well and St. Columba's Headache Well. St. Augh's Eye Well is located on the quay and is dedicated to the 9th century Christian saint named Augh. Local legend holds that Augh lost his eyes to a Danish chieftain who lived in

Slevoir Slevoir (''Sliabh Mhaghair '' in Irish) is a townland in the Barony of Ormond Lower, County Tipperary, Ireland. It is located in the civil parish of Terryglass overlooking Slevoir Bay, the most north-eastern part of Lough Derg Slevoir is the ...

. Augh is reputed to have regained his sight thanks to water from the eye well. Believers visit the well on Saturdays during the month of May between sunrise and sunset in search of cures for eye problems. The ritual begins on the flagstone facing the rising sun and continues with attendees reciting a

creed A creed, also known as a confession of faith, a symbol, or a statement of faith, is a statement of the shared beliefs of a community (often a religious community) in a form which is structured by subjects which summarize its core tenets. The ea ...

, 5 Our Fathers and 5

Hail Mary The Hail Mary ( la, Ave Maria) is a traditional Christian prayer addressing Mary, the mother of Jesus. The prayer is based on two biblical passages featured in the Gospel of Luke: the Angel Gabriel's visit to Mary (the Annunciation) and Mary' ...

s on each side of the well. When the prayers are completed their eyes are washed with water from the well. Small offerings such as flowers are left on a nearby bush. The well's source is a nearby stream. Legend claims that

Saint Patrick Saint Patrick ( la, Patricius; ga, Pádraig ; cy, Padrig) was a fifth-century Romano-British Christian missionary and bishop in Ireland. Known as the "Apostle of Ireland", he is the primary patron saint of Ireland, the other patron saints b ...

baptised people in the well when he visited the area. St. Columba's Headache Well is located in the village of Terryglass. It is named after

Columba Columba or Colmcille; gd, Calum Cille; gv, Colum Keeilley; non, Kolban or at least partly reinterpreted as (7 December 521 – 9 June 597 AD) was an Irish abbot and missionary evangelist credited with spreading Christianity in what is tod ...

and is alleged to cure headaches and migraines.

Sport and recreation

Shannon Rovers GAA, which incorporates Terryglass, Kilbarron and surrounding areas, is based in Páirc an Phobail,

Ballinderry Ballinderry () is a small civil and ecclesiastical parish on both sides of the County Londonderry / County Tyrone border in Northern Ireland. It is a rural parish of about 350 houses and lies on the western shores of Lough Neagh. The parish c ...

. The club's jersey colours are red and white. Shannon Rangers FC is a local association football (soccer) club. Also based in Páirc an Phobail, its kit colours are black with red trim for the junior team, and red and black vertical stripes for underage levels. Terryglass is on one of several north Tipperary Cycle Routes. This 65 km route starts at Banba Square, Nenagh and is listed as a half day cycle. Terryglass is a common location for boating, having both public and private marinas.

Notable Residents, past and present

*Columba of Terryglass (died 13 December 552) was one of the

. He founded the monastery of Terryglass in 548 and was buried within its precincts. *Sir William Hickie, an Irish born Major General of the British Army and an Irish nationalist politician, lived in

. * Rickard Deasy (Farming Campaigner) * Martin O'Meara VC (born 1882), recipient of the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previousl ...

Annalistic references

See

Annals of Inisfallen Annals ( la, annāles, from , "year") are a concise historical record in which events are arranged chronologically, year by year, although the term is also used loosely for any historical record. Scope The nature of the distinction between ann ...

(AI) * ''AI717.1 Kl.Repose of Manchán of Liath, and of Congertach, abbot of Tír dá Glas.'' * ''AI740.1 Kl. Maenchíne, abbot of Tuaim Gréine, and Cillíne, abbot of Tír dá Glas, ested'' * ''AI777.4 The drowning of more than a hundred of the

Connachta The Connachta are a group of medieval Irish dynasties who claimed descent from the legendary High King Conn Cétchathach (Conn of the Hundred Battles). The modern western province of Connacht ( Irish ''Cúige Chonnacht'', province, literally ...

at Tír dá Glas.'' * ''AI784.3 Repose of Cumascach, abbot of Tír dá Glas.'' * ''AI844.1 Kl. The plundering of Dún Másc, in which Aed son of Dub dá Chrích, abbot of Tír dá Glas, fell.'' * ''AI895.2 Repose of Mael Petair son of Cúán, abbot of Tír dá Glas and Cluain Ferta Brénainn.'' * ''AI965.1 Kl. Repose of Dunchad, abbot of Tír dá Glas.'' * ''AI1008.2 Repose of Céilechair son of Donn Cuan, abbot of Tír dá Glas.''

References

External links

Placenames Database of Ireland

terryglass.com

The Tidy Towns of Ireland "Celebrating 50 years"
Parishes of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Killaloe Populated places on the River Shannon Towns and villages in County Tipperary Tourist attractions in County Tipperary Civil parishes of Ormond Lower