Boyle Abbey

Boyle Abbey 

Boyle Abbey, County Roscommon, Ireland is a 12th century Cistercian monastery.

The Cistercian order was invited to Ireland by Saint Malachy who was an instrumental part of Irish Church reform. Bringing in foreign orders like the Cistercians from Normandy who were loyal to Rome was to mark the end of an era of indigenous Celtic Irish monasticism such as was practised at Clonmacnoise.
                                             The Cistercians settled first at Mellifont Abbey in County Louth. From there, a total of 34 daughter houses were established all over the country. Boyle Abbey was one of those. The order was given lands by the local ruling family, the McGreevy’s mid twelfth century. From 1161 on the Cistercians settled and started building in Boyle. The building process went on for 60 odd years. The building incorporated old monastic buildings that were already on the site. Boyle Abbey was consecrated in 1218 at the peak of the Cistercian activities in Ireland which declined towards the end of the 13th century.