Ireland: May 19 - Old Mellifont Abbey and The Battle of the Boyne

Today we visited Old Mellifont Abbey and the site of the Battle of the Boyne. Old Mellifont Abbey was founded in 1142 on the orders of Saint Malachy, Archbishop of Armagh. It was the first Cistercian abbey in Ireland and grew quickly so that by 1170 there were 100 monks and 300 lay brothers in residence. It is just outside the town of Tullyallen where we believe our great, great grandmother, Catherine Devin, was born. Here is a photo of the Gatehouse as you enter the grounds.

Here is a photo of the overall site. The Church is in the front with the Nave on the left. The main entrance to the Church was through the left Transept. In the background you can see the Chapter House on the left and the Lavabo to the right, The grassy area was the location of the original gardens.

Here is a better photo of the Lavabo. It was used by the monks to wash their hands before meals. It had wash basins on the ground level and a cistern upstairs to catch and hold rain water.

I'm not sure what this tunnel was but it came in handy as a sudden rain shower popped up and Pat and I took shelter in it until the rain had passed. It's interesting to note how the arch was constructed.

There is a local saying about the weather. If you can see the mountains, it's going to rain. If you can't see the mountains, it's raining.

The garden was surrounded by a decorative columned wall. This is a rebuilt section that shows what it would have looked like.

Here is an interior view of the Chapter House. It is the best preserved building and still has its ceiling.

Here is a photo of the side of the Chapter House showing the detail in the window.

Here is a photo of the Nave of the Church.

Just adjacent to the grounds of the Abbey was the remains of a medieval Church.

Our next stop was the site of the Battle of the Boyne just outside of Tullyallen. This a battle that took place in 1690 between Catholics and Protestants. The Catholics were led by King James II of England and the Protestants bt King William III of England. James had been King of England until he was overthrown by William, who was his son-in-law, in 1688. In an attempt to get back his throne, James recruited an army, known as the Jacobites, of about 24,000 Irish Catholics and French and landed in southern Ireland and marched north. William had an army of about 36,000 Irish Protestants, Dutch and English. He landed in northern Ireland and marched south. The two armies met at the Boyne River. Williams forces were able to cross the river at low tide and drive the outnumbered and badly trained Jacobite army off. King James then left for France and never returned. The two armies continued to fight for another year until the Jacobites were finally defeated. This solidified the Protestant control of Ireland. Here is a photo of an old mansion that has been converted into a visitors center with details about the battle.