Kylemore Abbey

Kylemore Abbey ( Irish Mainistir na Coille Moire ) is the oldest Irish Benedictine abbey. The monastery, founded in 1665 is located after several moves since 1920 in the 1871 completed Castle Kylemore in Connemara in County Galway. Current abbess is Máire Hickey.

History of the Monastery

The monastery was founded in 1665 in Ypres (now in Belgium ), and moved over to Ireland in 1682. In the King James II command the nuns had to move to Dublin in 1688 and returned in 1690 back to Ypres. The Community did Ypres ultimately, as the local abbey was destroyed during the First World War. First they fled to England, then to County Wexford, until they finally settled in December 1920 in the castle of Kylemore. In Kylemore the nuns then opened an international boarding school and a day school for local girls but had to be closed in June 2010. They also operated a small pension, which was closed after a devastating fire. In addition to the buildings by the so-called Kylemore Lake around also about 200 m further away there is a small farmhouse with attached farmhouse.

History of the building

The Castle of Kylemore was built by Mitchell and Margaret Henry. The construction took four years, from 1867 to 1871. The Henrys had nine children. Margaret Henry died in 1874, three years after the completion of the castle, in Egypt. She was brought back to Kylemore and buried in the mausoleum. Between 1877 and 1881 Henry Mitchell was a church built in memory of his wife. 1903 Mitchell Henry sold the castle to the Duke and Duchess of Manchester. 1920 acquired the Benedictine monastery, the castle, and 4,000 acres of land for a little more than 45,000 pounds.

Attractions

Monastery buildings

The main entrance hall of the abbey and the three adjoining rooms have been restored and are open to the public. The rest of the abbey inhabit the nuns and boarders. The exterior of the abbey consists of granite, on the front side there is a bell tower. Previously, there were four entrance halls, today there are only two of them - the ' Inner ' and ' Outer Hall ". The oak flooring in both halls is the original floor. The Duchess of Manchester was the dress walls in the outer hall with oak Jacobin.

In the inner hall is a beautiful oak staircase. The left of the drawing room is the flag of Ramilies showing a harp. The flag was rescued by the Irish Brigade at the Battle of Ramillies in 1706 and handed over to the nuns for safekeeping. Since then it is in their possession. If one of the three steps to the left, you come to the gallery hall. This room was used by the Henrys for receptions and concerts. Again, the oak paneling is still in its original.

In the upper part of the room is an ornate gallery, where formerly hung the paintings of Henry's family. The drawing room was one of the reception rooms of Henry, by the nuns he was used as a reading room. Today's decoration of the room comes from the time the renovation of 1993. 's Common room earlier consisted of a breakfast and a morning room. In the dining room of the Henry's portraits of King James II and old porcelain decanter and the Henrys are seen.

Church

The neo-gothic church in the shape of a miniature cathedral with a crypt and angels gargoyles. Inside the church, the arches of blocks from Connemaramarmor are supported.

Since the church over the years of erosion in a very bad condition, she was started in 1991 to restore. The restoration work was financed by funds from the European Regional Development Fund, bank loans and donations. On April 28, 1995, it was reopened by the Irish President Mary Robinson. In 1998, the restoration of the " AIB Better Ireland Heritage " award.

Garden

The Victorian " Walled Garden" ( walled garden ), which was created at the same time as the castle and planned by James Garnier, situated 1.6 km from the Abbey. It has a size of 3.4 hectares, of which 2.4 acres are surrounded by a brick and limestone walls. At the time of Henry's, he served not only as ornamental but also as a fruit and vegetable garden. After the sale of the property in 1903 feral garden, flourished from 1920 to the 40s of the 20th century once more and finally feral so much that of the original 21 greenhouses of the northern flank of the foundations were only obtained. Only in 2000 the garden was reconstructed on the initiative of the nuns and reopened; two of the greenhouses were restored. Runs through the garden a small river that separates the herb and vegetable garden from the flower beds. The garden visit and the trip to the garden are included in the Palace tour.