Selskar Abbey
The monastery Selskar, also called Selsker, (English Priory of SS Peter and Paul of Selskar by Wexford ) has been founded before 1240 as one of the Saints Peter and Paul consecrated priory of Augustinian Canons in Wexford in Ireland. The monastery was abolished in 1540 in the wake of the Reformation. 1826 part of the ruins was demolished and part renovated to build a new Anglican church in the Gothic Revival style, which was closed in 1951 and then again fell into ruin.
History
After the English invasion, the city wall was especially extended to the north, that the church was within the city walls. The actual monastery, nothing of which is preserved, but remained outside the city walls. A city gate ( gate Selskar ) separated the two areas and possibly also gave the canons the advantage of a goods and executed by the own goal, without having to pay for the other city gates inches. It is now the only remaining tower house in Wexford.
The importance of the monastery has been documented not only as a place of the Synod of 1240, but also by the seat of the Priors in the upper house of the Irish Parliament was founded in 1297. At the beginning of the 14th century the English conquests came under increasing pressure from Irish rebellions. This also applied to Wexford and the monastery Selskar. The prior complained that the wars had devastated the Irish the lands to such an extent that the canons were thinking about abandoning the monastery. 1355 a fire destroyed several documents. Pope Eugene IV commissioned Selskar with the decision in some disputes or petitions during the years 1439-1442.
Given the impending dissolution of the monastery in the Reformation advocated the Wexforder for the conversion of the monastery in a collegiate, but without success. On March 23, 1540 gave the last prior, John Heigharne, the Monastery of the crown. The value of the estate was estimated at an annual rent of £ 129 and 10 Denari. At the time of the 617 Acre comprehensive land to Sir Walter Browne was leased, which, however, came with the lease payments in trouble, so in 1548 the ownership of John Parker for a payment of £ 285 over went for a yearly rent of 15 shillings and a penny. The use of the church building as a parish church was preserved notwithstanding. While possibly the lying outside the city walls monastery buildings may serve as a quarry, the church remained initially unaffected. Already in 1682 the church was a ruin, but it was still continue to be used poorly.
With the help of funds of the Board of First Fruits and a compulsory levy on all households in the city regardless of their religion, a new Anglican church was built in the period 1818-1826. She was meant to give the Anglican church members a church that financing their church pews at St. Iberius Church could not afford. The necessary demolition of the old choir was not without controversy. The church existed until 1951, when it was abandoned.
As part of a government funding program of the 1980s, and the Tower House of the monastery belonging to the city gate was renewed and others.
Architecture
The church consisted of two adjacent aisles with more than 30 m in length, which were separated by four arcades, a tower at the end of the south nave, and one adjoining the northern end of the nave, choir area. The naves be imputed to the 13th century, the tower with open arches in the east and west direction, however, came only later added, probably in the 14th century. Each of the two church windows had a window with Gothic tracery in the west gable. On the south side of the monastery, there were four windows and a covered entrance porch.
As part of the 1826 work completed for the new Anglican church by the architect John Semple of the old chancel was demolished and replaced by a new nave. The tower was used as a sacristy and this renewed with the open arches of the tower is closed and its tip was concluded with the now to be seen battlements. As drawings show at the beginning and end of the 19th century, the south wall of the south nave, was lost during this time.