BYC.J.MCGINLEY
THE monastery and graveyard grounds where St Colmcille was educated in Kilmacrennan is in danger disappearing into rubble.
The boundary walls around the Friary known locally as the 'Old Abbey' are falling into an adjacent field belonging to a local landowner while there are fears other wallsteds will collapse on top of ancient graves. Locals are worried that unless something is done to repair and maintain the site a valuable piece of local history is in danger of being wiped away.
Local historian, Paddy Friel is one of those leading the campaign to have the site repaired and restored. His great grandfather, grandfather, aunts and uncles are buried in one of the two graveyards on the site. However, it has emerged there is no funding currently available from the Heritage Council to carry out the necessary improvements.
"The graveyard is the responsibility of Donegal County Council but the funding needed to carry out the repairs needs to come from the Department of Environment but we're told there are no funds available. This is one of the most important historical sites of its kind in the country and the money should be found immediately before it is too late," Mr Friel said.
"This is where St Colmcille was educated at the turn of the 6th century. A monastery was founded here and two graveyards put in place. Sometime in the 13th or 14th century a local chieftain Manus O'Donnell endowed the monastery to the Third Order of St Franciscans but they dispersed during the Reformation. The first Church of Ireland in Kilmacrennan was on the site and it was used up until 1846. The graveyard was used for the parishes of Kilmacrennan, Termon and Milford. A number of resident families still use it but burials here are very rare now," he added.
Mr Friel explained that priests and rectors from the Kilmacrennan area are buried on the site in the graveyards dating back hundreds of years. There is a Church of Ireland and Catholic graveyard on the site.
"The fact that St Colmcille was educated here makes it so special. He stayed here until he moved away to Clonard or Derry. The last maintenance works were over a decade ago. Boundary walls are now falling into an adjacent field and there is also a real danger that other walls will fall on top of ancient graves," he added.
Lexie Diver is another well known local anxious that something is done to repair the walls. His grandfather is also buried in the graveyard.
"I think it should be repaired and always maintained for its historical significance. The last work I can remember being done here was about ten years ago. The site is no longer safe and urgent action is needed. A lot of people visit this site from places like America and England because their ancestors are buried here or they want to visit the Abbey because of its history," he said.
Senator Joe McHugh and Cllr Noel McBride contacted the council but were told there was no funding available.
"I think it is a disgrace the Department cannot make funds available for this work to be done. I contacted the council and spoke to the Heritage Officer, Joe Gallagher. He agrees the work needs to be done urgently but said there is no funding available," Cllr McBride said.
"The funds must be found before further detoriation takes place. You can't put a price on historical places like here in Kilmacrennan," he added.
The Friary was built between 1450 and 1500 and housed priests, lay brothers and school children. Two hundred yards to the west and on higher ground lies the ruined Church of Ireland which surrounded by graves. The building was vacated in 1846 having been built after 1622 and later renovated.
It is likely that many of the Fransicans lie buried near the Friary Walls and also the remains of a number of secular priests. Disaster overtook the monastery in 1129 when it was captured and burned to the ground. In his book 'In Kilmacrennan Long Ago' the late Hugh Strain stated the persecutor was probably a rival chieftain who caught the O'Donnells by surprise when the latter's power was on the wane. There is not a trace above the ground of the Columban monastery.
"The Friary and surrounds are a hallowed spot and it is difficult to imagine them at the height of their glory with the hum of young voices arising from the school room, the chant of the Vespers coming from the Chapel and grey habited berethern moving about. When the scene was coupled with an O'Donnell inauguration day little could equal it," he wrote.
