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a slide show of Inch Abbey. |
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In a letter of protest to the Pope a hundred and fifty years after the Normans had came to Ireland, Donal O'Neill who claimed to be " King of Ulster and all of Ireland by heir and hereditary right ", he details his pedigree as a right to speak "On behalf of the Kings and magnates and the whole laity," reciting, "that since the coming of Henry (II) the English had ravaged Ireland; how the Pope had belied Henry's promise that he would extend the boundaries of the Church; how the cathedrals of the Irish were plundered and their bishops imprisoned;and how the very clergy of the English asserted that it was no more a sin to kill an Irish man that to kill a dog". He cites that the monks of the Cistercian order at Inch in the Diocese of Down, were men who shamelessly beyond doubt put into practice what they preached, " for they appeared in public, bearing arms, they attacked and slay the Irish, and yet they celebrate their masses not with standing". (Famous Cities of Ireland by Stephen Gwynn, Publisher Maunsel 1915) The most striking feature of the remaining structure are the three lancet windows which once lit the alter, at the eastern end of the church. Other buildings on the site are a chapter house, an infirmary and a bake house. |
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Slide
show of Inch Abbey.
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