Grey Abbey, Kildare

Grey Abbey (Irish: An Mhainistir Liath) is a ruined Franciscan abbey/monastery in County Kildare, Ireland. Founded in 1260, the Kildare poems were likely written in the abbey.

Grey Abbey

An Mhainistir Liath
Northwest corner of the ruin
Monastery information
Order	Franciscans
Established	1260
People
Founder(s)	William de Vesci
Architecture
Status	Inactive
Site
Public access	Yes

History

The abbey was founded in 1260 by William de Vesci, however it was completed by Maurice FitzGerald, Lord of Offaly.^[1] Gerald FitzGerald, 5th Earl of Kildare was buried here.

A manuscript which is the original source of the Kildare poems was likely written in the Grey Abbey in the early 1300s.^[2]

References

Notes

1. Fitz-Gerald 1858, p. 18.
2. Henry 1972, p. 120.

Sources

• Fitz-Gerald, Charles William (1858). The Earls of Kildare, and Their Ancestors: From 1057 to 1773 (3rd ed.). Dublin: Hodges, Smith, & Company. p. 18.
• Henry, P. L. (1972). "The Land of Cokaygne Cultures in Contact in Medieval Ireland". Studia Hibernica (12): 120–141. doi:10.3828/sh.1972.12.5. JSTOR 20496004. S2CID 241047096 – via JSTOR.