Graiguenamanagh
Template:Short description Template:Use dmy dates Template:Use Hiberno-English Template:Infobox settlement Graiguenamanagh or Graignamanagh (Template:Irish place name)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> is a town on the River Barrow in County Kilkenny, Ireland. Part of the settlement, known as Tinnahinch, is on the County Carlow side of the river, and Carlow County Council refers to the whole village as "Graiguenamanagh-Tinnahinch".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Also combined for census purposes, as of the 2022 census, Graiguenamanagh-Tinnahinch had a population of 1,506 people.<ref name="citypop"/> The town is in a townland and civil parish of the same name.<ref name=logainm>Template:Cite web</ref>
Graiguenamanagh is located at the foot of Brandon Hill and is home to Duiske Abbey, the largest of the thirty-four mediaeval Cistercian abbeys in Ireland.
History
Ecclesiastical sites
Evidence of ancient settlement in the area include an ecclesiastical enclosure and holy well sites in the townlands of Graiguenamanagh and Tinnahinch.<ref>Template:Citation</ref><ref>Template:Citation</ref> St. Caelán reputedly founded a monastery at Tinnahinch during the 6th or 7th century.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Also located in the area are the ruined remains of the early Christian church of Ullard, founded by Saint Fiachra in the seventh century. Several miles downstream from Graiguenamanagh are the ruins of an ancient monastic establishment at St Mullin's.Template:Citation needed Template:Historical populations
Duiske Abbey
Based on an earlier settlement, much of Graiguenamanagh developed around the early 13th-century Duiske Abbey.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The abbey, which takes its name from the river Duiske (Blackwater) which joins the Barrow here, was founded by William Marshall in 1204 and was suppressed by Henry VIII in 1536.<ref name="cistercian">Template:Citation</ref> Some remains of the monastery exist to the rear of the houses that line the east side of Lower Main Street.
The abbey's large "Early English" gothic church was restored in the 1980s,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and it is now the Catholic parish church in Graiguenamanagh.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In its northern aisle is a model which shows the monastery as it was in the fourteenth century.Template:Citation needed
Economic development
The River Barrow, historically a transport route, was developed as a commercial navigation during the 18th century.<ref name="villageofthemonks">Template:Cite web</ref> Graiguenamanagh Bridge, a seven-arched limestone bridge spanning the River Barrow, was built in 1764.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Graiguenamanagh served as a base for commercial barges operating on the river until barge traffic ceased in 1959.<ref name="villageofthemonks"/> These barges were later replaced by pleasure craft.Template:Citation needed
Public transport
The town is located on the R705 regional road. Kilbride Coaches operate a route linking it to Kilkenny via Gowran.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Recreation and culture
Watersports, angling,<ref name="seireland">Template:Cite web</ref> walking and cycling (including on the Barrow towpath) are common activities in the Graiguenamanagh area.Template:Citation needed The Barrow's aquatic facilities include fishing, swimming, kayaking, and canoeing. The South Leinster Way, a long-distance trail, runs across the Barrow Valley and nearby Brandon Hill.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="seireland"/>
The local Gaelic Athletic Association club, Graignamanagh GAA, fields teams in Gaelic football and hurling competitions and is based in Dr Tierney Park in the town.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The town is also home to an athletics club and a soccer club.Template:Citation needed
There is a series of statues of monks in Graiguenamanagh, including several which depict the activities traditionally carried out by the Cistercian monks of Duiske Abbey.Template:Citation needed There is also a public library in the center of town.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The Abbey Centre, beside the library, is home to an art gallery and a small museum.Template:Citation needed
See also
- List of abbeys and priories in Ireland (County Kilkenny)
- List of towns and villages in Ireland
- Market Houses in Ireland
Further reading
- 'Graiguenamanagh:A Town and its People', John Joyce,(Graigue Publications,1993).
- 'The Old Grey Mouse', Sean Swayne, (The Abbey Centre,1995).
- 'Tinnahinch: A Village within a Town', Owen Doyle & Colm Walshe, (Graiguenamanagh Historical Society, 2003).
- 'The O'Leary Footprint' (Philip E. Murphy and J. David Hughes eds), (The O'Leary Archive,2004).
- 'Graiguenamanagh Families', Owen Doyle & Colm Walshe, (Graiguenamanagh Historical Society,2006).
- 'Graiguenamanagh:A Varied Heritage', John Joyce, (Graiguenamanagh Historical Society, 2009).