Abbey in ruins — Oldcourt

Formerly an episcopal residence of the Bishops of Leighlin dating from the late thirteenth century, this monastery is believed to have been founded by the O'Moore family (O'Hanlon and O'Leary 1907, vol. 1, 251). In a low-lying area on marshy land. All that remains of the abbey are the S wall (L c. 24.8m) of a friary church constructed of roughly coursed limestone rubble, and W gable (L c. 7.4m) of a possible nave and chancel church which was later fortified, as evidenced by seven slit opes in S wall and two in W gable. Low banks at N indicate evidence of further possible buildings. Described in the History of the Queens County as 'In the townland of Clonpierce, adjoining Ballylinan, there is an extensive ruin called the Abbey of Shanecourt, but nothing is known of an abbey having been built there' (O'Hanlon and O'Leary 1907, vol. 1, 251). The remains of an earthen bank (Wth c. 3m, ext. H c. 0.7m, int. H c. 0.9m) are evident at SW, W and NW which appears to be the remains of the levelled precinct wall of the abbey. No other visible surface remains. On the 1838 edition of the OS 6-inch map the abbey is depicted as a square shaped enclosure which appears to have been the levelled precinct wall of the Abbey. This townland was formerly known as Clonpierce (O'Hanlon and O'Leary 1907, vol. 1, 302). The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Laois' (Dublin Stationery Office, 1995) compiled by P. David Sweetman, Olive Alcock and Bernie Moran. In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Compiled by Caimin O'Brien Date of upload/revision: 09 December 2011