Church in Moat (fore By.)

Situated on a rise in a gently undulating landscape. A church at Moimany is listed in the ecclesiastical taxation (1302-06) of Pope Nicholas IV (Cal. doc. Ire. 5, 259). Ussher (1622) describes the church and chancel of Killiagh as repaired (Erlington 1847-64, 1, cxxi). The church of Killeagh is marked on the Down Survey map of County Meath where it is placed centrally in the parish in a townland called Killeagh, which consists of the modern townland of Moat. According to the Dopping and Regal Visitations (1682-93) the church and chancel of Moymane alias Killeagh were down and it was not enclosed (Ellison 1975, 9-10). The Church of Ireland church was built in 1800 (Lewis 1837, 2, 118) and removed before 1964. Only the base of the S wall (L 14.3m; max. H 0.5m) of this structures remains. It is thought to have been made from stones of the older church (O'Connell 1964, 92-3), of which there is no visible trace in a raised D-shaped graveyard (dims c. 60m N-S; c. 60m E-W) defined by masonry walls with straight sides at N, E and W. There are mature deciduous trees inside the perimeter, and the graveyard has a large collection of headstones dating from c. 1730-1750. It continued in use until c. 1910, but there are no dressed stones from the medieval structure in the graveyard. A small rectangular annexe (dims c. 35m E-W; c. 10m N-S) defined by masonry walls and attached to the N continues to be used for burial up to the present. The large enclosure site (ME008-034----) is immediately to the N and together with the graveyard could constitute an ecclesiastical enclosure around an early church, but there is no other evidence of an early date. The motte and bailey (ME008-032----) is c. 450m to the SW. The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Meath' (Dublin: Stationery Office, 1987). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Compiled by: Michael Moore Date of revision: 31October, 2018