St. Marys Church in ruins — Fore

The precise foundation date of the medieval church dedicated to St. Mary is not known but it is probably coeval with the foundation of the borough of Fore. The church is first mentioned in the 1302-06 ecclesiastical taxation of Ireland where the 'Church of St. Mary, Favorie' is valued at 20s. (Cal. doc. Ire., 259). After the dissolution of the monasteries, the church was leased to Christopher Nugent, lord of Delvin in 1567 (Nicholls 1994, 134). In this year the Crown granted Christopher Nugent a 21 year lease 'of the site of the priory (WM004-035010-) or manor of Fowre, county Westmeath, lands of Fowre, a lough there called [Logheleyn], lands of Hilton, Carpenterston, Mylcasteltowne, Gilbertston, Rahen, Dromsawry, with a chapel and tithes, Comoylston, Lighill alias, Larkehill by the parts of the Breny, Fayron, Keneleighe, Ratheny, Donamore, Betaghton, Nynche, 13s. 4d. chief rents out of Nenaghe, in the said county, and the customs of the tenants ; the rectories of S. Mary (WM008-097002-) in Fower, S. Fekins (WM004-035003-) in Fower, Archidiorum (WM004-035004-) in Fower, Fayron, Faghley, Mayne, Leigheblay, Dromiskille, Ragarf, Oldecastell, and Balmagarvy, in the counties of Meath and Westmeath, and diverse parsonages in the Breny. To hold the possessions of Fower, for 21 years from 1582, at a rent of £175 10s 8d., and maintaining five horsemen’ (ibid.). In 1578 the Crown granted a 5 year lease to William Dood ‘of the site of the abbey of Fower (WM004-035010-), co. Westmeath, and the lands in Fowre, Hilton, Carpenterstowne, Mylcastellton, Gilbertston, Raghin, Dromsawry, Comoylston, Leighill alias Larkehill, Firone, Kilmalighe, Rathenny, Donnamore, Ballynniskerry, Betaughston, the Ninche, and Nenaghe, and the tithes and alterages of the rectories of Fower (WM008-097002-), S. Fekyn (WM004-035003-) in Fower, Archediorum (WM004-035004-) of Fower, Fayron, Faughley, Mayne, Lighblay, Dormiskell, Ragarfett, Oldecastell, and Balmagarvy, counties of Meath and Westmeath. To hold for 5 years. Rent, £140’ (Nicholls 1994, 479). Bishop Dopping 's visitation of 1682-5 noted that the church was in disrepair before 1640 (Ellison 1975, 7). The ruins of the late medieval church lie in the old graveyard (WM008-097014-) N of the modern St. Feighin’s R. C. church. The present remains consist of the grass-covered foundations of the N and S walls, a short section of the W wall and the full gable of E wall which is covered in ivy. The rectangular undivided church (int. dims. 19.8m E-W x 7.1m N-S) was built with roughly coursed limestone rubble. The E wall has a small single light ogee-headed window with undecorated window spandrels and a hood-moulding above. The W wall lacks features and stands to a height of about 3m. Leask mentions the presence of a trough-shaped piscina located beneath a window jamb at the E end of the S wall but this feature is no longer visible (Bradley et. al. 1985, 83). A number of dressed and cut stones from the church including a chamfered window mullion and a finial stone of 15th/16th century date have been reused as headstones in the graveyard (WM008-097014-) while other cut stone has been built into the enclosing graveyard boundary wall which is post-1700 in date (ibid.). Compiled by: Caimin O'Brien Date of upload: 20 November 2013