Settlement deserted

In the 7th century St. Fionan Lobhar founded a monastery in Ardfinnan. This is located c. 300m N of Ardfinnan village on the site of the C of I church (Killanin and Duignan, 1967, 66). In 1185 Ardfinnan castle was built by Prince John of England (ibid). The settlement was granted borough status in 1558 by James, the fourth Earl of Ormond (Curtis 1941, COD vol. 5, 108-9). The precise location of this settlement is unknown, it is thus unlocated within the townlands of Ardfinnan and Commons (Ardfinnan Par.). However, it is likely that the settlement was located between the castle and the church. (FitzPatrick and Farrelly 1993, 1-5). Compiled by: Jean Farrelly Date of revised upload: 29 September 2021