Overview
Creevelea was the last Franciscan friary built in Ireland before Henry VIII’s Dissolution of the Monasteries, and it had a short run of it: founded in 1508, accidentally burned in 1536, formally dissolved around 1598. What survives stands on the west bank of the Bonet River just outside Dromahair, roofless but remarkably complete, and free to walk at any hour. If you only have twenty minutes, spend them in the cloister – the carving of St Francis preaching to the birds is the one thing here you won’t find at every other ruined friary in the country.
It’s also genuinely quiet. Leitrim is the least-populated county in the Republic, and Creevelea sits in a field off a side road with a visitor count to match, so the odds are good you’ll have the place to yourself.
The O’Rourkes and after
Creevelea was founded in 1508 by Eóghan O’Rourke, Lord of West Bréifne, and his wife Margaret O’Brien. A fire in 1536 destroyed much of the original complex, but Brian Ballach O’Rourke had it rebuilt. The site’s fortunes turned during the Nine Years’ War: in 1590 the English commander Sir Richard Bingham used the friary to stable horses while pursuing Brian O’Rourke, who had sheltered survivors of the Spanish Armada. It was dissolved around 1598, and became a burial ground for local nobility – among them Sir Tadhg O’Rourke, the last King of West Bréifne (d. 1605), and Bishop Thaddeus Francis O’Rourke of Killala (d. 1735).
The Franciscans never fully let go. A second house went up in 1618; the friars reoccupied the site in 1642 before the New Model Army drove them out during the Cromwellian conquest. After the Restoration they lived in thatched cabins nearby, and the church itself stayed in use as living quarters until 1837. During the Penal era the surviving friars ran a hedge school here – the antiquarian Charles O’Conor of Belanagare got his early schooling at it – and said Mass at a megalithic tomb a few fields away in Sranagarvanagh, well clear of the road. Among the men trained at Creevelea was Patrick O’Hely, who did his novitiate here before becoming Bishop of Mayo; he was captured, tortured and hanged in 1579, and beatified as one of the Irish martyrs in 1992.
What to see
The layout reads clearly on the ground, which is half the pleasure of the place:
- The cloister – the heart of the site, and the reason to come. Look closely at the stonework for the carving of St Francis of Assisi preaching to the birds, alongside the stigmata and other animal motifs. It’s the kind of detail that usually ends up in a museum.
- The nave and south transept – the main body of the church. The Gothic proportions still give a strong sense of the original scale.
- The bell tower – rising above the nave, converted into living quarters in the 17th century. It’s the most visible part of the ruin from the surrounding fields.
- The graveyard – still in use, wrapped around the ruins. Among the modern headstones you’ll find medieval O’Rourke markers and the restored grave slab of Bishop Thaddeus O’Rourke.
- The mill ruins – a short walk toward the river reveals the remains of an old water mill. Its exact date isn’t recorded, but the stone foundations are still there.
The walk and the river
Creevelea sits on the Sligo Way, the 80 km waymarked trail linking the coast with inland heritage, and it makes a natural waypoint for anyone walking it. From the car park, well-trodden paths lead down to a footbridge over the Bonet, and the riverbanks are good for birdwatching in spring and early summer. The light is best early or late, when it rakes across the weathered limestone and throws long shadows over the cloister floor.
Getting there and visiting
- Getting there: leave Dromahair on the R286 and watch for a sign on the right to a small, free car park right beside the ruins.
- Hours and admission: open daily, no fixed closing time, free.
- Facilities: none on site – no toilets, shop or café. Nearest amenities are in Dromahair village, a couple of minutes’ drive.
- Access: the ground is uneven, with stone steps, loose gravel and grassy slopes; it isn’t wheelchair accessible, though much of the ruin is visible from the car park and the river footbridge. Dogs are welcome on a lead – worth keeping short near the working graveyard.
Bring a light jacket even in summer; the exposed walls hold the cold and damp. And give the cloister carving a proper look before you leave – it’s easy to walk straight past a 500-year-old saint and his birds.