This is the only church in Ireland founded by an Irish king that is still in use. It was set up in 1216 next to the site of an earlier church founded by busy St Patrick after he came down from Croagh Patrick. Major anniversary celebrations are planned for 2016.
Take the N84 south, after about 13km turn west at the Emo service station; the abbey is 2km along.
Among the highlights of its tumultuous history, the abbey was burned by Normans, seized by James I and suppressed by Henry VIII. The nave roof was burned down by Cromwell's soldiers in 1653 and not restored until 1965.
