Castlelyons Priory

On Main Street in the east Cork village of Castlelyons stands one of the few Carmelite friaries in Ireland with extensive remains, founded in the early 14th century by John de Barry after Edward II licensed him to give the friars a plot of land. What stands is largely 15th century: a nave and choir divided by a three-storey tower, whose spiral stair still climbs to the wall walk, a west doorway of five plain pointed orders below a twin-light ogee window, a piscina, thirteen worn grave slabs in the choir, and two-storey ranges around a cloister garth where three modern columns recall the lost arcade. After the Reformation it went to Richard Boyle, Earl of Cork, windows were carried off to Lismore Cathedral in 1638, and by the 18th century a hedge school met here. Reviewers suggest half an hour for the photogenic tower and cloister, with information boards on site; it is not buggy or wheelchair friendly.