NEWRY ABBOTS HOUSE

Secrets Of The Hidden Abbey Of The Iubhar Cinn Tragha. Tara
A Mediedval Irish Abbey Still Under Seige. By Oliver Curran 2007 An Irish Artist

Most links found on this web site connect to first edition historical manuscripts & publication's showing precise statement's as written & or proof photo's of the place or point that is reefered to in regard to the real historically recorded annals' of Newryabbey in Co Down N. Ireland. All of these book's, map's, leaflets, guides, history book's, religious writing, & almost 200 year's of Newry & Mourne's memoirs & town guides along with associated English edited Newry town guides, leaflets & booklets & abbey supplements are the author's own Library. Important references from medieval Cistercian's recordsalong with period English State papers are included in order to show nothing but the truth in all eventualities. The author was born within the immediate Newryabbey enclosure & spent part his youth attending the abbey school & know's the whole abbey area like the back of his hand. In short he climed the walls of the abbey & went where he wasnt supposed to & discovered some boy hood scary reveling truth's. He see's the recent errecting of an alleged lost English Castle that uses an abbey chapel building as being in the manner of the preverbal cuckoo, and he finds this distortion of Newry's history as an affront to his ancient Irish culture, & those other culture's that were nursed with in this foundation of St Patrick.

Irish Clan King Of The Glens

High King Of The Glen's Of Newry.

For Thousand's Of Years The English Have Battled To Take Control Of Newry. This Town was the most Important meeting place Of the Irish Kings of the glens. The Legends That Surround This Newry Tara Are Not In The Least Fictional. For Centuries Newry's Secret's Stayed In The Darkness because of the invaders. Especially Mr Bagenals actions, who not only had Newry on the map distorted , he also had a copy cat Melifont Charter drawn to represent Newry to suit his plan.s. dont forget you heard it here first.

Finally on this page, I find it necessary to say,that from my observations in this City of late it appears to me there is no thought at all given the preservation of the older part of Newry.That being the Abbey Building of which Newry Mourne havent a clue about. Not one of the many have a preservation order on them. Most are seen to be English building & part of the plan to be knocked down so that Newry Mourne can expand the English town which came In the wake of the Bagenals. While a lot of these building are fantastic and deserve preservation, the cultural beginnings of this City need special attention above all else, this abbey and this choir and church should be restored like many others In england & Ireland.

This Abbots house building was Mc Canns 1st Bakery of Newry which opened in 1830s & closed in 1896, Newry and Mourne went looking for this building, but they knocked it down !! Were they being clever or stupid on these seperate happening. ? They didnt have far to look for a similar building 100 yards across the street, Mc Canns 2nd Bakery. When Mc Canns moved across the street intothis 2nd bakery, it being the chapel and choir of Newry Church. It wasnt a big job converting the BAKERY OVENS IN THE CHURCH, (NEW MUSEUM) These 2nd bakery building were formely a florist,a fact which is admited by Newry Mourne. , THIS BEING THE CASE THEY GOT WRONG BUILDING COMPLETLY. ? However we all know that now. When these same Newry chapel doors first closed to facilatate the new florist, other parts of the building's towards Abbey yard were also being converted to shops, these went as far as the masters houses. Other structures being removed to widen Castle Street, in order to facilitate the on going plans to reshape Newry into an English styled city like many other northern towns were at this period. During this reshaping the great grave yard of the monks which stretched from the top of Hyde Market behind the abbots house, to the top of William street, was torn apart & all but wiped out. Newryabbey stretched across this Castle street years before, consequently It was never an open road,admission to the main Abbey was through the North Gate at the bottom of high street or through the Abbots house gable end & or at the rivers edge at William street. The whole of Castle Street was formely mapped as boat street. The reception rooms were occupied by the Lennons 1960s & the Grants who lived in the lower section.; 2 ladys are seen walking up to the abbey gate post. Cart loads of human bones were reported to be removed from around these great Abbey houses over the years, and recently when they were knocked down in 1973. Was there a preconcieved plan to wipe out the remains of the Abbey at this date?. It would make you wonder. !! . The Abbots House was also a burial ground in its own right, it is written that tombs were in the walls and along the tunnel underground, this being the Abbots private walk way to his own & or monks church across the street ( the bakery) (new Museum) really The Blessed Virgin Church, of the 9 alters. This tunnel had the finest vaulted roof, similar is seen In the lower of the monastic floor plans produced to us by Newry Mourne, these floor plan's needles to say are fake's, simply assumed by Newry Mourne to be like thoise that would have been used. They refused to look at Cistercian floor plans, how ever this is ironically what they pluued out of the archive's/ . Many times Castle street was seen to collapsed into these underground tunnels in the last 100 years. I was in this tunnel when i was a lad, it was a scary place, one entrance from them led into the Choir (castle) building through the floor of Campbells shoe shop which was part of one of the towers of the church, this entrance being the steps Newry Mourne calim to be the entrance Into an English 19th cent cellar,lol. These Abbey tunnels are vast and plentyfull even today, & if a person knew how to enter them as i do, you may live to tell the tale.. Newry & Mourne constantly deny this underground place exists. . The (Abbots House) was at the top of Hyde Market It was demolished in 1973 when Newry & Mourne knocked it down to make way for the new road. Yet It wasnt really In the way ?.

When the Abbots house was completed in or around 1162, like all else in the Cistercian complex of Newryabbey It was allready somewhat in English hand's, and fought over year after year, century after century. A wee mention of the Dutch houses, beside which the people's church stood,(abbey yard top Willian street) Annie Dowdalls pub !! , this was a seperate church within Abbey for the people of Newry who were not allowed entry Into the Great Church which was for monks only.. This peoples church building projected into the the abbey yard.

Apparently the Needhams lived In the Abbot's house, and also called it a Castle, this title given to it simply because of typical English Popish ?common law saying's, (an English Mans home is his Castle) the supposed first English title deeds that refer to the place as such. The status of living in a supposed Castle during this period was purley a Lordly one, this being a stepping stone to Royalty. The Abbey was actually under English control just after the fire of 1454 at Newry. Below is a side veiw of the building, note the great arch of stones across the center, this gate way led into the private stable area of the Abbot on the other side, this area was known for years as Gormans Square where T.R.Gorman was born & the bus driver Billy etc. Is It a coincidence that the first Abbot of Newryabbey was also called Gorman. ? Time will tell

The Abbots House 1930 with out the steps to the tower front which were built In the 40s. St Colemans Hall. Note extreme right the building continued towards William street. The main entrance to this house was on the left through a side arch. The young Irelanders used this hall for speeches, Grattan spoke in It. Harris wrote of it In 1743 saying it was the Castle of the Needham's, he stated also It was a very old house,this old house remark, is a point worth remembering, certainly not a new castle built in the 1680,60 years before.?

Click For Larger image, More Images of this below.

The map above Is a corner of the Cistercian NewryAbbey lay out, please click on it to see the abbots tower house foremost on the plan. An aeriel view is here showing it marked with arrow. This part above shows the Abbots tower house outlined in a red square . The red x above the square, marks the great church of Newry, which i believe ran from Lidls gate way to Abbey yard, (the length of these building today Is the same length as on the origional Newry Cistercian plans below) the red x also marks precisely the spot where the supposed Castle Is today. This part of the great church building Is the "old" Choir, this being Malachy's foundation church & choir In 1144 & is much like other Abbey of the period Burishole. St Pats Island, All christain chapels at St Pats time had similar lay out, porches were usualy turned into towers or a choir. Newry at earliest date .

Below the plan of Newry's great church, I sent to Newry Mourne at the on set of all, which they ignored. This sent to me by monks. N ote the first detail, the building is 224 feet long, this being the precise length from Lidl gate way building edge, to the Abbey yard corner, facing Pat Prices chippie, when at this corner look over the railings under steps and see the closed up door way which led under ground across the street under Pats chippie, and also Into the undercrofts which Newry Mourne currently call an English cellar and claim they arent there, UTV shot them In the foot showing them In may Castle In the city story. They have now denied this since. Click plan for larger view.

Back of Abbots house from Castle street. facing towards the Newry Mourne supposed abbots house, the bakery no 2 !! . This St Colemans hall was used by the Bosco, & for dancing, the walls were used a hand ball wall, the best In the area played here,studdy Thomson etc, across to its right was the building below the Abbots reception House. All visiting the Abbey from the Clanrye came into hyde market gap and into this house first. The Lennons lived here, Kenny Lennon was shot by the English as a double agent for IRA.Not a word of truth In it in my book.

Note the abbey gate post just below the tree branches,as red arrow shows. entrance to this house was just below arrow,all the lower houses here were Abbey stables, next time In Hyde market note the great arches facing the town bar, in behind the walls of these are many more, Sadly these older building at the back are getting ripped apart, Newry Mourne dont care.

All on this site Is copy right, permission for use any item can be applied for to Oliver Curran