Knockainey

Knockainy Castle is a 15th or 16th century tower house
Saint John's Church (Church of Ireland) was deconsecrated in 1999

Knockainey or Knockainy (Irish: Cnoc Áine, meaning 'hill of Áine') is a civil parish and village in County Limerick, Ireland.[1][2] It is in the historical barony of Smallcounty,[2][3] between the towns of Hospital and Bruff.[4]

There are a large number of archaeological sites in the area, including several on Knockainy Hill in the townland of Knockainy West.[5][6] These remains, which include cursus, cairn, ring fort, standing stone and ring barrow sites,[6][7] form part of a complex traditionally associated with the sun goddess Áine.[8][9] A nearby clapper bridge, known as Clochán Áine, is also associated with Áine.[10] Knockainy Castle is a 15th or 16th century tower house,[11] associated by several sources with the O'Grady family,[3][12] who were stewards to the Earls of Desmond.[13]

The former Church of Ireland church in Knockainy, dedicated to Saint John,[14] was built in the 19th century on the site of a much earlier ecclesiastical enclosure.[15] The building's bell tower dates to the 17th century,[16] and there is an O'Grady family plaque dating to the early 16th century.[14] This church was deconsecrated in 1999 and is now used to host events.[15] The local Catholic church, a more modern building, is located to the south.[17] It forms part of the parish of Knockaney and Patrickswell in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cashel and Emly.[18]

The local national (primary) school, Knockainey National School or Scoil Náisiúnta Cnoc Áine,[19] had an enrollment of 181 pupils as of January 2024.[20] The local Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) club, Knockainey GAA, won the Limerick Intermediate Hurling Championship in 2001.[21]

  1. ^ "Cnoc Áine / Knockainy". logainm.ie. Placenames Database of Ireland. Retrieved 19 March 2024.
  2. ^ a b "Civil Parish of Knockainy, Co. Limerick". townlands.ie. Retrieved 19 March 2024.
  3. ^ a b Lewis, Samuel, ed. (1837). "Aney". A Topographical Dictionary of Ireland. Dublin: Lewis.
  4. ^ "St John's Church Knockainey". discoverireland.ie. Fáilte Ireland. Retrieved 19 March 2024. Knockainey [..is..] a small rural village midway between the towns of Bruff and Hospital
  5. ^ Westropp, Thomas Johnson (1917). "The Ancient Sanctuaries of Knockainey and Clogher, County Limerick, and Their Goddesses". Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy: Archaeology, Culture, History, Literature. 34. Royal Irish Academy: 50–55. JSTOR 25504208.
  6. ^ a b Record of Monuments and Places - County Limerick. Dublin: National Monuments and Historic Properties Service. 1997.
  7. ^ "Cnoc Áine". themodernantiquarian.com. Retrieved 19 March 2024.
  8. ^ Cotterell, Arthur (2007). The Encyclopedia of Mythology. Hermes House. p. 96. ISBN 1-84038-894-3.
  9. ^ Condit, Tom; Coyne, Frank (2004). "Knockainy Hill — a ceremonial landscape in County Limerick". Archaeology Ireland. Wordwell Ltd. JSTOR 40792925.
  10. ^ Crawford, Henry S. (June 1917). "Primitive Bridge or Causeway at Knockainey, Co. Limerick". The Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland. 6. 7 (1). Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland: 82. JSTOR 25514487.
  11. ^ Bradley, John; Halpin, Andrew; King, Heather A. (1989). The Urban Survey of Limerick. pp. 179–181. [Knockainy Castle also known as White Castle] This 15th/16th century four storeyed tower house is built of coursed limestone masonry
  12. ^ Fitzgerald, Patrick (1826). The History, Topography and Antiquities, of the County and City of Limerick (Volume 1). p. 307. ISBN 9780343480547. Aney is a small village [..] and in the village is situated a small castle, built by the O'Gradys of Kilballyowen [..] It is situated on the west of Knockaney hill
  13. ^ Westropp, Thomas Johnson (1906). "The Ancient Castles of the County of Limerick (Central and South-Eastern Baronies)". Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy: Archaeology, Culture, History, Literature. 26. Royal Irish Academy: 183. JSTOR 25502742. The White Castle, or Knockaney C [..] had three stories, the lowest vaulted [..] Tradition says it was built by the Earl's steward, Matthew O'Grady, while Desmond was abroad
  14. ^ a b "Saint John's Church (Knockainy), Knockainy, Limerick". buildingsofireland.ie. National Inventory of Architectural Heritage. Retrieved 19 March 2024.
  15. ^ a b "History of St. John's Church". Knockainey Historical and Conservation Society. Retrieved 19 March 2024.
  16. ^ "Knockainey & St. John's Church". visitballyhoura.com. Retrieved 19 March 2024.
  17. ^ "Hospital / Knockainy" (PDF). Retrieved 19 March 2024 – via limerickcity.ie. There is a modern Catholic church to the south [of Knockainy COI Church]
  18. ^ "Church Of Our Lady, Knockaney". cashel-emly.ie. Archdiocese of Cashel & Emly. Retrieved 19 March 2024.
  19. ^ "Knockainey National School, Limerick - Scoil Náisiúnta Cnoc Áine". knockaineyns.ie. Retrieved 19 March 2024.
  20. ^ "Directory page - Scoil Nais Cnoc Aine". gov.ie. Department of Education. 22 January 2024. Retrieved 19 March 2024.
  21. ^ "Knockainey HC". clubinfo.ie. Retrieved 19 March 2024.