Youghal’s St. Mary’s Collegiate Church

Youghal is a charming town in East Cork. Actually, to get there we went into Waterford County briefly as we rounded a traffic circle. It was a very cold day and late in the afternoon, but still beautiful (and no rain). We had lunch at Rendez-Vous, which was delicious!! Then we walked up to St. Mary’s Collegiate Church. Parking in most town spots seemed to be free on Sundays so that made it more leisurely than had we needed to watch the clock on a pre-paid parking sticker.

St. Mary’s has a long history in its present location, dating back to 450 A.D. The roof timbers have been carbon dated to 1170 A.D. I recommend you read the St. Mary’s Collegiate Church Wikipedia page about it since I would only be summarizing what it says and not doing the information justice.

We walked around the graveyard at dusk. It sounds creepy, but it was so peaceful and serene. Strangely, it seemed like a lovely place overlooking the town and Youghal harbor. The kind of place these days probably would have been developed for some less Godly purpose. It is nestled in a steep hill so the graveyard is uneven terrain. We walked on worn paths, not wanting to disrespect the graves by cutting across them. It is said they have records, but we went when it seemed no living person was around.

St. Mary