Inishmaine was originally an island in Lough Mask (Loch Measca). Nowadays, Inishmaine is a peninsula and you can drive directly to the site. In the seventh century, St. Cormac built a monastery on the island. The current ruins date from the early part of the thirteenth century when an Augustinian Abbey was founded. The gatehouse is newer, dating from the fifteenth century. The Abbey was burned by Hugh O'Connor in 1227, yet more proof that, no matter how good the English were at destroying things in Ireland, they were in the ha'penny place compared to the locals.
