FEATURE
S
et in a Special Area of Conservation, Tintern Abbey evokes evokes the landscape and connections to a time passed in a unique way. The trip to Tintern is a journey, and the prize at the end of negotiating the roads of the Hook Peninsula is the first, teasing glimpse of the abbey that entices you down the driveway. As you follow the meandering drive the natural landscape is laid out below you, while the eighteenth century organised planting gives you a peep at the medieval abbey turned into a fortified dwelling.
The abbey was founded by William Marshal, known to history as The Greatest Knight in Christendom, in answer to a vow made in time of tempest. Marshal and his retinue were coming towards the end of their journey to Ireland when they were caught in a violent storm. William called to his creator asking for safe delivery and vowing that, if he and his companions were saved, he would build a monastery at the location where they made dry land. The weary travellers landed at Bannow Bay and William Marshal fulfilled his vow through the foundation of Tintern Abbey, known as Tintern de Voto, or Tintern of the Vow. The abbey was founded in 1200 and was initially populated by Cistercian monks from Tintern Abbey in Wales.
The monks of the Cistercian Order, founded in France in 1098, had gained a reputation across Europe as austere, hardworking and resourceful. Self sufficiency as far as possible coupled with a long term view allowed the monks to strive for perfection in their construction and their agricultural endeavours. The Cistercians followed the three year crop rotation system, introduced new animal breeds and were arguably the first to introduce gothic architecture to Ireland. The monks regularly diverted rivers to provide water for use in the abbey and for sanitation and pushed the known boundaries of engineering 22 www.heritageireland.ie
qáåíÉêå=^ÄÄÉó p~äíãáääëI=kÉï=oçëëI= `çK=tÉñÑçêÇ