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St Colman’s Church is an impressive 12th century ruin. It is dedicated to St Colman, born circa 550. The ruin we see at Shrule was built between 1170 and 1230 by the family of Turlough O’Connor, once the King of Connaught and also the High King of Ireland who died in 1156.
The church was built on the site of an earlier structure, which was originally built to mark the spot where St Patrick planted his crozier while in the west of Ireland. The village of Shrule and surrounding parish is certainly historically significant being home to three ancient churches, two abbeys and the ruins of up to six castles.
Unfortunately very little information exists about the life and decline of St Colman’s Church but its size and the effort put into this wonderful Gothic structure indicates the important position it held locally at the time of its creation.
References:The church of the former Franciscan monastery was built probably between 1515 and 1520. It is located in the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Old Rauma. The church stands by the small stream of Raumanjoki (Rauma river).
The exact age of the Church of the Holy Cross is unknown, but it was built to serve as the monastery church of the Rauma Franciscan Friary. The monastery had been established in the early 15th century and a wooden church was built on this location around the year 1420.
The Church of the Holy Cross served the monastery until 1538, when it was abandoned for a hundred years as the Franciscan friary was disbanded in the Swedish Reformation. The church was re-established as a Lutheran church in 1640, when the nearby Church of the Holy Trinity was destroyed by fire.
The choir of the two-aisle grey granite church features medieval murals and frescoes. The white steeple of the church was built in 1816 and has served as a landmark for seafarers.