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Clare Abbey lies on the west bank of the river Fergus, a mile south of Ennis and north of the village of Clarecastle. It was founded some time prior to 1189, possibly by Donal ‘the Great’ O’Brien, who confirms the foundation in a twelfth-century charter.  As with a lot of medieval sources, there are some doubts over the authenticity of the charter as it only survives to date in a copy from 1461. Clare Abbey is one of a number of Augustinian houses in the River Fergus valley and estuary, along with Canon Island, Killone nunnery and a small house in Inchicronan Lake. Despite a seemingly poor location on rocky grassland, its position in O’Brien’s territory on the river Fergus, in addition to its extensive possessions, ensured its status as one of the most important monasteries in the diocese.

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