Lislaughtin Friary is now a romantic ruin, but it was once one of the most important religious institutions in County Kerry. Founded in 1475 by John O’Connor Kerry, the Friary managed to continue in secret after Henry VIII’s dissolution of the monasteries. But in 1580, three monks were murdered before the high altar by English forces. The Friary was sacked, but the monks had time to bury its processional cross. Years later, a farmer dug it up in a field. It is now in Ireland’s National Museum.
