St. Mary's Collegiate Church

The Graveyard Trail was stunning - beautiful views from the top, and church itself is beautiful, both inside and outside. Really glad we discovered it when visiting Youghal.

The graveyard trail was lovely. You could see into the town of Youghal when on the town wall. There were informational points on the trail as well. Inside the church, there was a very pleasant gentleman named Wayne who gave us some information leaflets and let us browse at our own leisure. After we were finished, he answered our questions about the religion and architecture of the building. He even gave me a gift, which was very thoughtful and much appreciated. Beautiful church, beautiful grounds. Would recommend!

Self guided audio tour. Highly recommend this tour it was beautifully done and very interesting. The park and town walls beside the church are lovely for a walk.

A phenomenal Norman church, full of history, highly recommended.

Fabulous church, still in weekly use for service. Nice to spend a spare half hour exploring and reading the memorials. Audio tour available for a small charge. Well looked after by staff.

Fascinating place tucked away in this small beachside town. I stumbled across it on a morning run when we first moved to the country. Beautiful just to walk the grounds, but the inside is even better, as it is set up to be like a museum with lots of detail about its history and the artifacts found during renovation. You can drive your car up, but it is quite tight. I would recommend walking. The cemetery around the grounds are fascinating, and parts of the old town walls are still standing. Must see if in Youghal imo.

Beautiful. Really beautiful. Especially with the graveyard around it. It's looking very historical and nice. I'm from Germany and have seen the cathedrals from cologne and Paderborn and I wasn't as much impressed. It looks way more historic and is really nice. You can also get a nice view over the town from the top of the old city walls at the top of the graveyard.

This is an amazing church that has been in continuous use since the 12th century. Well worth the visit - just a beautiful structure. You can walk on the ramparts of the original city walls that surround part of the cemetery as well. Deserves at least an hour - well worth stopping in Youghal to see it.

ST MARY'S COLLEGIATE CHURCH in Youghal The 13th century St Mary's Collegiate Church, hardly a stone's throw from the main street, was one of the highlights of a recent short stay in Youghal. It is one of the gems of the country and should be much better known. It is one of the few parish churches of the period still in use in Ireland. The earliest entry in the vestry book of Youghal is a statement of parish accounts for the year 1201. The list of clergy can be traced back to this date. Names associated with the church over the centuries included the Earls of Desmond (the 7th enhanced it, the 15th damaged it), Sir Walter Raleigh, Oliver Cromwell, George Berkley and Richard Boyle. In recent years the Collegiate Church has been declared a National Monument of Ireland. It is almost unknown for a church building that is in regular use to receive this status from the government. Cork took some time out the weekend before last to blow its own trumpet at the City Hall and, in fairness, Youghal were there in force. And rightly so. The seaside town and its ancient buildings should be promoted as a national treasure, not merely a local one. http://www.youghal.cork.anglican.org/ (024) 91014 List of interesting Youghal sights: Watergate, Clock gate, Main Street shopfronts, St John's Priory, The Red House, Tyntes Castle, The Alms House, Shalom House, Myrtle Grove, and St Mary's Collegiate Church and the Town Walls.