Welcome to Aghalurcher

Aghalurcher was used for over 1000 years as a place of worship, pilgrimage, and burial. It is associated with St. Ronan, possibly in the 7th century. The graveyard is one of the oldest in Fermanagh and was the chief burial place of the Maguire clan.

Surviving stonework indicates that the present medieval ruined church was preceded by a 12th century Romanesque church, with further construction carried out in the 13th century. By the medieval period, it was a large, important parish. The Maguire family were patrons of the parish and they contributed to many modifications to the church up until the 16th century. There was substantial rebuilding in 1447 when the Annals of Ulster record that King Thomas Óg Maguire put a ‘French roof’ on the church and built the east gable. It is thought that this followed his pilgrimage to Italy where he was inspired by the continental architecture. Internal feuds within the Maguire clan led to a number of atrocities being carried out here. In 1484, Gilla Patrick Maguire was killed by his five brothers on the church altar, and two years later in 1486 Don Maguire was killed by his uncles and cousins.

The church is shown on the 1609-10 Baronial map as roofed and with a tower, yet by 1622, it is in ruins. These remains now stand quietly in a crowded graveyard. The small vault in the north wall of the church is a later addition. It was added to the church in the post medieval period and houses 17th century recumbent grave slabs in memory of the Galbraith and Balfour families.

Today, you can see many examples of intricately carved stones and headstones. The carved stones in the entrance gateposts are thought to have been part of the original 12th century parish church. One of these shows the scene of the crucifixion on a ringed cross, and the other shows two figures, one tall figure with a beard and large ears and a shorter figure with wide eyes and a gaping mouth. Two important carved stones from the site are now housed in Fermanagh County Museum. The first, a male exhibitionist figure, with an expressive face and acrobatic body and second a Bishop’s Stone, depicting a bishop holding a crozier and book shrine.

Nature Note: Yew trees have a long association with burial grounds and churchyards; in Ireland they are held as sacred trees, symbols of immortality, of death and rebirth. One of Ireland’s few evergreens, the tree has an ability to regenerate itself and is seen as the tree of Immortality. This particular link with graveyards predates the Early Christian period and indeed Yew trees may have been planted in Christian burial grounds to placate Pagan beliefs. Yew trees are poisonous to livestock and may have been planted to prevent grazing. All Irish yews descend from cuttings of a tree from Florencecourt in County Fermanagh.