placenamesKilleshin
Cill Uisean
Two churches preserve different periods of Killeshin’s religious architecture.
The name
These Irish name elements are associated with this record in the Logainm glossary.
An element’s translation is a clue, rather than a complete explanation of the name. Its form and meaning depend on local history and the full Irish name.
Recorded forms
- Cill Uisean · Irish · main form
- Killeshin · English · main form
Place & story
The Romanesque doorway
The ruined medieval church retains a twelfth-century doorway with four recessed arches. Its sculpture includes animals, birds and human faces, some with elaborate hair and beards. Two inscriptions commemorate Diarmait, King of Leinster, and Cellachan; the latter’s precise role is uncertain. The later chancel contains a two-light window with ogee-shaped heads, probably from the sixteenth century. [2]
The Church of the Holy Cross
The Catholic Church of the Holy Cross dates to about 1820. Its Georgian Gothic design includes a tower and octagonal corner turrets. The national architectural inventory records a projecting sacristy and an interior remodelled during renovations around 1985. [3]
Geographic information
Sources & further reading
- Logainm.ie — Killeshin. Place names and geographic record, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
- Killeshin Church · Office of Public Works, Heritage Ireland
- Catholic Church of the Holy Cross, Killeshin, record 12803207 · National Inventory of Architectural Heritage
- The Church of the Holy Cross at Killeshin, as photographed in 2013 illustration: based on a Killeshin-Holy Cross Church by Ian Rob. AI-assisted watercolour and ink adaptation; cream paper margins added, incidental clutter omitted and fine details simplified. Licence: CC BY-SA 2.0.
Name record retrieved 2026-10-25 · Source record modified 2024-06-24. How this page was prepared.