Muckross Abbey, Franciscan monastery in Killarney National Park, Ireland

Muckross Abbey is a Franciscan monastery in Killarney National Park featuring stone walls, a central courtyard, and a vaulted cloister. The building contains multiple chambers arranged across two levels.

Donal McCarthy Mor founded the monastery in 1448 as a Franciscan sanctuary for the region. Cromwellian forces damaged much of the site in the 1600s, though the core structure survived.

The abbey's name in Irish is Mainistir Mhucrois, and it was earlier called the Friary of Irrelagh. In the 17th and 18th centuries it became the burial place of Kerry poets, among them Séafraidh Ó Donnchadha, Aodhagan Ó Rathaille and Eoghan Rua Ó Súilleabháin. Piaras Feiritéar, executed in 1653, lies in the surrounding graveyard.

Visiting is free year-round and the grounds are easy to explore on foot. A parking area is located near the adjacent Muckross House.

The yew tree in the cloister courtyard is traditionally believed to be several centuries old. The abbey also holds the graves of the Kerry poets, including Séafraidh Ó Donnchadha, Aodhagan Ó Rathaille and Eoghan Rua Ó Súilleabháin, while Piaras Feiritéar, executed in 1653, lies in the surrounding burial ground.